More sneaking out of work to sneak in some last-minute shopping
More Australians than ever before are sneaking out during office hours to complete their Christmas shopping.
Discretionary spending is drying up (Photo: AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts)
New data from TaskPod shows bookings have spiked for their working cubes in major shopping hubs across the country.
The busiest pods were in downtown Sydney’s World Square and Castle Towers shopping centres, with both sites seeing a 750 per cent increase in bookings this month.
Bookings have also doubled at Melbourne’s Bourke Street Mall and Adelaide’s Westfield Marion shopping hubs.
“Some of our busiest pods are seeing up to six hours of continuous usage as Aussies are tapping into the convenience of having a mobile office in the middle of a busy shopping centre,” TaskPod co-founder Adam Morgan said.
“With Christmas next week, the retail locations are seeing enormous use right now.
“We believe this is due to workers finishing their last minute Christmas shopping during work time, and enjoying the convenience of being able to take a call or two while on the go.”
The small TaskPod cubes are soundproof and come with a desk, chair, WiFi and a charging port.
Mr Morgan said there would be more TaskPod sites opening up in Bondi as a result of the demand.
The rise of in-person shopping during company hours comes as online sales also soar.
There was a 12 per cent rise in the past two years, with giants Amazon Australia and Ebay extending their Christmas delivery periods.
