If you thought the crowds were intense before Christmas, you haven’t seen anything yet. In fact, nearly 68% of holiday shoppers are expected to continue taking advantage of holiday deals in the weeks following Christmas.
The few weeks following Christmas have truly become a holiday all their own. Between end-of-year sales, post-Christmas sales, and other promotions, consumers have made bargain-hunting a holiday tradition.
But the deals aren’t the only draw for consumers. Many shoppers who received money over the holidays are eager to put that money to good use splurging on items that would have been too expensive before receiving gift cards.
Consumers managed to spend an estimated $850 billion between Nov. 1 and Dec. 24. This means that holiday shopping increased by over 5% compared to statistics last year.
But between returns, deals, and gift cards, two of the busiest shopping days now happen after Christmas: on Dec. 26 and 29.
It’s estimated that the average American will spend around $1,700 on apparel and similar services each year. In fact, Kohl’s saw an increase in stocks by nearly 10% despite the ups and downs witnessed by the stock market in the last few weeks.
“What happens in the stock market doesn’t necessarily lead to difficulties in the retail industry since stock ownership is not widely spread in the US,” claimed Michelle Grant in an interview with NBC. Grant is the head of retailing at Euromonitor International.
The surge in holiday sales this season was also reportedly due to lower gas prices and increased online shopping. According to Mastercard, online sales increased by more than 19% compared to statistics from 2017.
To accommodate the flood of online shoppers during the holidays and the weeks following, both online companies and big-box retailers tried to get in on the action. Amazon rolled out free holiday shipping to all its users for the first time while brick and mortar stores like Walmart and Target added grocery pickup options and shipping discounts.
Should the shopping trends continue to rely heavily on online stores, companies might need to continue expanding their capacity for e-commerce. It’s estimated that the average data center must upgrade their IT equipment every three to five years to accommodate consumer needs.
If you haven’t taken advantage of the holiday deals this season, don’t worry; sales are expected to persist throughout the new year.
