We’re nearing the last big shopping day of the holiday season, known in retailing as Super Saturday, aka Panic Saturday (in honor of consumers supposedly panicked over trying to finish their shopping in the days running up to Christmas).
Super Saturday, which is always the Saturday before Christmas, signals the end of the holiday shopping season, which officially begins Black Friday, and is historically one of the highest-revenue days of the year for retailers.
This year should be no different.
According to the National Retail Federation, the day is expected to see around 126 million U.S. consumers shop brick-and-mortar stores. And JCK news director Rob Bates reported yesterday that a new survey conducted by Proper Insights & Analytics found that 53 percent of holiday shoppers plan to shop Super Saturday.
Matthew Shaw, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation, said in a statement, “Even though many consumers got a head start with holiday shopping early in the season, millions more are leaving their gift buying to the last minute and beyond…Stores will be packed the next few days as consumers rush to complete their shopping.”
In 2016, Black Friday was the most popular shopping day, according to the National Retail Federation, with 75 percent of consumers hitting the stores or buying online. This was followed by Super Saturday, which saw 49 percent of consumers shop, and finally Thanksgiving Day, when 36 percent of consumers ventured into brick-and-mortars and/or purchased products online.
Per-person spending over the weekend before Christmas in 2016 averaged $289.19, and more than one-third of those polled said their weekend buys were driven by promotional sales.
CNBC reports that the dreaded post–Black Friday pause in consumer spending hasn’t been as rough for retailers this season as it has been in years past.
Does this mean American shoppers have been pacing themselves throughout December and have already bagged most of their holiday buys?
Let’s hope the better-than-expected sales are a bellwether for a knockout sales season that doesn’t let up until the fluorescent lights go out.
(Top: image courtesy of Pexels)
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