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Austin, Texas - Three in four Americans have made an impulse purchase. According to a new CreditCards.com report, nearly 90% of millennials said they had made an impulse purchase, compared to just 56% of seniors. And in an interesting finding,  men were nearly three times more likely than women to impulse buy while “intoxicated,” while women were twice as likely as men to impulse buy while “sad.”   The most common emotions at the time of purchase? “Excited” and “bored.”

Black Friday is known for great deals, but a new study shows that consumers may want to add one more item to their holiday shopping carts.  

Product protection plan leader Asurion recently surveyed consumers and nearly one-third of the items they purchased last Black Friday broke in less than a year. In addition, almost half (45%) of those surveyed plan to replace at least one damaged, lost or stolen item this Black Friday.  

By Jason Becker, RICS Software   Retailers – take a step back from Black Friday weekend this year.    I’m not suggesting you shouldn’t move forward with your promotions and sales. Everyone knows that Black Friday weekend can be one of the most profitable times of the year for retailers. But relying too much on this crazy weekend of shopping to generate holiday season profits is a big mistake.  

San Bruno, Calif. – Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is offering 500 online deals during Cyber Week, starting Saturday, Nov. 29, more than double the number of cyber deals it offered last year. Every day through Friday, Dec. 5, Walmart.com will offer 500 discount items, with the best deals arriving on Cyber Monday, Dec. 1.   

By Christopher Lester, Emma   If you’re like me, you might still be in denial over the date on the calendar. But it’s true: The holidays are well upon us. Yes, it’s the most wonderful time of the year. But let’s be honest: It’s also one of the most stressful times of the year, and the busiest to boot.  

New York – Ann Inc. beat Wall Street expectations for the third quarter with net income of $29.9 million, down 27% from $41.2 million the same quarter a year earlier. Pre-tax and after-tax charges associated with the closure of the Madison Avenue Ann Taylor store helped drive down net income.  

NEW YORK - Macy’s is enhancing its Black Friday promotions by giving away  a million dollars in prizes in stores nationwide during doorbuster hours. Beginning at 6 p.m. local time on Thanksgiving Day, customers will have a chance to win big, scoring digital gift codes that can be used instantly for Black Friday purchases.  

Worthington, Ohio - Amazon and Nordstrom shoppers plan to increase their holiday spending the most compared to other shoppers, according to a survey by Prosper Insights & Analytics.  The report, “Holiday 2014: Retailers to Watch,”  finds that while overall holiday spending plans are up this holiday season, shoppers will still be looking for sales and big discounts and spending only what they have to, making waves for retailers to navigate this year.   

  New York - J.C. Penney, Macy’s, Rite Aid, Meijer and Sears rank as the best retailers for Black Friday deals, according to a survey by personal finance social network WalletHub.  The survey shows that Penney has the highest overall discount rate at 65%, while Big Lots, at 24%, and Costco, at 21%, have the lowest. WalletHub surveyed 5,525 deals from the 2014 Black Friday ad scans of 21 of the biggest U.S. retailers. Here is a quick summary of some of the key findings.

Denver – An estimated 28% of consumers plan to do most of their holiday shopping at mass retailers, compared to 26% who will frequent online retailers. According to an ongoing shopper behavior study conducted by The Integer Group and M/A/R/C Research, free shipping continues to be the most popular offer for holiday shoppers, with 58% of shoppers reporting they expect to take advantage of it this holiday season.