Live shopping – which integrates live streamed video on social with ecommerce – has not quite reached the ubiquity and popularity that was predicted in the pandemic’s early days.

But according to insights firm Caddle, it does provide a boost in intent to buy among certain – sometimes surprising – demographics.

In its Daily Survey panel, Caddle polled 3,000 Canadian consumers about their propensity to shop “live,” and attend a virtual event in which a host or  influencer drives viewers to a purchase during a live digital broadcast.

Only 25.4% of Canadians had a positive interest towards attending a live shopping event, compared to 40.6% who were not at all interested. However, 20.3% were “somewhere in between” being interested and not interested at all.

When asked about how likely they were to buy something from the live shopping event, 24% of Canadians were likely to make a purchase, as compared to the 29.9% who answered they would “definitely not buy.”

But according to Caddle’s insights, there’s a generational participation divide that is nearly twofold: 26% of younger generations responded “Yes” to participating in live shopping events, as compared with only 13% of the general population. Furthermore, 31% of millennials have joined live events, compared to 18% of the general population.

And contrary to perceptions, it’s actually men who are more likely to purchase something at a live shopping event: 28.6% of men were positively interested in buying something, compared to only 19% of women.