Surprises galore for US holiday shoppers
TOYS and TVs at JC Penney, Barbies at Best Buy, kitchen appliances like wine refrigerators at BJ’s.
As the holiday shopping season officially kicked off yesterday, shoppers may find some surprises at their favourite US stores.
Even as retailers are counting on a lift from a better economy, they’re looking beyond economic data and mapping out ways to pick up sales from other retailers as Amazon expands its reach.
That can mean opening earlier than rivals on the holidays or even jumping into new product categories.
The fight for market share comes as analysts at Bain say Amazon is expected to take half of the holiday season’s sales growth.
And Amazon is the top destination for people to begin holiday shopping, according to a September study by market research firm NPD Group.
“The retailers are in survival mode. It’s about stealing each other’s market share,” said Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst at NPD. “Amazon is the Grinch. They’re stealing the growth.”
With the jobless rate at a 17-year-low of 4.1 percent and consumer confidence stronger than a year ago, analysts project healthy sales increases for November and December.
The National Retail Federation
Amazon is expected to take half of the holiday season’s sales growth.
trade group expects sales for that period to at least match last year’s rise of 3.6 percent and estimates online spending and other non-store sales will rise 11 percent to 15 percent.
Amazon is expected to be a big beneficiary as it cements loyalty among its prime members and moves into new services and private-label merchandise. The company has introduced more than 20 such brands in the past two years in clothing, electronics, groceries and more, says Bain.
That leaves stores looking at rivals to see where they can pick up sales. There are extra dollars up for grabs this year, after thousands of store locations have closed and several retailers including Gymboree and Toys ‘R’ Us filed for bankruptcy protection.
Jordan Ascencio, who has sons aged 1, 7, and 8, plans to bypass Toys ‘R’ Us on Black Friday after being turned off by what she says are dirty stores and skimpy supplies. The latest problem: Her online order was cancelled following a large-scale coupon glitch.
“I am not a fan anymore,” said the resident of Sapulpa, Oklahoma. Instead, she plans to buy toys at JC Penney and Target.
And with Gymboree shuttering a quarter of its stores, Ascencio is buying more of her children’s clothing at Target, which has launched a number of new private label brands. Target chief executive Brian Cornell recently highlighted that up to $60 billion (R834.1bn) in consumer spending will be up for the taking in the next few years, and said the chain has been picking up market share in such areas as clothing.
The Thanksgiving weekend, when stores go all-out to attract shoppers, can be an indication of how well they’ll do through the season. About 69 percent of Americans, or 164 million people, intend to shop at some point during the five-day period from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday, according to a survey released by the National Retail Federation.
It expects Black Friday to remain the busiest day, with about 115 million people planning to shop then.
Stores like Macy’s, Target and Kohl’s were set to open yesterday evening as they try to woo early shoppers. Walmart starts deals in its stores at 6pm. JC Penney is opening its doors at 2pm, an hour earlier than last year and at least three hours ahead of its department store rivals.