A shift is occurring in Sydney’s dining habits, as western suburbs historically focused on home cooking now see the fastest growth in eating out. A recent report reveals this trend, highlighting increased spending in areas like Fairfield, Auburn, and Parramatta, challenging the city’s traditional east-west dining divide.
The report, Spend Signals, uses transaction data from CommBank iQ to build a spend map of greater Sydney. It captures geographic spend trends, the type of consumer driving them, and where tomorrow’s momentum will come from.
Food catering growth in Fairfield, Auburn, Canterbury, Parramatta, and Merrylands-Guildford is now outpacing many eastern and northern Sydney areas. This growth is 13.2 per cent in Fairfield, 13.1 per cent in Auburn, 13.1 per cent in Canterbury, 12.0 per cent in Parramatta, and 12.0 per cent in Merrylands-Guildford. This signals changing spending habits across some of the city’s fastest-growing communities.
Retail Property Australia Executive Director William Power said the findings reveal a broader shift in how Sydney consumers are spending. The findings can inform how retail precincts best meet the needs of local communities.
William Power noted that as communities grow, attract new jobs, and become more established, spending patterns evolve with them. The data shows that change is already underway.
Sydney’s highest spending markets remain concentrated in affluent eastern and northern suburbs. Eastern Suburbs-North has the highest spending per person per month at $2,293, followed by Manly at $2,199, and North Sydney-Mosman at $2,113. However, the strongest spending growth is occurring on the other side of the city in Canterbury, which has seen a 9.4 per cent increase, Parramatta, which has seen a 7.8 per cent increase, and Marrickville-Sydenham-Petersham, which has seen a 7.7 per cent increase.
Consumers under 30 are the fastest-growing spending cohort in 89 per cent of Sydney markets analysed. Canterbury, Leichhardt, Carlingford, and Auburn lead the way in this demographic.
The findings come as consumers face ongoing cost of living pressures, including the further tightening of monetary policy. NSW’s spend growth is 5.1 per cent, which is trending below the national rate of 5.3 per cent.
Across Australia, retail spending growth remains broad-based, led by Food Catering, which has seen an 8.5 per cent increase, General Retail, which has seen an 8.4 per cent increase, Jewellery, Watches and Luxury, which has seen a 7.6 per cent increase, Retail Services, which has seen a 6.4 per cent increase, and Leisure, which has seen a 6.1 per cent increase.
