How stores can turn holiday shopping stress into retail success

While the holiday season brings festive joy to many, for others it can be a time of heightened stress, with the pressure of finding the perfect gift for friends and loved ones adding to that strain.

Rising “shopper stress” may negatively influence consumers’ purchasing decisions and could harm retail sales, according to the first of two holiday shopping surveys Accenture is conducting. More than eight-in-10 (84%) consumers report that purchasing holiday gifts can be so overwhelming and frustrating that they abandon their shopping carts entirely as a result. That figure rises among younger generations, with 89% Gen Z and 91% millennials reporting they are likely to walk away from holiday gift purchases.

Three quarters of consumers report feeling stressed about making the right holiday gift decision, while a similar number (73%) worry they'll regret their choice later. Meanwhile, 82% feel overwhelmed by advertising —up from 78% last year — and 77% struggle with too many options.

This presents both a challenge and an opportunity for retailers as they enter their most critical time of the year.

A seasonal blip?

For decades, retailers focused on offering a wide range of products and services to serve a wide range of consumer needs. However, in doing so, they may have inadvertently created decision complexity for the very consumers they are trying to serve.

The issue of shopping stress is not new. At the start of 2024, Accenture’s Consumer Pulse Survey found that just under three quarters (74%) of consumers reported walking away from purchases because they felt overwhelmed. A year on, and the latest findings indicate that the 2025 holiday shopping season could see that stress worsen.

The role of stores

Stores and malls have always been the cornerstone of holiday shopping. However, with 45% of consumers planning to visit stores specifically to see and assess products firsthand, they could stand to play an even greater role in addressing shopper stress.

Just consider how physical stores provide what overwhelmed shoppers value most — immediate answers, expert guidance, and the confidence that comes from touching, testing, and experiencing products before purchase. These spaces can transform from overwhelming product showcases into curated environments of discovery.

One way they may do this is to position their stores as experiential destinations — spaces where purchase hesitation transforms into confident selection through guided discovery and seasonal atmosphere. Another is to empower knowledgeable retail associates to create and deliver memory-making moments that go beyond monetary transactions.

A helping hand from AI

Those moments can be further enhanced when customer-facing associates are equipped with AI-powered tools to enable them to access comprehensive product knowledge, inventory information and customer preferences quickly. The result? Every interaction can become a personalized consultation, where store staff to focus less time and effort on information retrieval and more on relationship building and problem solving.

The outcome is a more consultative retail experience, one where store associates become trusted advisors rather than transaction facilitators, and stores evolve from product showcases into experience destinations.

Innovative retailers are already implementing AI-enhanced strategies that seamlessly fit into existing store operations. For instance, smart inventory integration that instantly tells associates which recommended products are in stock, on display, or available for quick ordering.

Lowe’s is just one example of a retailer using AI-driven technologies to improve seasonal inventory planning as part of a broader effort to provide customers with a more personalized shopping experience.

Other AI applications include preference learning tools to help staff quickly understand customer style, budget, and gift recipient preferences through guided conversation. Then there’s real-time product intelligence that provides associates immediate access to customer reviews, trending information and comparison data that enables them to provide informed recommendations on the spot — or compelling alternatives when popular items are out-of- stock, ensuring that no customer leaves empty-handed during peak shopping periods.

Golden opportunity for retail’s ‘golden quarter’

The combination of stores, knowledgeable associates, enabled by technology, can work in tandem to transform holiday shopping from a stressful task into an enjoyable experience of inspiration, clarity and guidance.

While it may not be possible to completely eradicate shopping stress, there are steps retailers can take to help consumers navigate that complexity in a way that feels useful and authentic. That includes positioning themselves as solution destinations — where overwhelmed shoppers find clarity, confidence, and of course, perfect gifts.