NRF Reports Holiday Shopping Healthy So Far

In another sign that retailers had a good start to the holiday season, the National Retail Federation said Tuesday that a record 189.6 million U.S. consumers shopped from Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday, an increase of 14 percent over last year’s 165.8 million.
“Americans continue to start their holiday shopping earlier in the year, and Thanksgiving is still a critical weekend for millions,” NRF president and chief executive officer 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. With the condensed holiday season, consumers are feeling the pressure to get their shopping done in time. Even those who typically wait until the last minute to purchase gifts turned out in record numbers all weekend long.”
Over the weekend, several retailers told WWD that they were generally pleased with the level of holiday season shopping so far, while expressing concerns that there are six fewer days between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year compared to 2018. To compensate, they extended Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals to days before and after the actual days themselves but the

Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

Read More…