Black Friday is finally here, after creeping in with a steady stream of sales, deals and promotions.
Retailers continued the trend of promoting Black Friday—considered the biggest shopping day of the year—long before the actual Black Friday, with some targeting shoppers as early as October.
“What used to be Halloween and Veteran’s Day sales are being called Black Friday-style sales,” says Chris Ventry, vice president in the consumer and retail practice of SSA & Company, a global management consultant.
Amazon
Macy’s extended its Black Friday specials for the entire month of November for the second year, offering the deals wherever customers shop—online, mobile or in-store. For the first time, Nordstrom
It all boils down to this: the shopping culture has changed.
“The onus of being competitive on Black Friday has now become a standard for all retailers,” says Tyler Higgins, managing director and retail practice leader at AArete, a global management consultancy.
MORE FOR YOU
“While Black Friday used to be just a day that became a weekend, it is now a week-long, even month-long competition between retailers to earn market share and finish their fiscal year strong heading into the holidays. 2021 has seen a resurgence of shopping following the pandemic.”
The National Retail Federation forecasts that holiday sales will make history during November and December, tracking between 8.5% and 10.5% over 2020, totaling between $843.4 billion and $859 billion.
According to NPD Group, more than half of consumers will have started their holiday shopping before Thanksgiving. In addition, 41% of shoppers will shop earlier than normal due to COVID-19, says the market research group. This year, consumers expect to spend an average of $785 on holiday shopping, more than 2020 and 2019, NPD Group reports.
“Shoppers that are concerned with social distancing have thought more seriously about beginning holiday shopping earlier,” says Marie Driscoll, managing director luxury and fashion at Coresight Research, a retail advisory and research firm.
“We see many early promotions and retailers like Target
Product scarcity and shipping delays are also motivating shoppers to buy early.
“Brands and retailers have been up front with consumers about potential product delay and lack of goods,” Ventry says. “Some have even sent letters to consumers notifying that if you see something you like, and it is in your size, you should purchase now or risk having that product sold out.”
Early holiday shopping could be a boon for retail.
“Consumers are for the positive emotions of in-person celebration—as we saw with the explosive hungry growth of online Halloween costumes and candy purchases before Halloween,” says Inna Kuznetsova, chief executive officer of 1010data, a provider of analytical intelligence to the retail, consumer and financial markets.
“So we may see increased spending as well as earlier spending, just as we did earlier this year, when we observed sales of yard furniture growing, well before it would have been seasonable.”
In addition to extending its Black Friday specials for the whole month, Macy’s introduced Macy’s Live, a new digital shopping experience, in advance of the holiday season. Here, customers can interact with hosts and stylists, shop and learn about products. The next scheduled event is on Black Friday, featuring “The Best Black Friday Deals With Malia,” while “Cyber Monday Picks For Everyone On Your List” will take place Monday.
“Macy’s Live is another way shoppers can discover and engage with our Black Friday deals and specials from the comfort of home,” says a Macy’s spokesperson. “With Macy’s Live, we are bringing the very best of the physical shopping experience to our customers online.”