Consumers are preparing for Thanksgiving weekend with cautious enthusiasm, a new International Council of Shopping Centers survey revealed, with 86% of consumers expected to shop in the period from Thanksgiving Thursday through Cyber Monday.
Consumers plan to spend an average of $491 over the course of the weekend, according to the ICSC Thanksgiving Weekend Intentions survey.
Shoppers will shop carefully, combining in-store visits, online retailer website browsing, social media platforms and trusted product recommendations and reviews to help make more informed shopping and purchasing decisions in the holiday season, ICSC noted. Key factors shoppers will consider in deciding where they will shop and make purchases over the Thanksgiving weekend include deals and promotions for 36%, availability of products for 31%, and variety of products and styles for 22%.
Day by day, ICSC stated that on Thanksgiving Day 49% of those shopping will do so at physical stores and 51% online only. On Black Friday, 73% of those shopping will do so either online or in-store. On Cyber Monday 81% of those shopping will do so online.
Of consumers visiting malls and shopping centers this holiday season, 59% plan to shop while 47% will dine at a restaurant, 24% will go to a movie and 15% will have a child’s picture taken with Santa.
“The holiday shopping season started early this year, and we expect a busy Thanksgiving weekend with consumers looking for gifts and personal items,” Tom McGee, ICSC president and CEO said in announcing the survey results. “Black Friday promotions also began early this year and will be front and center throughout the holiday weekend as consumers look for deals and prioritize getting the best price on their purchases.”
