The Impact of Music Genres on Charity Retail - Our Findings

As part of our new research, Songs That Sell: The Impact of Music in Charity Stores, we conducted a 21-day in-store study that tested three contrasting music genres - pop, classical, and jazz - while controlling variables like tempo and volume. We looked at their impact on sales, customer spend, staff mood, and in-store atmosphere. 

Let’s take a look at our main findings.

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The research.

To investigate the impact of music in a charity shop environment, we worked with the Milngavie store in Glasgow to test whether different background music genres - pop, classical, and jazz - would influence:

• Total sales
  
  
• Average customer spend
  
  
• Staff mood
  
  
• Customer engagement and atmosphere

The core question:
Would changing the music actually change behaviour?

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Headline findings.

• Across the 21-day period, jazz music delivered the highest average daily sales - significantly higher than pop music.
• Classical and jazz music also noticeably improved staff mood and created a calmer, more welcoming environment for customers.
• Pop music, by contrast, produced the lowest sales and elicited no customer feedback.

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Why it works.

Behavioural research shows that music subtly shapes how we shop. Key factors include:

1. Mood and energy.

Low-tempo music relaxes customers and encourages browsing.

2. “Fit” with the environment.

Music that feels like the right “fit” for the audience and location enhances the customer experience.

3. Emotional contagion.

When staff feel calmer and more focused, their interactions change, and customers notice.

In our study with DEBRA, jazz and classical music aligned with all three of these drivers.

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Staff feedback.

As part of the study, we kept in close contact with DEBRA staff to hear how they felt about the varying styles of music and how they influenced the atmosphere. Across the three weeks, store staff described the jazz and classical playlists as:

• “Calming and relaxing”
  
  
• “A better fit for our customers”
  
  
• “Good for productivity”

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Observed behaviour.

During the 3-week study, store staff were also asked to observe customer behaviour and the general atmosphere and regularly report back to us. Their feedback included:

• Customers lingered longer in the store
• Customers browsed more closely through stock
• Customers commented on the music far more (than before the study began)
• The shop felt calmer and more welcoming
• Customer-staff interactions increased

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The Impact on Sales.

Over the 21-day test, the store recorded £6,045.33 in total sales. Breaking this down by genre revealed a clear pattern:

Mean daily sales (per genre).

• Jazz: £379.73
  
  
• Classical: £309.58
  
  
• Pop: £228.56
  
  

Jazz music produced the highest average daily sales, followed by classical, with pop producing the lowest in-store sales.