By Shelly Banjo
Retail spending over the Thanksgiving weekend fell 11%, its
second straight annual decline, according to the main industry
trade group, a sign that flashy discounts during the four-day
shopping bonanza weren't enough to prompt increased sales.
Total spending from Thursday through Sunday sank 11% from a year
earlier to $50.9 billion, according to the National Retail
Federation. Shoppers spent an average $380.95, down 6.4% from
$407.02 a year earlier.
NRF CEO Matt Shay attributed the drop to a combination of
factors, including the fact that retailers moved promotions earlier
this year in attempt to get people out sooner and avoid what
happened last year when people didn't finish their shopping because
of bad weather.
He also attributed the declines to better online offerings and
an improving economy where "people don't feel the same
psychological need to rush out and get the great deal that weekend,
particularly if they expected to be more deals," he said.
Retailers like Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Target Corp. have been
pushing their Black Friday deals earlier in the week and online.
Target offered some of its deals in stores and online on Wednesday.
Wal-Mart started offering Black Friday sales on the Monday before
Thanksgiving.
The retail trade group said the number of people who went
shopping over the four-day weekend declined by 5.2% to 134 million,
from 141 million last year.
Despite many retailers offering the same discounts on the Web as
they offered in stores, the Internet didn't attract more shoppers
or more spending than last year. Online sales accounted for 42% of
sales racked up over the four-day period, the same percentage as
last year, though up from 26% in 2006, the trade group said.
Shoppers spent an average $159.55 online, down 10.2% from
$177.67 last year.
The survey, conducted November 28-29, 2014 by Prosper Insights
& Analytics for NRF, polled 4,631 consumers and has a margin of
error of plus or minus 1.5 percentage points.
"A highly competitive environment, early promotions and the
ability to shop 24/7 online all contributed to the shift witnessed
this weekend," Mr. Shay said.
Write to Shelly Banjo at shelly.banjo@wsj.com
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