News Briefs

Sales are expected to rise this holiday season, but at a slower rate than last year.

That’s according to the new Holiday Outlook Survey from consulting firm AlixPartners, which projects a 2% to 5% increase in sales over last year, lower than last year’s 6% growth over 2022. Given sustained high prices, many consumers say they plan on cutting back on spending during the holidays.

A quarter (26%) of consumers plan on spending less this holiday season than last year, and those spending reductions are significantly more prominent with lower-income households. Forty-three percent of households with annual incomes under $45,000 said they plan to spend less than last year, according to survey responses. Roughly one-third of $45,000-$100,000 households will pullback compared to 2023. That number declines to 22% for $100,000-plus households.

[READ MORE; The 10 busiest shopping days of the 2024 holiday season will be…]

“Consumers are clearly under pressure, and many have no plans to open wallets much wider this holiday season,” said Bryan Eshelman, Americas leader of the retail practice at AlixPartners. “After decades of conditioning from Black Friday and Cyber Monday blowouts, shoppers expect retailers to go heavy on promotions and be generous with the discounts. We can safely say ‘Tis the season for deals, deals and more deals.’” 

Other insights from the AlixPartners survey include:

• About 42% of respondents intend to purchase most gifts on sale, an uptick from the 38% who were looking to that strategy in 2023. 
• Holiday decorations (-11%), show/experiences (-11%) and travel (-10%) are among the categories suffering the biggest declines in spending intention.
• Two-thirds of customers intend to make at least 30% of holiday purchases online.  
• Nearly two-thirds (65%) of shoppers plan to start holiday buying after Halloween – a significant decline from the 2019-2022 period.

One retailer dominates CPG spending in the United States. 

Across the total U.S., Walmart captures 21% of CPG spending, followed by Costco Wholesale Corp. (7.8%), according to Numerator’s Regional Retail Dashboard, which explores omnichannel purchase and promotional trends across the four U.S. census regions (Northeast, Midwest, South and West). Rounding out the top five are Kroger (7%), Amazon (5.6%) and Albertsons (4.2%). 

In other findings, Kroger is the top promoter of CPG products nationally, accounting for 13.2% of promotional voice. Albertsons accounts for 10.2%, followed by Allegiance (3.8%). 

Other regional insights from the Numerator report are below.

•For the entire U.S., 55% of CPG spend goes to food and mass retailers.

•While Walmart is the most popular retailer for CPG spending in three of the four regions, it falls to Costco (16.3% vs. 15.3% of CPG spending) in the Western U.S. 

•In the Western U.S., 19% of CPG spend goes to the club channel.

•Southerners over-index at dollar stores.

•Consumers in the Northwest spend 7% of their dollars at liquor stores, which is nearly twice that of all U.S. consumers.

•Regional grocers showcase distinct behaviors across regions – Publix is the #2 retailer in the South, and Ahold Delhaize is the #2 retailer in the Northeast.

Shein is hosting a seasonal livestream sale on Sunday, Sept. 22.

The Chinese-founded, Singapore-based global online fast-fashion giant will launch a 90-minute livestream, "Shein Live: Front Row," hosted by influencers Renee Ariel and Julissa Bermudez, at noon PT on Sunday, Sep. 22. The livestream will be streamed across the Shein Facebook, X, YouTube and Instagram accounts, as well as via the Shein app.

The livestream will feature six real-life Shein customers modeling on the runway for the first time across five collections: Winter Edge, Effortlessly Casual, Keep Cool, Cozy Chic, and Modern Elegance. 

Customers can share outfits they purchase during the event on social media by tagging @sheinofficial and @shein_us and using the hashtag #SHEINtrendy and #SHEINfw24.

Shein – a primer

Headquartered in Singapore, Shein offers Shein-branded, affordable apparel and accessories from a global network of vendors. The company, which filed for an initial public offering (IPO) in the U.S. stock market with the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) in late 2023, is reportedly also trying to join the National Retail Federation in an attempt to boost its chances of receiving SEC approval. 

However, Shein has been publicly accused of unfair labor practices and having connections to the communist Chinese government, and in the past year, Shein and fellow leading Chinese shopping app Temu have filed lawsuits against each other alleging unfair trade practices.

