Thanksgiving weekend shopping sets record

ALBANY — Black Friday weekend was everything U.S. retailers could have asked for, with a record 189.6 million consumers going to stores or going online, according to the National Retail Federation.

A Prosper Insights & Analytics conducted Nov. 27-Dec. 2 found that the number of shoppers increased a whopping 14% over the 165.8 million who braved the Thanksgiving weekend last year.

In addition to setting a record, online shopping on Black Friday for the first time overtook Cyber Monday. The survey found 93.2 million people shopped online the day after Thanksgiving compared to 83.3 million on Dec. 2.

“Americans continue to start their holiday shopping earlier in the year, and Thanksgiving is still a critical weekend for millions,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. “Whether they’re looking for something unique on Main Street, making a trip to the store or searching for the best deals from their mobile device, this is when shoppers shift into high gear.”

The top gift purchase over the five-day weekend was apparel, which was bought by 58% of those surveyed. Toys were next at 33 percent, followed by electronics, 31 percent; books/music/movies/video games, 28 percent, and gift cards, 27 percent.

With Thanksgiving coming on the latest date possible this year, there’s a sense of urgency among consumers. On average, consumers had completed 52 percent of their shopping, up from 44 percent during the same weekend last year when Thanksgiving came six days earlier on the 22nd. Plus, the survey found that fewer than two in five shoppers (39%) think better deals than those on Thanksgiving weekend will be found during the rest of the holiday season.

“With the condensed holiday season, consumers are feeling the pressure to get their shopping done in time,” Shay said. “Even those who typically wait until the last minute to purchase gifts turned out in record numbers all weekend long.”

The amount spent by shoppers over the five-day Thanksgiving period (Nov. 28-Dec. 2) was also up sharply from 2018. Consumers spent an average of $361.90 on holiday items this year, 16 percent higher than the $313.29 spent during the Thanksgiving period last year.

Consumers were focusing on gift shopping, with $257.33, or 71 percent, going specifically for presents. The NRF said the biggest spenders were 25- to 34-year-olds at $440.46, closely followed by people ages 35-44 at $439.72.

The number of people who shopped retailers’ websites — 142.2 million — topped the 124 million who went to brick-and-mortar stores, while 75.7 million did both. Those two-way consumers were also the biggest spending, averaging $366.79. That was 25% more than shoppers who chose one or the other.

Black Friday was still the gold standard for in-store activity with 84.2 million shoppers, while 59.9 million came out for Small Business Saturday, which local businesses promote heavily. That promotion appears to be paying off since 73% of those who shopped on Saturday were specifically targeting small businesses.

Thanksgiving Day was the third-busiest shopping day at 37.8 million, followed by Sunday at 29.2 million and Cyber Monday with 21.8 million.

Small Business Saturday was the third-busiest day of the period for online shopping with 58.2 million, followed by Thanksgiving Day at 49.7 million and Sunday at 43.1 million.

If a consumer was hesitant about making a purchase, nearly half (49%) said free shipping was the biggest reason they went through with it, up 7% from 2018. Being able to order online and pick up in a store was a big deal for 20%, up from 15% last year. Other top factors included limited-time sales or promotions, 36 percent, and an easy-to-use website or app, 21 percent.

“The growth in online retail sales is a tide that lifts everybody,” Prosper Executive Vice President of Strategy Phil Rist said. “When consumers are buying from retailers online but picking up or making returns in-store, it is more and more difficult to distinguish between the sales retailers make in their stores and the ones they make on their websites.”

Asked where they got information on deals and promotions, 39% said it came from retailers’ emails. Tied for a close No. 2 were advertising circulars and online searches.

Three-quarters of consumers said their mobile devices were instrumental in researching, comparing or making purchases, up from two-thirds of shoppers in 2018.

Destinations found in the survey were department stores, 50%; clothing stores, 36%; grocery stores, 34%; electronics stores, 32%, and discount stores, 29%.

NRF defines the holiday season as Nov. 1-Dec. 31 and has forecast that sales will total between $727.9 and $730.7 billion. Consumers expect to spend an average $1,047.83 — including purchases made earlier — for an increase of 4 percent over last year, according to NRF’s annual survey released in October.

The Thanksgiving survey of 6,746 adult consumers was conducted Nov. 27-Dec. 2 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.2 percentage points.