'Condoms, booze and bling'

14 May 2015 - 02:07 By Shenaaz Jamal

South African students have a lot to learn about finances. According to the 2015 Student Spending Report released in Johannesburg yesterday, the average student continues to prioritise instant gratification over saving.Over 30% of students did not save, while 58% saved between R1 and R540 on a monthly basis.And those who did save said they only saved for "rainy days", which usually occurred once a week.The report's findings are based on the online interviews marketing specialists Student Village conducted with over 3000 students aged between 17 and 25 earlier this year.Male students were found to be more free-spending than female students, with 79% of their budget going towards alcohol.Female students spent most of their money on hairdressers and beauticians, with the remainder generally dedicated to medicine, the maintenance of their health and contraception.Clothing, gadgets and take-aways were the primary purchases of coloured students, while white students generally concentrated their purchases on contraceptives, toiletries and music. For most black students, the big buys were alcohol, petrol and bling.Annual student spending increased by more than R2000 per person from last year, contributing a combined total of R30.4-billion to the year's economy.According to the survey, the most favoured clothing brands are Nike, Topshop, Zara and YDE.Student Village CEO Ronen Aires said: "Students are influenced by [the media] in everything they consume. There is much more access to fashion, trends and celebrity lifestyles [today] and what is important to them is what they look like. It provides them with instant gratification."Over 85% of students' cash flow comes from their parents, with the rest resulting from part-time or full-time work, bursaries or sponsorships, or entrepreneurial ventures.When asked what they would do if they inherited R5-million, none of the students surveyed said they would invest or save it.Instead, most said they would blow it all at once. Aires added that students' spending habits have changed with technology since the survey was first conducted five years ago."Back then, it was all about spending money on airtime and these days it is all about data. Students now experience the world through their thumbs," said Aires...

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