Dec 16, 2015

Holiday shoppers still wrapping up holiday lists

Though millions of people got a jump-start on holiday shopping this year, millions more still have a lengthy list to finalize. According to the National Retail Federation’s final consumer holiday spending survey of the season, the average holiday shopper has completed 53.5 percent of their shopping. Approximately 10 percent of holiday shoppers say they are finished; that means 90 percent of holiday shoppers still have gifts, food, décor and other holiday items to buy.

The biggest reason people say they have waited to shop? They are still trying to figure out what to buy: 44.8 percent said they are still weighing their choices between gifts. Additionally, 28.8 percent said they wait until mid-to-late December because their friends and family haven’t given them enough ideas as to what they want and 22 percent are waiting for the best deals on holiday merchandise. One in five (20.8%) admit they are simply just a procrastinator.

“While we witnessed an early start to the holiday shopping season and an extraordinary Thanksgiving weekend, some of the busiest shopping days of the year are still to come,” said NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. “We expect retailers will be competitive on price and value options in the final stretch, including extended store hours and in-store events, as well as online deals and free shipping offers. Even an unseasonably warm winter cannot keep last-minute shoppers from putting off their holiday purchases anymore.”

Gifts of experience big on millennials shopping list

For the first time, NRF asked holiday shoppers about their intentions to buy and preference to receive a gift of experience such as tickets to a sporting event, cheese of the month club or an adventure outing like whitewater rafting. The survey found that 22.2 percent are planning to give an experience-type gift and 36.5 percent would like to receive one. However, those numbers jump significantly for millennials. More than one-third of both 18-24 (36.1%) and 25-34 year olds (35.4%) are planning to give a gift of experience, and half say they’d like to receive one (55% of 18-24, 49.6% of 25-34 year olds) in return.

And, while many will go the experience route, many stand by more traditional purchases. The survey found 50.8 percent said they have already bought clothing and accessories and 34.5 percent have already bought toys. Additionally, 33.5 percent have bought gift cards and 22.8 percent have bought electronic items.

Nearly half of holiday shoppers polled will head to a store the week after Christmas

For retailers and consumers alike, the holiday season doesn’t end on December 25. In fact, for many consumers the week after Christmas is more than just an opportunity to exchange that sweater from grandma. According to the survey, two-thirds (65.9%) of holiday shoppers said they are planning to shop retailers’ after-Christmas sales. Specifically, 47.2 percent of shoppers said they would shop at a store and 43.1 percent will shop online that week. Nearly six in 10 millennials (18-24 year olds) will shop that week, both in stores (59.2%) and online (59.3%).

Overall holiday shopping experience a plus so far

Consumers thus far this holiday season say they have had a positive shopping experience with retailers. According to the survey, 60.7 percent of shoppers say they have had either an excellent or very good shopping experience overall. Specifically, nearly three-quarters (73.9%) of 18-24 year olds say they have had either excellent or very good shopping experiences so far.