22 Nov ICSC: Consumer Spending Expected To Reach $125B On Thanksgiving Weekend
Consumers are approaching this Black Friday holiday shopping weekend with optimism, noted ICSC Thanksgiving Weekend Intentions Survey* which found that consumers plan to spend $125 billion, a 10 percent increase over 2021, even with the holiday shopping season starting earlier this year.
On average, 89 percent of consumers expect to shop on Thanksgiving Day to Cyber Monday, despite inflation and rising interest rates.
“While high inflation and rising rates may impact how consumers spend this holiday weekend, it’s clear that they do intend to spend on Black Friday and beyond,” said Tom McGee, president and CEO of ICSC. “The earlier start to the holiday season this year hasn’t dampened enthusiasm for traditional milestones like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and we anticipate consumers will increase spending compared to last year across the holiday weekend.”
Consumers remain cognizant of economic factors and how inflation and interest rates have affected their ability to spend this holiday season. Eighty-one percent of respondents said that rising interest rates are likely to impact their shopping behavior or payment methods during Thanksgiving Weekend, and said they would cut back on overall spending (37 percent), defer to using a debit card (37 percent), use cash more than usual (31 percent), or take advantage of “buy now, pay later” (23 percent).
When it comes to inflation, 61 percent of respondents agreed that higher prices make Thanksgiving Weekend deals and discounts more influential on purchasing decisions. Taking advantage of deals and discounts were the top-cited reason (58 percent) for shopping during the weekend.
“We’re continuing to see an evolution and a more regular cadence of sales and promotional events throughout the holiday season – and increasingly earlier in the year,” added McGee. “Consumers are taking notice. Two-thirds are placing less emphasis on specific deal events like Black Friday, and 38 percent cited an earlier start to shopping as a reason for that shift. Nonetheless, shoppers are still prioritizing deals in the current economic environment, and that includes Thanksgiving Weekend.”
When deciding where to shop, nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of respondents cited price and value as the most influential factor, and with fewer retailers opening their doors on Thanksgiving Day, about half (54 percent) of respondents said they would shop this holiday. Nearly 8-in-10 respondents said they would shop on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and of those planning to shop on Black Friday, 64 percent said they would so at a physical store.
More than three-quarters of respondents said they would visit a retail store during the five-day shopping period—shopping (59 percent) and dining (48 percent) were the top activities, while other reasons included seeing a movie (29 percent), holiday-themed events (21 percent) or take a child to visit Santa (15 percent).