78M except to go online to shop today
Cyber Monday becoming Cyber Week as retailers push sales.
After a busy weekend of shopping for consumers in the region, retailers today will push another frenzy of sales — this time online for Cyber Monday, the busiest online shopping day of the year.
Approximately 78 million people in the U.S. expect to shop on Cyber Monday, according to the National Retail Federation. That make it the second busiest shopping day of Thanksgiving weekend, right behind Black Friday when 115 million were estimated to shop.
Retailers will push additional sales this week, which has morphed from Cyber Monday into Cyber Week. Toys R Us, which filed for bankruptcy earlier this year, will offer 15 percent items sitewide and another 25 percent off all Hasbro games online.
Carter’s brand clothes will also be 60 percent off online.
“Just when you thought the incredible holiday deals were over, Toys R Us and Babies R Us are providing all cus- tomers thousands of huge online deals during Cyber Week 2017 – no member- ship required,” the retailer announced.
Other online retailers like Amazon have been pushing sales since October. Last year on Cyber Monday, Amazon customers ordered a record-breaking 740 items per second, more than 64 million of items worldwide. The online giant wants to make shopping even easier for consumers this year.
“Customers can also shop Cyber Monday deals using the Amazon App, and set Watch a Deal alerts to ensure they never miss a deal. Some of the deals include up to $50 off Amazon devices like Echo, 30 percent off LEGO sets, 50 percent off Hasbro games, major deals on electronics and smart home devices.
The online deals come as economists expect online sales to surpass brick-andmortar sales this holiday season for the first time in history. About 59 percent of consumers plan to shop online this year, according to the NRF.
“As Gen Z and millennials get older, their purchasing power increases, and the rise in disposable income is sure to be seen by retail- ers,” said Matthew Shay, NRF president and CEO.
Some local residents said they’ve already done the majority of their shopping online. James Maggard of Franklin said he’s done the majority of his shopping on wish.com, which carries everything from toys to clothing and electronics.
“I ordered most of everything online,” he said.
For some, online shop- ping will never replace the experience of going out to the local malls and shopping centers on Thanksgiving and Black Friday.
An estimated 164 million people were expected to shop over the weekend, according to the annual survey released by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics. The numbers include Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Sunday and Cyber Monday.
More than 600 people waited in line for door buster deals at Cabela’s in Centerville.
Brenda Rumbaugh of Belmont usually dresses up as Mrs. Claus or as an elf for Thanksgiving and Black Friday shopping. Standing in line with a friend and family member, Rumbaugh said waiting in line isn’t a burden when you’re doing it with company.
“I’m always done with my shopping before now,” she said. “I just do this for fun. I make it a fun day.”