Consumer Attitudes & Behavior

Atlanta -- Small businesses are optimistic with regards to the upcoming holiday season, with 41% of businesses expecting a much stronger holiday season in 2013 than 2012, according to a survey by Kabbage, an online provider of working capital.

Small businesses also plan to increase their borrowing for the remainder of 2013 in order to meet the robust demand, the survey reported.  

Other key findings from the survey include:

Multichannel integration hasn’t exactly been Target’s strong suit to date, but this holiday season could be different if the company is able to successfully roll out an order online, pick up in store service.

Austin, Texas – U.S. consumers are dramatically increasing their usage of online and mobile coupons. According to the latest Shoppers Trend Report from RetailMeNot and The Omnibus Company, while printable coupons remain the most widely used type of coupon (60%), online coupon usage has nearly doubled (29% compared to 16% three years ago) and mobile coupon usage has nearly tripled in the past three years (10% compared to 4% three years ago).

Ninety-two percent of consumers use some type of coupon. Other notable findings include:

As if competing against Target, Best Buy and Amazon.com isn’t challenging enough, nationwide the fast-food “strike” which took place Thursday offered a glimpse of the type of headline-grabbing, disruptive activities Walmart can expect from its opponents this holiday season.

Memphis, Tenn. -- Fred's Inc.’s fiscal second-quarter net income fell to $3.3 million from $6.1 million because of a hefty tax benefit a year ago. The company’s adjusted results showed improved profitability, helped by increased customer traffic, higher traffic and lower costs.

The retailer cautioned, however, that its lower-income customers are still feeling economically pressured. Fred's said that it anticipates the operation environment will be challenging in the second half of the year.

New York -- The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index which had declined in July, increased slightly in August. The Index now stands at 81.5, up from 81.0 in July.

Total m-commerce spending is poised to exceed $25 billion this year following a 24% surge in second quarter smartphone and tablet enabled sales that pushed estimated spending to $4.7 billion, according to digital measurement provider comScore.

The firm said m-commerce spending in the first half of the year totaled $10.6 billion, representing 10% of total digital commerce during that time. With the expected seasonal surge coming in the fourth quarter, m-commerce spending could surpass $25 billion for the full year, according to comScore’s estimates.

Oberlin, Ohio - College students budgeted an average of $447.75 for back-to-college shopping, not including textbooks. However, a recent student panel survey conducted by OnCampus Research, the research arm of indiCo, a division of the National Association of College Stores, shows that despite considering price the most important factor in back-to-school purchases, college students do not always follow or even create a budget.