Posted on September 23, 2017 by Retail News Editor

NRF’s Shop.org conference will include keynotes from CEOs, startup founders and entertainment luminaries

WASHINGTON, 2017-Sep-23 — /EPR Retail News/ — CEOs, startup founders, top business school professors and entertainment luminaries will discuss the changing retail landscape and how digital commerce is transforming business to better engage consumers as more than 2,500 leading members of the ecommerce community gather in Los Angeles later this month for the National Retail Federation’s annual Shop.org conference.

“This year’s conference attendees will have the opportunity to learn from an unprecedented array of the most remarkable players in retail, technology, entertainment and business overall on topics that are critical to today’s transformative and dynamic retail environment,” NRF Senior Vice President for Retail Strategy Cristina Ceresoli said. “Our goal is that they walk away inspired and informed, taking with them practical skills and knowledge that are quickly translatable in their current business practices so they can continue to grow and succeed.”

The September 25-27 conference will include keynotes from industry leaders and other experts, including:

September 26:

Tyra Banks, creator, “America’s Next Top Model,” and chairwoman and CEO, The Tyra Banks Company
Michael White, senior vice president and chief technology officer, Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media
Marc Lore, president and CEO, Walmart eCommerce U.S.
Andrew Nusca, digital editor, Fortune
Adam Goldenberg, co-founder and co-CEO, TechStyle Fashion Group
Gregg Renfrew, founder and CEO, Beautycounter
Mariam Naficy, founder and CEO, Minted
Danielle Weisberg, co-founder and co-CEO, theSkimm
Carly Zakin, co-founder and co-CEO, theSkimm

September 27:

Scott Galloway, clinical professor of marketing, New York University Stern School of Business, and founder and chairman, L2
Adam Grant, professor, University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business
Mindy Grossman, president and CEO, Weight Watchers International Inc.
Roger Rawlins, CEO, DSW Inc.
Rachel Blumenthal, founder and CEO, Rockets of Awesome
Tracy DiNunzio, founder and CEO, Tradesy
Graham Stanton, co-founder and senior vice president for performance marketing, Peloton
Max Levchin, founder and CEO, Affirm
James Rhee, executive chairman and CEO, Ashley Stewart, and founder and president, FirePine Group
Omar Miller, actor, producer and global director, Big Easy Productions
Kobe Bryant, five-time NBA champion, CEO, Kobe Inc., and general partner, Bryant Stibel

On September 26, feature stage speakers presented by Fast Company will include Contributing Editor Verena Von Pfetten, Thrive Market founder and Chief Strategy Officer Gunnar Lovelace, CVS Caremark Senior Vice President and Chief Digital Officer Brian Tilzer, Panera Bread Vice President for Experience Design Mark Berinato, Wayfair Next Director Mike Festa and Pinterest Head of Retail Strategy Amy Vener.

On September 27, the feature stage will include Digital Prophets Network Founder and President Elaine Rubin, Barnes & Noble, Nook Chief Digital Officer Fred Argir, Orvis Chief Information Officer and Vice President for Information and Interaction Dave Finnegan and Future Laboratory CEO Trevor Hardy.

In addition to the speakers on the main stage and feature stage, breakout sessions will provide tactical insights into ecommerce, innovation, consumer trends and more. Highlights include:

7.5 Billion Bosses: Consumers are in Charge Now – Kate Ancketill, CEO and founder, GDR Creative Intelligence.
Going Gaga for Brands in La La Land – Nina Ojeda, columnist, Inc. Magazine; Mondy Herndon, vice president for ecommerce, TOMS; and Jane Fisher, co-founder, Harper Wilde.
Putting the ‘Instant’ in ‘Instant Gratification’ – Tammy Everts, chief experience officer, Speedcurve; Luke Chatelain, vice president for innovation, West Elm; and Grace Glenny, senior director for site merchandising, Target.
They Want It All: The Empowered Consumer – Nick Worth, chief marketing officer, Selligent; Rick Ton, director of membership and product marketing, Sam’s Club; and Benjamin Weiss, senior product manager, Walgreens.
Loyalty Building Strategies from Cult Brands – Rebecca Kaden, partner, Maveron; Dave Cho, co-founder and CEO, Soko Glam; Bobby Farahi, co-founder and CEO, Dolls Kill; and Joey Zwillinger, co-founder, Allbirds.
Not Just Mini-Millennials: What Makes Gen Z Unique – Dan Coates, president, Ypulse; Chad Kessler, global brand president, American Eagle Outfitters; and Caren Sinclair-Kay, president, Dormify.
Digital Sleuths: How Kohl’s is Increasing Conversion and Elevating Customer Experience – Sarah Rasmusen, vice president for digital merchandising and analytics, Kohl’s; and Jess Simpson, principal, Deloitte Consulting.
Viral Marketing in the YouTube Era – Shane Murphy, vice president for marketing, AdRoll; and Bryant Garvin, director of digital marketing, Purple.
A New Era of Retail: Advice from Venture Capitalists – James Rhee, executive chairman and CEO, Ashley Stewart, and founder and president, FirePine Group; Rebecca Kaden, partner, Maveron; Jordan Nof, head of investments, Tusk Ventures; and Hans Tung, managing partner Silicon Valley, GGV Capital.
Conversational Commerce and the Rise of the Robot – Healey Cypher, CEO and founder, OAK; Jennifer Tvedt, global director of project management and performance, Nike Inc.

