ICSC – Black Friday will be big day for stores

New York - Forty-one percent of consumers plan to head to the stores on Black Friday,18% plan to shop in a physical store on Thanksgiving, and 32% of consumers will hit the stores on the following Saturday and/or Sunday, according to new data from the International Council of Shopping Centers. More than one-third (36%) of consumers plan to go to a physical store on Cyber Monday.

Younger consumers are the most likely to shop in physical stores Thanksgiving Thursday through Cyber Monday, with 25-34 year-olds most likely to shop in a store on Thanksgiving (32%) and millennials (18-24 year-olds) most likely to shop in stores on Black Friday (63%).

Of those consumers planning to shop in store on Thanksgiving Day, the number one reason cited by 51% is to get a head-start on bargains. Consumers continue to make use of mobile and online tools even when in a store or shopping center, for a fully omni-channel experience. The survey found that 45% of shoppers expect to use a mobile device such as a smartphone or tablet to research holiday-related items or gifts while in a physical store, with millennials as the most likely demographic to participate in webrooming.

Of those consumers planning to use their mobile devices to research purchases while in-store, six out of 10 (61%) say they will buy the item in store as opposed to online, 27% will buy from their device and 12% won’t buy anything.