ShopperTrak: November 2012

Total U.S. Shopper Traffic in Retail Stores and Malls for November 2012



Shopper traffic in November increased as Black Friday weekend sales promotions — and the Veterans Day holiday earlier in the month — drew shoppers into retail stores.



As a result, the month saw an 18 percent increase in retail foot traffic compared to October. November 2012 continued a trend of year-over-year improvements with a 6 percent increase in retail foot traffic when compared to the same month last year.



Black Friday — historically the busiest day of the retail year — played a major role in attracting shoppers to stores in November. Consumers spent an estimated total of $11.2 billion on this date — a decrease of 1.8 compared to last year. Retail foot traffic rose 3.5 percent to more than 307.67 million store visits.



As retailers promote the holiday season earlier and expand deals across more days, however, single shopping days become less important. This November marked the first Thanksgiving where some retailers opened doors to shoppers in search of doorbuster deals for part of — or, in some cases — the whole day.



On a year-over-year basis, November 2012 experienced a solid gain in traffic compared to November 2011. Shoppers returned to stores in the Northeast despite Superstorm Sandy’s impact on shopper traffic earlier in the month. The general increase in foot traffic also reflects gains made in the economy and consumer confidence overall.



ShopperTrak predicts the week before Christmas — starting Dec. 16 — to be the largest retail sales and traffic week of the year, with some consumers waiting for retailers to reduce prices prior to Christmas for last-minute deals.



Retailers can expect both month-over-month and year-over-year increased retail foot traffic in December.

ShopperTrak's data and analyses in this article are based on counting billions of shoppers in more than 50,000 locations across 74 countries. ShopperTrak is a leading retail technology company that anonymously counts people, analyzes data and identifies opportunities to increase revenue for retailers, mall developers and entertainment venues. Find out more at http://www.shoppertrak.com.