Complimentary registration is available to editorial members of the news media as well as accredited retail analysts and bloggers. For more information, visit the Shop.org media registration page.

About NRF
NRF is the world’s largest retail trade association, representing discount and department stores, home goods and specialty stores, Main Street merchants, grocers, wholesalers, chain restaurants and internet retailers from the United States and more than 45 countries. Retail is the nation’s largest private sector employer, supporting one in four U.S. jobs – 42 million working Americans. Contributing $2.6 trillion to annual GDP, retail is a daily barometer for the nation’s economy.

Contact:

Ana Serafin Smith
(202) 626-8189
press@nrf.com
(855) NRF-Press

Source: NRF

Posted on August 2, 2017 by Retail News Editor

Hot 100 Retailers list unveiled at the NRF’s STORES magazine August issue

WASHINGTON, 2017-Aug-02 — /EPR Retail News/ — Whether they sell through traditional stores, online or both, companies that provide unique offerings and experiences for consumers dominate the list of Hot 100 Retailers published today (August 1, 2017) by the National Retail Federation’s STORES magazine.

“The retail industry is getting better at addressing shifts in shopping behaviors and thinking differently,” STORES Media Editor Susan Reda said. “What matters most to consumers is a retailer differentiating itself in the marketplace, being innovative with merchandise and offering the right value to the right person, not whether a retailer is ‘bricks or clicks.’ The mix of both traditional and digital retailers on this year’s list reflects that. The secret to sustained growth going forward is a symbiotic relationship between digital and physical retailing.”

The Hot 100 list of fastest-growing retailers, compiled by research firm Kantar Retail and published in the August issue of STORES, is based on sales growth in 2016 over 2015 and ranks both public and privately held retail companies by U.S. domestic sales, with a $300 million threshold for inclusion.

Topping the list is subscription meal kit company Blue Apron, which has delivered more than 150 million meals since it was founded five years ago and saw annual sales grow a dramatic 133 percent to $795.4 million in 2016.

Second is online furniture and home décor seller Wayfair, where sales grew 54 percent to $2.9 billion as it expanded its offerings to include greater price and quality ranges. Coming in third is longtime traditional retailer Ascena Retail Group — parent company of Ann Taylor, Catherines, Dress Barn, Lane Bryant and Maurices — which has been aggressive with mergers and acquisitions in recent years and had 50 percent sales growth at $7 billion. Following at No. 4 is online pet food seller Chewy.com with 48 percent growth to $900 million, followed at No. 5 by online building supply company Build.com/Wolseley, which grew 38 percent to $911 million.

Also included are No. 6 convenience store operator CST Brands, up 29 percent at $2.1 billion; No. 7 subscription fashion retailer JustFab, up 29 percent at $572 million; No. 8 supermarket and department store chain Grupo Comercial Chedraui, up 27 percent at $1.5 billion; No. 9 supermarket chain Gelson’s Markets, up 26 percent at $723 million; and No. 10 online giant Amazon.com, up 25 percent at $77 billion.

Online companies make up six of the top 10 companies, but the majority of retailers on the full Hot 100 list are either traditional retailers or retailers that sell both in-store and online. Fewer than 10 companies are pureplay ecommerce.

“This year’s Hot 100 confirms once again that retail growth is coming from a number of places, including less traditional channels in the industry,” Kantar Retail Chief Product Strategy and Marketing Officer Andrew Stockwell said. “While a tremendous amount of volume is still generated from big boxes, retail channels such as online, discount, club, drug and convenience are powering accelerated growth.”

