ICSC Survey: 17% Plan to Increase Holiday Spending
Washington, DC, November 13, 2006--About 17 percent of U.S. consumers report they expect to spend more or substantially more this holiday season, while 56 percent expect to spend about the same as last year, according to a nationwide survey commissioned by ICSC and UBS Securities.
On average, consumers are expected to spend approximately $676 on holiday purchases this year, with men spending a bit more ($717) versus women ($637) this holiday season. In 2005, the household expectation was $620.
Where do consumers expect to shop this holiday season? According to the survey, department stores will be busy, as more then three-quarters (78 percent) of adults expect to find their holiday gifts at department stores this year. Discounters will once again be another favorite shopping destination for consumers, as more than half of them (63 percent) intend to purchase their holiday gifts from these locations. Consumers will also be shopping at large specialty stores (stores specializing in one type of merchandise) (46 percent), at small specialty stores (44 percent), online (37 percent) and catalogs (32 percent) this holiday season.
While only three percent of respondents were unsure as to where they plan to shop for their holiday gifts, gift cards once again will be a popular gift choice, as 79 percent of consumers who plan to buy holiday gifts and who bought a gift card last year, cited that the main motivation behind using and purchasing gift cards is their convenience. In 2005, gift cards expenditures represented 13.1 percent of total holiday expenditures.
It appears that consumers who plan to buy holiday gifts are behind on their holiday shopping this year and, as a result, many shopping centers will be opening as early as midnight on Black Friday. In 2005, 29 percent of respondents reported that they began their holiday shopping (not necessarily finished–just started) before October 31.
This year, less than a quarter of consumers (24 percent) reported similar timing. Overall, 21 percent of consumers stated that they will begin their shopping between November 1 and November 23, with 13 percent beginning on Black Friday. Only three percent of consumers stated that they will begin their holiday shopping on Christmas Eve this year.
"Thanks to receding gasoline prices and positive consumer demand, the upcoming holiday season looks bright for the nation's retailers," said Michael P. Niemira, ICSC's chief economist and director of research,. "As the industry gears up for the traditional start of the holiday season on November 24 (Black Friday), expectations are in line for a solid holiday season," Niemira added.
Opinion Research Corporation conducted the survey from November 2 through November 5, 2006 on behalf of ICSC. The survey featured a nationwide sample of 1,000 adults, 18 years of age and older, living in private households in the continental U.S.
