U.S. Black Friday, Thanksgiving online sales climb to record high
U.S. Black Friday, Thanksgiving online sales climb to
record high
By Richa Naidu, Reuters • November 25, 2017
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Black Friday and Thanksgiving online
sales in the United States surged to record highs as shoppers bagged deep
discounts and bought more on their mobile devices, heralding a promising start
to the key holiday season, according to retail analytics firms.
U.S. retailers raked in a record $7.9 billion in online
sales on Black Friday and Thanksgiving, up 17.9 percent from a year ago,
according to Adobe Analytics, which measures transactions at the largest 100
U.S. web retailers, on Saturday.
Adobe said Cyber Monday is expected to drive $6.6 billion
in internet sales, which would make it the largest U.S. online shopping day in
history.
In the run-up to the holiday weekend, traditional
retailers invested heavily in improving their websites and bulking up delivery
options, preempting a decline in visits to brick-and-mortar stores. Several
chains tightened store inventories as well, to ward off any post-holiday
liquidation that would weigh on profits.
TVs, laptops, toys and gaming consoles - particularly the
PlayStation 4 - were among the most heavily discounted and the biggest sellers,
according to retail analysts and consultants.
Commerce marketing firm Criteo said 40 percent of Black
Friday online purchases were made on mobile phones, up from 29 percent last
year.
No brick-and-mortar sales data for Thanksgiving or Black
Friday was immediately available, but Reuters reporters and industry analysts
noted anecdotal signs of muted activity - fewer cars in mall parking lots,
shoppers leaving stores without purchases in hand.
Stores offered heavy discounts, creative gimmicks and
free gifts to draw bargain hunters out of their homes, but some shoppers said
they were just browsing the merchandise, reserving their cash for internet
purchases. There was little evidence of the delirious shopper frenzy customary
of Black Fridays from past years.
However, retail research firm ShopperTrak said store
traffic fell less than 1 percent on Black Friday, bucking industry predictions
of a sharper decline.
"There has been a significant amount of debate
surrounding the shifting importance of brick-and-mortar retail," Brian
Field, ShopperTrak's senior director of advisory services, said.
"The fact that shopper visits remained intact on
Black Friday illustrates that physical retail is still highly relevant and when
done right, it is profitable."
The National Retail Federation (NRF), which had predicted
strong holiday sales helped by rising consumer confidence, said on Friday that
fair weather across much of the nation had also helped draw shoppers into
stores.
The NRF, whose overall industry sales data is closely
watched each year, is scheduled to release Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber
Monday sales numbers on Tuesday.
U.S. consumer confidence has been strengthening over this
past year, due to a labor market that is churning out jobs, rising home prices
and stock markets that are hovering at record highs.
(Reporting by Richa NaiduEditing by Marguerita Choy)
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