From Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday, more than 165 million Americans shopped either in stores or online, surpassing the 164 million who had said they would shop in a consumer sentiment survey conducted ahead of the holiday, the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics said today.
The average shopper spent 313.29 dollars on gifts and other holiday items over the five-day period, down from 335.47 dollars during the same period last year. Of the total, 217.37 dollars or 69 percent was specifically spent on gifts. The biggest spenders were older millennials and Gen Xers (35-44 years old) at 413.05 dollars.
© National Retail Federation
Retailers’ investments in technology continued to pay off with consumers seamlessly shopping on all platforms throughout the weekend. The survey found more than 89 million people shopped both online and in stores, up nearly 40 percent from last year. The multichannel shopper outspent the single-channel shopper by up to 93 dollars on average.
Spending estimates from various groups have indicated that Thanksgiving weekend was record-breaking for the retail industry, consistent with NRF’s holiday forecast of up to a 4.8 percent increase in holiday spending over the months of November and December. In addition, purchases over the long weekend showed new trends coming from younger consumers, with Gen Zers and younger millennials aged 18-24 spending an average 149 dollars on holiday purchases for themselves, more than any other generation.
The most popular day to shop online was Cyber Monday, cited by 67.4 million shoppers, followed by Black Friday with 65.2 million shoppers. The most popular day for in-store shopping was Black Friday with more than 67 million shoppers, followed by Small Business Saturday with 47.4 million shoppers. Also, 66 percent of smartphone owners used their mobile devices to make holiday decisions, up from 63 percent last year.
Source: National Retail Federation
