Consumer Attitudes & Behavior

Evanston, Ill. -- Many consumers who visit a store but then buy online are not driven there by price alone, but rather by a less-than-satisfactory in-store experience, according to results from the annual holiday shopping report by the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

WASHINGTON — The National Retail Federation has issued a statement from president and CEO Matthew Shay on the new White House report, “The Middle-Class Tax Cut’s Impact on Consumer Spending & Retailers.”

"A huge win," is how National Retailer Federation president and CEO Matt Shay characterized the biggest shopping weekend of the year during media briefing Sunday afternoon.

More people shopped more often in more places over the weekend and in the process pushed spending to a record $59.1 billion compared to $52.4 billion during the comparable four day period the prior year, according to an NRF survey of 4,000 shoppers.

New York -- Houston claimed the top spot for the second year in a row, followed by Seattle and San Francisco, in a ranking of the most mobile shopping savvy cities in the United States. The survey was conducted by The Interactive Advertising Bureau and its Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence, in partnership with Prosper Mobile Insights.

Chicago -- A report released Saturday by ShopperTrak found that Black Friday proved to be a mixed bag for retailers, as retail foot traffic increased over last year, but retail sales decreased slightly.

ShopperTrak estimates that, when compared with Black Friday last year, retail foot traffic rose 3.5% to more than 307.67 million store visits. Retail sales decreased 1.8%, however, with shoppers spending an estimated total of $11.2 billion on Friday.

Washington -- Consumer spending could drop by almost $200 billion next year while depressing real consumer-spending growth by 1.7% if middle-class taxes rise in response to the fiscal cliff, according to a report released Monday by a White House economic team.

PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y. — With the holiday season officially underway, North American market research company NPD has reported its findings on consumers’ holiday entertaining purchases.

The group’s Consumer Tracking Service, which culls data from the past 12 months ending Oct. 2012, found that 63% of housewares consumers enjoy hosting parties in their homes.

CINCINNATI — Procter & Gamble will launch a new line of products to help women counteract age-related changes in the density and diameter of their hair.

Through the end of December, Target stores nationwide will highlight the new Pantene AgeDefy line, and will also feature new Olay Professional anti-aging products, including Olay Regenerist Micro-Sculpting Eye Cream and Lash Serum Duo offering and Olay Total Effect CC Cream.