“Consumers plan to do more of their holiday shopping online this year, and this includes shipping gifts to family and friends with whom they won’t be able to celebrate in person this year. The addition of shipping fees to all of these deliveries is a bigger financial burden on consumers than getting the best deal on the item itself”, commented Marshal Cohen, NPD’s Chief Industry Advisor for Retail.

According to the same source, as far as holiday spending goes, US consumers plan to spend an average of 691 US dollars this holiday season, which is less than last year’s anticipated holiday spending, but on the same level as 2018 plans. The number of those who plan to spend the same amount they did last year declined by 11 points compared to last year, mostly in favour of those who plan to spend less.  

Concern about the state of the US economy is a contributing factor to consumers’ spending intentions. Fifty-seven percent of shoppers rate the state of the economy poorly (up from 37% last year), and 30% say they will spend less because of the state of the economy (up from 23% in 2019). Regarding the feelings about their personal financial situation has not changed since 2019, and 29% of consumers will spend more because they have fewer expenses related to travel, dining out, etc. as part of the current departure from experiences.

“Through much of 2020, retail spending as a whole has not seen the big declines expected, pointing to the consumer’s willingness to spend despite economic uncertainty. This year consumers appear to have more interest in ‘retail therapy’ and an aspiration to return to normalcy. We also know that, historically, consumers are pre-conditioned when it comes to holiday shopping behaviours, which means even the best promotions won’t drastically alter the core trends of the season”, he concluded.