The annual survey released recently by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics says consumers are expected to spend an average of US$ 1,047.83 this holiday season, up 4% from the US$ 1,007.24 they had said they would spend last year. The survey also found that shoppers between the ages of 35 and 44 years plan to spend the most at an average of US$ 1,158.63.

“Consumers are in good financial shape and willing to spend a little more on gifts for the special people in their lives this holiday season,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. “Retailers are fully prepared to meet the needs of holiday shoppers looking for that perfect mix of sales, quality and selection.”

What is more, Shay noted, retailers are expected to import “near-record volumes” of merchandise ahead of the implementation of tariffs scheduled to take effect on a wide range of consumer goods from China from December 15, 2019. 

Earlier, the  NRF had released its  annual holiday spending forecast, which estimated that holiday retail sales in November and December of 2019 will be between 3.8%-4.2% higher than those of the same period of 2018; touching a total of between US$ 727.9 billion-US$ 730.7 billion. The holiday sales forecast takes into account a variety of economic factors to project overall spending rather than per-consumer spending, NRF clarified.

The latest NRF survey found that consumers plan to spend in three main categories during the holidays:  gifts for family, friends and co-workers, at an average US$ 658.55; non-gift holiday items such as candy and food, decorations, greeting cards and flowers at US$ 227.26; and other non-gift purchases that take advantage of the deals and promotions throughout the season at US$ 162.02.

“Younger consumers are helping drive the spending increase this year,” Prosper Insights Executive Vice President of Strategy Phil Rist said. “They’re not just spending on their immediate family members, they’re also treating their larger circle of co-workers and friends to gifts.”

The survey found that more than half of shoppers between the ages of 25 and 34 (52%) plan to purchase gifts for co-workers; and 82% of those between 18 and 24 plan to purchase gifts for their friends.

Also, the survey posits that shopping will be spread across multiple channels and types of stores. “More than half (56 per cent) say they will shop online,” the survey states. “Among online shoppers, 92 per cent plan to take advantage of free shipping and 48 per cent will use buy online, pick-up in store or ship to store services, and 16 per cent plan to use same-day delivery, which has doubled since 2015. The youngest online shoppers (ages 18 to 24) are the most likely to say they plan to use same-day delivery at 32 per cent.”

However, brick and mortar stores will not be left behind. The majority of shoppers, 53% said they will also shop in department stores and 51% will go to discount stores; while 44% planned to go to grocery stores; 34% to clothing and accessory stores and 23% each to electronics stores and local small businesses.

While, as in previous years, 39% of holiday shoppers said they would start buying holiday items before November, 43% said they will wait until at least November, and 18% will wait until December.

“Sales and discounts remain the largest factor in choosing a particular retailer during the holidays, cited by 70 per cent,” the survey results showed. “Quality merchandise was the next-largest factor (cited by 59 per cent), followed by selection of merchandise (57 per cent), free shipping and shipping promotions (46 per cent) and convenient location (44 per cent).”

Jewellery remains low on the wish list of consumers with only 23% asserting that they would like to receive jewellery. Jewellery was aced by gift cards (59%); clothing and accessories (52%); books/movies/music/video games (35%); electronics (29%), home décor (24%); and followed by personal care or beauty items (21%), sporting goods (18%) and home improvement items (17%).