The Biden-Harris administration is targeting Shein and Temu with a new executive action that makes shipments worth less than $800 from China (representing the majority of Shein imports) no longer eligible for a special U.S. customs exemption.

[READ MORE: Survey: Live shopping, video commerce on the rise]

That was quick.

Michael Conway, CEO of Starbucks North America, will retire on Nov. 30, according to a Securities & Exchange Commission filing. The company veteran was appointed to the newly created role in April. 

Prior to his new position, Conway, who joined Starbucks in 2013, served as group president, international and channel development. 

“His deep experience in strategic planning and operational excellence, as well as his efforts to support building our brand and culture around the world make him well positioned for this new role,” Starbucks stated in announcing Conway's appointment. 

HIs departure comes after Brian Niccol took the reins of Starbucks on Sept. 9. Niccol, the former CEO and chairman of Chipotle Mexican Grill, succeeded Laxman Narasimha, who had served as Starbucks since March 2023.

Starbucks will not fill the role of North America CEO upon Conway’s departure, reported Yahoo Finance, citing a Bloomberg report. Sara Trilling, who currently reports to Conway in her role overseeing North America store development and strategy, among other areas, will retain her role and will report to Niccol, according to the report.

The report also said that Starbucks is creating a new global chief brand officer position to oversee product, marketing, digital, customer insights, creative and store concepts.

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is partnering with USPS Operation Santa and Toys"R"Us  for the 2024 holiday season to make it easier than ever for individuals to participate in the gift-giving program.

USPS Operation Santa allows people from across the U.S. to help fulfill the holiday wishes of families in need by adopting their letters to Santa Claus. Since its inception more than a century ago, USPS Operation Santa has helped answer the thousands of letters addressed to Santa Claus through the USPS each year. Through the collaboration with Toys"R"Us, letter adopters can now easily select and purchase gifts from a specially curated e-commerce site.

"We are thrilled to be partnering with USPS Operation Santa to empower more letter adopters this holiday season,” said Gary Haas, VP, Toys"R"Us e-commerce. “By simplifying the adoption process and offering a curated selection of gifts, we are making it easier for individuals and families to spread joy to children in need and make their holiday dreams come true. Together, we're creating magical moments that will resonate for years to come."

Through USPS Operation Santa, children write their holiday wishes to Santa Claus and send their letters to his official address. The letters are then anonymized and made available for adoption on the program's website. Individuals, families and organizations can browse the letters, adopt one or more of them and fulfill the child's holiday wishes.

Big-box retailers are the most popular choice for Halloween shopping this year, but other retailers are closing the gap.

According to a new survey of 1,000 American consumers from Suzy and Vibenomics, the vast majority of Halloween shoppers (76%) plan to stock up on their holiday needs at big-box retailers this year, such as Walmart and Target. Grocery stores (38%), dollar/discount chains (34%) and online retailers (34%) are also popular choices for Halloween shopping. 

The retailer preferences in this year’s data from Suzy and Vibenomics have shifted since last year, when 82% of respondents said they planned to visit big-box stores for their needs, with online retailers next in line at 45%.

Price was the most important factor for choosing a Halloween retailer when asked, followed closely by variety and promotion/sale. When asked what influences them the most to buy a specific Halloween item, most consumers are focused on value, with in-store promotions (70%) and coupons (69%) ranking as the top factors, followed by family/friend recommendations (27%) and seeing the item in social media ads (18%) and TV ads (14%).

[READ MORE: Here’s how Walmart customers are shopping for Halloween]

More than half (57%) of Halloween shoppers surveyed by Suzy said they planned on shopping in-store this year, with 26% opting for a combination of both in-store and online shopping. These figures are roughly in line with last year’s data (53% in-store, 30% omnichannel shopping). Fifteen percent of respondents plan to shop online and have items delivered to their home, while only 3% plan to shop online for Halloween supplies and pick up the items curbside.

Halloween candy will be the most commonly purchased item at 73%, followed by Halloween-themed snacks/foods (42%), seasonally-themed decorations (42%), seasonally-themed beverages (33%) and Halloween costumes (29%).