Dive Brief:
- Despite budgetary constraints, a third of consumers said they planned to increase their holiday shopping budget this year, according to a survey of over 800 people by Ipsos.
- A quarter of respondents said their most recent holiday shopping stop was at Walmart, a greater share than Target (9%), Kohl’s (7%) and Macy’s (3%). Just over 2% of respondents said they shopped at a local, independently-owned retailer, according to the survey.
- Twenty percent of respondents shopped on Black Friday, while 45% said they bought their holiday purchases prior to Black Friday. More than a third (35%) said they bought their holiday purchases after Black Friday.
Dive Insight:
Ipsos’ survey follows previous research indicating that consumers planned to spend more this holiday season. An October survey from Deloitte found that consumers anticipated their holiday spending budgets growing by 14% to an average of $1,652.
Aiming to capture those early holiday shoppers, Walmart launched its Walmart Deals – Holiday Kickoff in early October, offering discounts on products ranging from home goods to electronics, apparel, and toys. Similarly, Best Buy, Amazon, and Target also hosted early holiday sales that same month.
Walmart is continuing an effort to attract last-minute holiday shoppers as well. The company announced its “Walmart Deals — Ready, Set, Gift” event from Dec. 13 until Dec. 21. As part of the event, the retail giant is offering discounts across the electronics, cookware, toy and home goods categories.
Last holiday season saw that Walmart was the most popular spot for in-store holiday shopping, followed by Target and Amazon Go or Amazon Go Grocery. This year research suggests that many shoppers are making seasonal purchases via mobile devices. Between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, online sales grew by 7.8% from last year to $38 billion, according to Adobe Analytics. The firm predicted that consumers will spend just over half (51.2%) of their holiday budget on mobile devices.
