Dive Brief:
- Signaling consumers’ cautious spending approach, consumer technology sales were “lackluster” during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, declining by 3% in unit sales and 4% in dollar sales year over year during Black Friday Week, according to an analysis by Circana.
- Despite the declines, the performance was an improvement over the past month, Circana said, and certain categories did see growth. Television unit sales, for example, rose 3% during Black Friday Week.
- During Cyber Week, the average prices of tech products were slightly down overall compared to 2022, but computers and audio products were more expensive than last year. On Black Friday Week, camera prices were up 20% from the year prior.
Dive Insight:
Electronics sales experienced a string of declines this year, but have recovered in recent months. Electronics and appliance sales nudged up 1.4% year over year in October before surging 12% in November, according to data from the U.S. Department of Commerce. After splurging during the COVID-19 pandemic, shoppers have become more selective about their purchases in this challenging economy, Paul Gagnon, consumer technology industry adviser for Circana, said in a statement.
“This year’s holiday tech consumers are more focused on the value of their purchase than just getting the lowest price,” Gagnon said in a statement. “Black Friday shoppers had a more leisurely shopping experience this year, with ample inventory to choose from as they took advantage of bargains on big screen TVs, and opted for higher priced computer purchases.”
Consumers’ desire for discounts on big-ticket items likely catalyzed electronics sales growth last month. A report from Adobe Analytics found that electronics sales spiked 103% year over year on Cyber Monday. Retailers marked down electronics products by as much as 31%, Adobe found.
A different collection of products made it onto electronic retailers’ shelves this year, including technology geared toward content creators, such as microphones, mounts and lighting, Ben Arnold, consumer electronics industry analyst for Circana, said in a statement. New game consoles and virtual reality headsets were also on offer.
While Black Friday and Cyber Monday may have catalyzed some spending in the electronics sector, the pinch of strained electronics sales the rest of the year has hit retailers like Best Buy all year. In this year’s first quarter, the company reported an 11% year-over-year decrease in domestic revenue. That trend continued in Q2 and Q3, during which the company reported domestic revenue declines of 7.1% and 8.2%, respectively.
