Consumers have plenty of holiday shopping left to do
December 23 is shaping up as a crucial day for retailers.
Fifty-three percent of consumers — about 126 million people — plan to shop this weekend on “Super Saturday,” the last Saturday before Christmas, according to the annual survey released by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics.
Just over half of U.S. adults surveyed expect to finish their holiday gift shopping by December 20, but others will still be buying gifts on Christmas Eve — and some will miss the deadline altogether, the survey found.
“Even though many consumers got a head start with holiday shopping early in the season, millions more are leaving their gift buying to the last minute and beyond,” NRF president and CEO Matthew Shay said.
The survey found that only 12% of consumers had finished their holiday shopping as of December 12, with shoppers having completed an average of only 61%. A total of 55% expected to be done purchasing gifts by December 20, with 6% saying they will still be shopping Sunday and 5% saying their final gifts won’t be bought until after Christmas.
Of consumers who had completed half or less of their shopping, 42% said they were still deciding what to buy. Waiting for requests, other financial priorities and being too busy with other activities were each cited by 26% for the delay.
As of December 12, last-minute shoppers planned to purchase their gifts online (51%), at department stores (41%), discount stores (26 percent), clothing or accessories stores (21%), electronics stores (18%), local/small businesses (14%) and grocery/supermarket stores (14%).
In addition, 47% plan to take advantage of after-Christmas sales in store, and 46% say they’ll plan to do the same online.
Fifty-three percent of consumers — about 126 million people — plan to shop this weekend on “Super Saturday,” the last Saturday before Christmas, according to the annual survey released by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics.
Just over half of U.S. adults surveyed expect to finish their holiday gift shopping by December 20, but others will still be buying gifts on Christmas Eve — and some will miss the deadline altogether, the survey found.
“Even though many consumers got a head start with holiday shopping early in the season, millions more are leaving their gift buying to the last minute and beyond,” NRF president and CEO Matthew Shay said.
The survey found that only 12% of consumers had finished their holiday shopping as of December 12, with shoppers having completed an average of only 61%. A total of 55% expected to be done purchasing gifts by December 20, with 6% saying they will still be shopping Sunday and 5% saying their final gifts won’t be bought until after Christmas.
Of consumers who had completed half or less of their shopping, 42% said they were still deciding what to buy. Waiting for requests, other financial priorities and being too busy with other activities were each cited by 26% for the delay.
As of December 12, last-minute shoppers planned to purchase their gifts online (51%), at department stores (41%), discount stores (26 percent), clothing or accessories stores (21%), electronics stores (18%), local/small businesses (14%) and grocery/supermarket stores (14%).
In addition, 47% plan to take advantage of after-Christmas sales in store, and 46% say they’ll plan to do the same online.