OLDER women were among the biggest spenders when non-essential retailers re-opened yesterday.

Spending in hairdressing and expenditure in clothes retailer Penneys were huge features of the reopening after the months-long lockdown, according to data from fintech Revolut.

People went on a spending splurge fuelled by pent-up demand and pandemic savings.

Months of being denied a hair cut meant there was a rush to hairdressers and barbers.

At one point, Revolut users were spending €768 per minute in hairdressers, barbers and salons.

The top five retailers that saw the most spending, once grocery stores are excluded, were Penneys, JD Sports, Brown Thomas, Zara and Argos.

Penneys stores accounted for 30 of the top 50 retailers in the country for Revolut spending.

Grafton Barber was the most popular hairdressing retailer among Revolut users.

The data shows that the average spend per person on hairdressing was €25.

Older women have the highest per person spend. Women between the ages of 64 and 74 spent an average of €66 in hair salons.

Men in their late 50s and 60s spent just €19 on their hair.

It was the first time in five months for many people to have their hair done, while an appointments system had to be put in place for major non-essential retailers to cope with the demand from customers.

Restaurants and bars have yet to reopen with demand expected to be strong when they do.

Younger women were not far behind in the spending stakes on hair salons.

Women between the ages of 25 and 34 spent an average of €46 on Monday in the hairdressers.

And women aged between 18 and 24 racked up average expenditure of €41, Revolut said.

Meanwhile, AIB has reported a 30pc increase in hotel spending in April as holiday surge begins.

The under 25s recorded the biggest increase in hotel spending, while over 65s recorded the biggest increase in airline spending.

Kerry had one of the highest increase in spending on airlines during the month, with Sligo consumers also recording a big increase.

Confirmation that hotels would re-open and inter-county travel would resume saw spending on hotels surge 30pcin April compared to March, according to the AIB Spend Trend report.

The highest increase in hotel spending came from those under the age of 25, where spend was up 38pc, while the lowest increase was among those between the ages of 45 and 54.

Those over the age of 65 recorded the biggest increase in airline spending for the month of April, up 25pc on March.

This signals that some feel there may be the possibility of international travel later this year.

Those between the ages of 25 and 34 recorded the smallest increase in airline spending, up just 2.2pc in April.

Consumer spending in pubs and off-licences was up 35pc on March, as people took advantage of the good weather.

The biggest increase in spending in this sector was from those in Kilkenny, followed by those in Laois.

The smallest increase in spending in this sector was in Cavan and Monaghan.