Nearly 187 million Americans are expected to shop between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday this year, breaking last year’s record.
What’s Happening: The National Retail Federation says 186.9 million people plan to shop during the five-day holiday weekend. That’s 3 million more than last year’s previous record of 183.4 million shoppers.
What’s Important: Black Friday remains the biggest shopping day, with 130.4 million people expected to hit stores and websites. Cyber Monday comes in second with 73.9 million shoppers. About 67 million people plan to shop on Saturday, with most saying they want to support local businesses for Small Business Saturday.
Between the Lines: More than half of shoppers say they’re planning to shop because the deals are too good to pass up. Others say it’s become a tradition or they simply like to start their holiday shopping during the long weekend.
Catch Up Quick: As of early November, 58% of consumers had already started their holiday shopping. On average, shoppers have completed about one-quarter of their planned purchases. The most popular gifts this year are clothing and accessories, gift cards and toys.
By the Numbers: Americans plan to spend $29.1 billion on gift cards alone, up from $28.6 billion last year. People expect to buy three to four gift cards each and spend an average of $171.32 per person. Restaurants are the most popular gift card choice, followed by bank-issued cards, department stores and coffee shops.
The Big Picture: Holiday spending is expected to surpass $1 trillion for the first time ever during November and December. That represents a 3.7% to 4.2% increase over last year. The massive shopping push reflects how important the holidays have become to both consumers and retailers. Retail remains the nation’s largest private-sector employer, supporting more than one in four U.S. jobs.
The Sources: National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics.
