Retail facilitates credit and resumes booklet to attract consumers back

With the purchasing power of Brazilian families limited by the drop in income and inflation, retail has been adopting as a strategy to facilitate access to credit and even revive the booklet.

For Eduardo Yamashita, director of operations at Gouvêa Ecosystem, the large chains understood that it is necessary to create a more favorable environment so that consumers, especially low-income consumers, can once again acquire durable and semi-durable goods, which have greater value.

In the current scenario, in which income is committed to basic items, access to credit is the only way to favor consumption. Among the main changes are the possibility of making purchases in e-commerce in installments without the need for a credit card, as well as the expansion of the number of installments.

“If the retailer does not create facilities and alternatives, the consumer will postpone the purchase and stop consuming. What we are seeing is that retailers that have control of their credit portfolio are starting this movement.”

He points out that the expansion of Auxílio Brasil, from R$ 400 to R$ 600, in the second half, can help the recovery of sales.

On Monday (18), businesswoman Luiza Trajano, from Magazine Luiza, appeared in a video released by WhatsApp to 5 million customers to publicize that the company will offer pre-approved credit for payments made through the booklet.

About 10 million people are eligible, according to the company. Of this total, 80% of the pre-approved base is credited to the Luiza Card and the Magalu Card, and the remaining 20% ​​is for the booklet.

According to the company, the action takes place in the midst of a scenario of great credit shortage for the final consumer. “The aim is to increase the volume of credit granted consciously.”

Currently, direct consumer credit accounts for 6% of Magazine Luiza sales, while card purchases account for 40% of the total in physical stores.

The Casas Bahia chain is also betting on the strategy. This year, the retailer launched a digital booklet, which allows the payment of purchases in the marketplace in installments without the need for a credit card and with the possibility of payment in up to 24 installments. Payment of installments can be made by BanQi, the network’s digital account.

According to Via, parent company of the Ponto and Casas Bahia banners, installment plans accounted for 14% of sales in the first quarter of this year. The highest penetration was in physical stores, with a 25% share of sales, while in e-commerce this range was 6.3%. The information is in the results report for the first quarter of 2022.

“Our expertise in providing credit via installment plans continues as a tool to increase profitability in the online channel and the opportunity for online shopping, especially for the population that does not have access to credit,” says the company in the report.

The Lojas Cem network is another one that offers the possibility of paying in installments, with plans divided into one entry plus 14 installments. According to the company’s website, the network also offers purchase terms without entry, with up to 50 days for the first payment. In purchases made on the card, the consumer can pay in up to 12 installments.

Research carried out by the SPC Brasil (Credit Protection Service) and the CNDL (National Confederation of Shopkeepers), estimates that 22.9% of consumers still use installment plans.

According to Merula Borges, a specialist in finance at the CNDL, despite the modality having lost ground, it is still present in large retailers — the difference is that the paper booklet is giving way to the electronic ticket. Among those who bought on installment plans, 61.2% did so using the store card. In addition to these, 48.3% used the meat.

“It has been updated. Many stores offer an option to pay in installments through the store’s own card, which cannot be used elsewhere. This remains a form of installment plan”, he says.

For the specialist, this modality serves, above all, the low-income public who cannot pay in cash or who do not have access to other types of credit.

Despite the movement of large retailers, she says that the trend is for a reduction in this type of credit. “It is a trend to reduce this type of modality, because people are becoming more banked, in a movement strengthened by the pandemic.”

In addition to installment plans, other retailers offer extended installment payment options for purchases made with the store’s own card. This is the case with Carrefour, which allows payment in up to 24 interest-free installments on purchases of certain products, both in stores and on the website.

Americanas, in turn, offers payment options in up to 21 interest-free installments using the Ame Card.