Americans are less inclined to brave the Black Friday shopping crowds this year but will continue to shop online near the same levels they have in past years, a Consumer Reports poll finds.
The survey found that this year 44 percent of American plan to shop on Black Friday or the weekend following what is typically the biggest shopping day of the year. That’s still millions of people hitting malls an departments stores, but 7 percentage points fewer than last year.
Nearly a quarter of shoppers, 24 percent, plan to brave the crowds and shop on Black Friday, the survey found. The same number of people plans to visit stores on the following weekend, Saturday or Sunday. Online shopping will hold steady, and consumers going online or doing their shopping at traditional outlets said they feel confident deals will be found, either way.
“Consumers may not want to deal with the hassles that come along with shopping on Black Friday,” said Tod Marks, Consumer Reports senior editor and resident shopping expert. “Retailers are desperate for sales and consumers are likely to see deep discounts extend into December.”
The number of people who go online to shop for holiday gifts have increased steadily over the past few years. This year online sales are expected overtake in-store sales on the Monday following Thanksgiving weekend, a day that has become known as Cyber Monday. The Consumer Reporter survey found that 17 percent of Americans plan to shop online on Cyber Monday and 13 percent will visit stores in person.