The NRF says 141 million unique shoppers were active over the four-day period -- up from 139 million. But they spent less -- an average of $407.02 from Thursday through Sunday, down from $423.55 last year. And ShopperTrak reports that traffic at brick-and-mortar stores gained 2.8% Thursday and Friday, with sales rising 2.3% to $12.3 billion. But Black Friday itself was a big loser, with traffic dropping 11.4% and sales declining 13.2%.
“Forecasts called for weak to moderate sales, and I didn't see anything this weekend that would change those expectations,” Mark Larson, KPMG’s global head of retail, tells Marketing Daily. “While I wouldn't say they shot themselves in the foot by opening Thursday, I think these results will cause retailers to evaluate the best course of action next year.”
Still, earlier Thursday openings allowed stores to attract a different kind of shopper. “I saw many more families and groups of people shopping together, not just single Millennials,” says Ramesh Swamy, a retail advisor with Deloitte, who was out scouting stores both Thursday and Friday. “Clearly, there was good activity.” But he tells Marketing Daily he also saw a large amount of promotional activity, especially in apparel.
While Larson wouldn't comment specifically on how viral videos of fistfights at Walmart -- currently garnering millions of views on YouTube and Facebook -- might impact the brand, “retailers clearly have to deal with the overall impact of social media.”
The NRF, which conducted its survey of 4,400 adults with Prosper Insights & Analytics, says that Thanksgiving Day traffic jumped 27% from last year, with 45 million shopping.
The biggest winners so far are online retailers. The NRF reports that 42.1% of Americans shopped online over the weekend, spending $177.67. That's about 43.7% of their total weekend spending, up from 40.7% last year. Adobe reports that sales for Thursday and Friday reached a record $1.93 billion and $1.06 billion, respectively. And IBM says online sales on both Thanksgiving and Black Friday climbed 20%. Mobile made spectacular gains, accounting for 40% of all online traffic.
Still, observers are concerned that restrained consumer spending, a shorter holiday season and lots of price-slashing promotions may make this a less than jolly holiday for stores. Adds Swamy: “The real trick will be if retailers can maintain this momentum.”