A new 2025 Holiday Outlook report from PwC shows that consumers are entering the season with tighter budgets, with overall holiday spend expected to decline 5% and Gen Z cutting back the most at 23%.
At the same time, gift cards and other flexible redemption options are gaining traction as shoppers seek value while maintaining generosity.
Recent data mirrors these shifts: younger consumers are overwhelmingly drawn to cash-like and digital rewards, while older generations continue to save for higher-value categories such as merchandise and travel. Families emerge as the most active redeemers across household types, reinforcing PwC’s point that households with dependents are the engine of holiday spend. November remains the peak redemption month across generations, underscoring the importance of loyalty as part of the holiday shopping cycle.
Jason Beales, Chief Strategy & Commercial Officer from AIR MILES, said “we are certainly seeing a migration towards eVouchers amidst the economic turmoil.”
“Many collectors are leaning upon loyalty programs for those looking to mitigate Canadian cost – AIR MILES has countless options to choose from as a means to alleviate day-to-day spending pressures. When getting more granular, some brands are prolific across all age categories; for example, the same top two brands happen to prevail, irrespective of age,” he explained.
“That said, younger demographics definitely seem to migrate towards eVouchers of brands which lean more discretionary in nature, including food delivery, apparel, and/or makeup. Overall, eVoucher redemptions are up over 60% year-over-year– almost certainly attributable to the degradation of the economy in 2025.”
Digital redemptions are quick, frictionless, and a means to fulfil instantaneous gratification for your efforts of engaging with a loyalty program, added Beales.
“These also come at smaller denominations than grander pursuits (like travel or larger merchandise offerings) and thus can be redeemed in a more frequent cadence for those who want to really lean in on the fruits of their labour. We at AIR MILES have seen the $20 denomination remain highest in demand. One can certainly see a connection between cash-proxy redemptions and age as well; as Canadians get older, they are
more predisposed to merchandise and travel instead of cash redemptions, like eVouchers,” he noted.
“Also important to note that those who redeem for eVouchers are also far more likely to be engaged in digital communications (Gen Z are specifically overrepresented in app usage), thus spinning the flywheel faster.”
The retail landscape is getting increasingly competitive; loyalty programs have become table stakes in an effort to gain customers, let alone, not outright losing them, said Beales.
“We believe loyalty frameworks no longer need to be a blanket program inclusion; rather, we see loyalty currencies as being a powerful tool poised to be deployed in times of business need. One can pulse value up materially when needed – be it inventory management, amplification of a key promotional period seasonally, or even a gust at the end of a languishing quarter.
“At BMO AIR MILES we are luckily able to communicate with more than 15 million distinct Canadians, so any and all types of customers are able to be reached when value is to be conveyed. That said, we certainly have an over-abundance of the “family” demographic in our stable; an asset to be leveraged for brands seeking consumers across all age categories.”
Beales said November’s redemption peak only heightens the urgency and importance for businesses of conveying the right concise message, via the appropriate channel.
“Be it reaching youth by digital means, or the elderly amidst physical coalition assets, it is imperative to capture mindshare, or wallet share will fall to the wayside,” he said.
“National brands should lean into those programs that can amplify their cohesive cross-country messaging, while regional/local promotions should be focused and targeted via available data-empowered optimization. In sum, whatever age or geography is applicable to a brands’ needs, we have the capabilities to execute the delivery of value –especially when layering on the opportunity to discern who’s shopping at the competition,” added Beales.
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There has been a significant downgrade in the AIR MILES Canada program in recent years. It has lost convenient earning and redemption opportunities at nationwide retailers like Sobeys and Safeway, and the tepid “Air Miles Receipts” program has been a poor replacement.
The program no longer allows open-jaw flights to be booked on a return ticket. For example, prior to the BMO takeover we booked a trip to Europe where we flew from Canada to London, UK and then back to Canada from Budapest, and a trip to Asia where we flew from Canada to Tokyo and then home to Canada from Bangkok. The program doesn’t allow this any longer.
There are also baffling gaps in AIR MILES Canada’s travel coverage of the world. Although partner airlines of the program serve destinations like South Africa, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman, the travel program won’t allow collectors to book tickets to Johannesburg, Cape Town, Kuwait City, Doha or Muscat. This despite the fact that some AIR MILES Canada partner airlines fly to these destinations.
Even longtime partner Shell Canada has significantly downgraded its bonus mile offers as of December 2025, making collection with Shell and AIR MILES far less attractive. Consumers are now expected to spend more in return for fewer bonus miles. For example, a longstanding bonus offer for collectors used to reward three 30L fill-ups in a given month with 100 bonus AIR MILES. Now the offer is only 40 bonus AIR MILES for three fill ups.
The AIR MILES Canada program needs to do better if it wishes to remain relevant in a competitive marketplace.