NEW YORK (AP) — Shoppers across the country may feel depressing Although I was worried about the economy, I was certainly in the mood to shop during the five-day Thanksgiving weekend ending with Cyber Monday.
As Wall Street analysts and retailers scrutinize data from the weekend — the unofficial start of the season and a good barometer of shoppers’ financial health and the strength of the economy — the numbers show shoppers went online and in stores to find deals on everything from TVs to clothing. But all the economic uncertainty affected spending. In some malls, shoppers are reported to be highly focused and selective.
Of course, weekends look very different from 15 years ago, when shoppers camped out early in the morning and fought in store aisles for doorbusters like TVs. While shoppers still visit stores, the biggest growth is online, which now accounts for 30% of total holiday sales. That’s up from 15% in 2012, according to the National Retail Federation, the nation’s largest retail trade group.
Adobe Analytics reported on Tuesday what it calls Cyber Week, the five-day period between Thanksgiving and the end of the year. cyber monday — brought in $44.2 billion in revenue across online, up 7.7% year over year. This was supported by record online spending. black friday.
On Cyber Monday, consumers spent $14.25 billion, an increase of 7.1%, making it once again the biggest online shopping day of the year.
National Retail Federation CEO Matt Shea said Tuesday that shoppers are building a moat around the winter holidays, keeping them away from all the economic noise.
“The holiday season is really, really emotional shopping,” Shea said. “Families plan for it and invest in it, and the five-day Thanksgiving weekend that’s part of the holiday really marks the beginning of the holiday psychologically.”
Based on the group’s survey of weekend shoppers, Hsieh called the period a “very solid start” to the holiday season.
The group is still hoping November and December sales between $1.01 trillion and $1.02 trillion. This is an increase of 3.7% to 4.2% from last year.
Here, we take a look at data, discounts, and what’s next for the retailer, among other issues.
Latest data shows record traffic
Software company Salesforce reported that global online sales during Cyber Week (measured from November 25 to Monday) reached $336.6 billion, an increase of 7% year-on-year. U.S. online sales rose 5% year-over-year to $79.6 billion during the week.
Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., reported Tuesday that more than 235,000 people visited the iconic center on Black Friday, making it the busiest Black Friday in the mall’s history. The mall said traffic was up 8.5% compared to the same day in 2024 and nearly 2% compared to pre-pandemic 2019.
Mastercard Spending Pulse, which tracks in-person and online spending, reported Saturday that overall Black Friday sales, excluding autos, rose 4.1% year over year. Online sales grew by double digits at 10.4%, while in-store purchases increased by 1.7%, according to a measure of retail sales not adjusted for inflation.
Still, shoppers took note.
“People are definitely shopping” on Black Friday, said William Lewis, marketing director at Westfield Garden State Plaza in Paramus, New Jersey. But Lewis said shoppers are becoming more targeted and doing their homework on social media and store websites.
“They know exactly where they’re going,” he added.
Discount was generous, but don’t expect it to get any better
Some malls and analysts say promotions were either not as early as last year or more subdued ahead of the Thanksgiving weekend. But big malls like Adobe and Mall of America say retailers have stepped up discounts for the big weekend, coinciding with last year’s sales events.
But if a shopper wants to buy a particular sweater and waits for the price to drop after the weekend, that may not be the best strategy. Analysts said discounts on many items did not improve, and retailers entered the season with reduced inventories amid economic uncertainty.
Vivek Pandya, director of Adobe Digital Insights at Adobe, said discounts averaged in the 10% to 17% range before the Thanksgiving weekend kickoff, but then accelerated to an average 18% to 30% range by the holiday kickoff.
But he expects retailers will likely pull back on those discounts and expect prices to remain slightly higher than what shoppers saw until Black Friday approaches. An exception will be made for seasonal items that don’t sell well and must be sold by December 25, Pandya said.
Regarding inventory, there was a risk that the shelves would be empty when the items arrived. customs duty Although prices rose in April, analysts said stores were able to bring in goods at lower rates and weather volatile tariff policy.
“I think consumers will continue to find what they’re looking for, but there will be fewer choices,” said Nikki Baird, vice president at Aptos, a retail technology company that works with fashion clients.
Some shoppers relied on artificial intelligence tools
Shoppers are using AI tools Used to track prices and get gift recommendations, but usage is still modest. According to Adobe, AI traffic (measured by shoppers clicking links) to U.S. retail sites increased nearly eight times on Cyber Monday. From November 1st to December 1st, AI traffic increased nearly nine times.
Adobe said these services were most commonly used in categories such as video games, electronics, electronics, toys, and personal care products.
Salesforce reports that across Cyber Week, AI and agents influenced 20% of all orders and accounted for $67 billion in global sales. In the US, AI and agents drove 17% of orders, or $13.5 billion in sales. This number includes everything from ChatGPT queries to AI-powered gift suggestions on retailer websites.
what’s next
Thanksgiving weekend is a key barometer of spending for the season. But will shoppers cut back on spending as the season progresses due to concerns about rising prices? And what will happen next year?
Baird said he will look at the period from the weekend after Thanksgiving to the last week before Christmas to see if the spending continues.
“I think this helps answer the question of whether this was a concentration of spending or a trend in spending,” he said.
Tiffany Yeh, managing director and partner at Boston Consulting Group, believes spending will be strong through the remainder of the holiday season. Her concern is what will happen in 2026. Yeh cited a consultancy shopper survey that found consumers were delaying purchases to spend the holidays. She wonders whether shoppers will cut back on spending or stabilize their purchases.
