Holiday Shopping Gets Late Start This Year
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. CREDIT: Holiday Shopping Image via Shutterstock |
Is the best yet to come for holiday shopping? New research has found that 36 percent of Americans say they have not started their holiday shopping despite the fact that Black Friday and Cyber Monday broke holiday shopping records this year.
At the time of the survey, just 9 percent of shoppers say they are completely finished with their holiday shopping. Fifty-eight percent of Americans say they are no more than halfway done with their shopping and 42 percent say they are finished with three-quarters of their shopping.
Overall, the researchers found that most shoppers (81 percent) were trying to limit their expenses during this holiday season. Despite those concerns, shoppers plan on spending a median of $483 on their holiday gifts this year.
Shoppers say they are shopping at bigger retailers more frequently than they are shopping online. Overall, 55 percent of shoppers say they have shopped at mass merchandisers like Walmart and Target while just 39 percent have shopped online. Twenty-eight percent of shoppers say they have shopped at retail stores like Best Buy or Gap.
"Our poll revealed that Americans have plenty of shopping left to do and are generally enjoying the holiday season so far," said Tod Marks, senior editor and resident shopping expert at Consumer Reports, which conducted the research. "However, they are also watching their dollars very closely and just as in years past, they're looking for bargains."
To control spending, consumers are planning on giving less expensive gifts and limiting gift-giving to their families and friends. Forty-six percent of shoppers also say they will actively search for deals and discounts on gifts. In particular, holiday shoppers say they will use newspapers, circulars, and radio or TV ads most frequently in their search for deals. Fewer shoppers will use email promotions, daily deal websites and social media channels when shopping for holiday gifts.
The research was based on the responses of 1,100 participants as a part of the Consumer Reports National Research Center.
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