U.S. shoppers spent about 14% less on holiday purchases from Black Friday through Cyber Monday as big gains in online orders were offset by a decline in people visiting stores during the coronavirus pandemic.
People spent an average of just under $312 on holiday-related purchases, according to a survey by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights. That was lower than the approximately $362 a year ago. but similar to 2018, according to the research.
In-store shoppers fell 37% from a year earlier on Black Friday, while online shoppers on that day rose 8% and topped 100 million, the survey said. On Thanksgiving, in-store shoppers declined 55%.
“We knew the pandemic was going to impact in-store foot traffic and we anticipated that consumers would shift some of their shopping behavior online and we certainly saw that,” NRF President and Chief Executive Matthew Shay said on a call Tuesday to discuss the results.
(More to Come)
