Sensormatic Solutions released preliminary shopper visit data for brick-and-mortar retail stores and shopping centers on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday. Findings indicate that shopper visits resulted in a combined 3 percent decline for the two-day period compared to last year. However, there was a shift that included a 2.3 percent increase in traffic on Thanksgiving Day and a 6.2 percent decline in traffic on Black Friday versus 2018. Additionally, there was a small shift of in-store traffic away from the beginning of the week and into both Thanksgiving and Black Friday, dispelling the idea that in-store traffic is moving away from the holiday and farther into November.
“There is no longer one way to shop on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday. As omnichannel retail and online shopping continue to grow in popularity, consumers turned to emerging fulfillment solutions, like buy online, pick up in store (BOPIS), this year,” said Brian Field, senior director of global retail consulting for ShopperTrak. “As a result of these shopping options, there is a rise of intentional shoppers in-store. During exceptionally busy times, these customers are more intent on purchasing and less on just browsing, making their BOPIS pickup when the stores aren’t as crowded.”
“Black Friday continues to remain the busiest shopping day of the year by a long shot,” said Field. “Shopping in physical stores during the holidays continues to be an exciting annual event for consumers. With eight of the 10 predicted busiest shopping days still to come, including Super Saturday, which will fall on Dec. 21 this year, retailers are in for a successful holiday season.”
The full list of predicted busiest shopping days in the US is as follows:
11/29/2019 – Black Friday
12/21/2019 – Super Saturday (Saturday before Christmas)
12/26/2019 – Day after Christmas, aka “Boxing Day,” in some global regions
12/14/2019 – Two Saturdays before Christmas
11/30/2019 – Saturday after Black Friday
12/22/2019 – Sunday before Christmas
12/23/2019 – Monday before Christmas
12/28/2019 – Saturday after Christmas
12/27/2019 – Friday after Christmas
12/07/2019 – First Saturday in December
The predicted top busiest shopping days in Canada include:
12/26/2019 – Boxing Day
11/29/2019 – Black Friday
11/30/2019 – Saturday after Black Friday
12/21/2019 – Super Saturday (Saturday before Christmas)
12/14/2019 – Two Saturdays before Christmas
