Headlines

154M Shoppers Turned Out for Thanksgiving Weekend Deals

It was an increase of 3 million versus last year.

Published

7 years ago

November 28, 2016

INSTORE Staff

More than 154 million consumers shopped over Thanksgiving weekend, up from 151 million shoppers in 2015, according to survey results released Sunday by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics.

Average spending per person over Thanksgiving weekend totaled $289.19, down slightly from $299.60 last year. An average of $214.13 went specifically toward gifts.

“It was a strong weekend for retailers, but an even better weekend for consumers, who took advantage of some really incredible deals,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. “In fact, over one third of shoppers said 100 percent of their purchases were on sale.”

As for where consumers shopped, the survey found that 44 percent went online and 40 percent shopped in-store. The most popular day to shop online was Black Friday, up 1.3 percent from last year to 74 percent, followed by Saturday (49 percent), Thanksgiving (36 percent) and Sunday (34 percent). Of those who shopped in-store, 75 percent shopped on Black Friday, up 3.4 percent from last year, 40 percent on Saturday, 35 percent on Thanksgiving and 17 percent on Sunday.

As for when people showed up in-store on Thursday and Friday, the survey found nearly three in 10 shoppers (29 percent) headed out after 10 a.m. on Black Friday, up from 24 percent last year. Less than 15 percent of consumers arrived to the stores by 6 a.m. or earlier on Black Friday. Early Thanksgiving Day in-store shopping dropped by 19 percent, with only 7 percent of consumers heading to stores before 5 p.m. – while shopping that day itself was up 1 percent.

The survey also found that only 9 percent of consumers have finished their holiday shopping, down from 11 percent last year.

“With mid-season shopping behind us, it’s not too late for retailers to tweak their online and in-store strategies to help increase traffic and see a big payoff during the last few weeks of the holiday season,” Shay said.

Millennials (ages 18 – 34) continue to drive the increase in shopping during Thanksgiving Weekend. Eight in 10 shopped over the weekend, of which 25-34-year olds shopped the most in store (56 percent) and online (62 percent).

When There’s No Succession Plan, Call Wilkerson

Bob Wesley, owner of Robert C. Wesley Jewelers in Scottsdale, Ariz., was a third-generation jeweler. When it was time to enjoy life on the other side of the counter, he weighed his options. His lease was nearing renewal time and with no succession plan, he decided it was time to call Wilkerson. There was plenty of inventory to sell and at first, says Wesley, he thought he might try to manage a sale himself. But he’s glad he didn’t. “There’s no way I could have done this as well as Wilkerson,” he says. Wilkerson took responsibility for the entire event, with every detail — from advertising to accounting — done, dusted and managed by the Wilkerson team. “It’s the complete package,” he says of the Wilkerson method of helping jewelers to easily go on to the next phase of their lives. “There’s no way any retailer can duplicate what they’ve done.”