Small Business
Mobile Shopping: Thanksgiving Sales Up 15%
Same store retail sales on Thanksgiving Day sales increased by nearly 15% from 2016 to 2017 (including both in-store and online transactions), with Black Friday sales lagging behind. Cyber Monday is expected to far surpass those numbers.
Nov. 25, 2017
Black Friday may be becoming a relic of brick and mortar history, as more and more consumers shop beginning on Thanksgiving Day and use the entire Cyberweekend that culminates on Cyber Monday.
The latest holiday sales data from Avalara shows same store retail sales on Thanksgiving Day sales increased by nearly 15% from 2016 to 2017 (including both in-store and online transactions), with Black Friday sales lagging behind. Avalara is a provider of tech and services that help businesses around the world comply with a variety of transactional taxes, including sales and use tax.
Sales data from Adobe Analytics showed spending at $2.9 billion on Thanksgiving Day, with mobile phone-based purchases accounting for as much as 29 percent of digital commerce at the largest online retailers. That’s an increase from 27 percent on the same day last year. On Black Friday itself, Avalara’s data showed same-store sales up 1.25 percent over last year.
The data is an early indicator of the how retail sales may fare this holiday season. Data from the weekend suggests a strong season, with an overall increase in consumer spending during November and December.
“The face of retail is changing – Black Friday is now less of a physical holiday and has followed in Cyber Monday’s footsteps,” said Avalara CTO Peter Horadan. “Cyber Monday has now turned into Cyber Week. Last year, retail sales almost doubled when comparing the week before Thanksgiving to the week after. In fact, in 2016, Cyber Monday outpaced Black Friday sales by more than 200%.”