Fourteen companies with ‘Sustained Sizzle’
Fourteen retailers are recognized as “sustained sizzlers” for having made the Hot 100 list each year since its inception in 2006. The list below includes their sales growth since 2011 and their 2017 ranking:

Amazon.com – 192 percent (10)
Aldi – 42 percent (40)
Dollar General – 48 percent (47)
Ross Stores – 49 percent (52)
O’Reilly Automotive – 48 percent (51)
Dick’s Sporting Goods – 52 percent (43)
Tractor Supply Co. – 60 percent (44)
Academy Sports + Outdoor – 156 percent (27)
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance – 160 percent (11)
Sprouts Farmers Market – 251 percent (30)
Casey’s General Stores – 67 percent (55)
Grocery Outlet – 197 percent (49)
Sephora – 44 percent (67)
Lululemon Athletica – 208 percent (38)

About Kantar Retail
We are the retail and shopper specialists. We help you sell more effectively and profitably. We are part of Kantar (kantar.com), the data investment management division of WPP (wpp.com) and one of the world’s leading insight, information and consultancy groups. Kantar Retail works with leading branded manufacturers and retailers to transform the purchase behavior of consumers and shoppers through the use of retail and shopper insights, purchase data tools and analytics, consulting solutions and retail virtual reality services. To learn more, visit us at kantarretail.com and download Kantar Retail’s Breakthrough Insights for a selection of our most impactful reports, forecasts and thought leadership.

Contact:
Ana Serafin Smith
(202) 626-8189
press@nrf.com
(855) NRF-Press

Source: NRF

Posted on May 24, 2017 by Retail News Editor

NRF’s David French: The border tax proposal would cause the tax burden on retailers to skyrocket

WASHINGTON, 2017-May-24 — /EPR Retail News/ — Retailers would “have no choice” but to pass the higher costs on to consumers if Congress passes a proposed $1 trillion border adjustment tax as part of tax reform, the National Retail Federation said today (May 23, 2017).

“The border tax proposal would cause the tax burden on retailers to skyrocket,” NRF Senior Vice President for Government Relations David French wrote in a statement submitted to the House Ways and Means Committee. “Under this proposal, many retailers will have a tax burden that is larger than their profits. …Obviously, they will have no choice but to pass the tax cost forward to their customers. …Small businesses may be particularly vulnerable to the impact of the border tax on prices.”

The committee is holding a hearing this morning on the border adjustment proposal, which is part of the “Better Way” tax reform plan proposed by House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and committee Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas.

“The retail industry has been a strong proponent of income tax reform,” French said. “We believe that income tax reform that lowers the rates and broadens the tax base can provide economic growth for the economy as a whole and can be good for the American consumer. We do not believe that a new tax system that shifts the burden of taxation to the consumer is good for our industry, which is the nation’s largest employer, or good for the American consumer.”

The United States has one of the highest corporate tax rates in the world and NRF has led the retail industry in advocating for comprehensive tax reform that would broaden the tax base and lower the corporate tax rate. Retail benefits from few of the tax breaks that lower tax bills for other industries, and pays at or close to the full 35 percent statutory rate.

Among other provisions, the Ryan-Brady plan would create a 20 percent tax on imported goods by ending retailers’ ability to deduct the cost of merchandise that they import. That means retailers would be taxed at nearly the full selling price of imported merchandise rather than just their profit, amounting to $1 trillion in extra costs over the first 10 years.

The border adjustment tax would have significant implications for retailers and other industries that import goods into the United States, including automobiles, technology, food and fuel. Analysis by NRF and many of its member companies indicates that the proposed tax would drive up costs, erode profits and exceed any benefits from a lower rate. It would require price increases of 15 percent or more to retain profitability, effectively creating a new tax paid by consumers.

The BAT would also put at risk millions of retail-supported jobs. A BAT could cause retailers to see tax bills three to five times the amount of their profits, threatening to drive some merchants out of business. The small retailers that make up 98 percent of the retail industry and provide 40 percent of its jobs would be at the biggest risk.

NRF is the world’s largest retail trade association, representing discount and department stores, home goods and specialty stores, Main Street merchants, grocers, wholesalers, chain restaurants and Internet retailers from the United States and more than 45 countries. Retail is the nation’s largest private sector employer, supporting one in four U.S. jobs – 42 million working Americans. Contributing $2.6 trillion to annual GDP, retail is a daily barometer for the nation’s economy.

Contact:

Robin Roberts
press@nrf.com
(855) NRF-Press

Source: NRF

Posted on January 11, 2017 by Retail News Editor

35,000 retailers and more than two dozen industry leaders to gather for NRF’s 106th annual Retail’s BIG Show

Washington, 2017-Jan-11 — /EPR Retail News/ — More than two dozen industry leaders will be featured keynote speakers as close to 35,000 retailers from around the world convene in New York City beginning this weekend for the National Retail Federation’s 106th annual Retail’s BIG Show.

“The level of expertise and insider insights that industry leaders and brand executives will bring to this conference will make this year the most impactful in the show’s history,” NRF Senior Vice President for Research and Strategic Initiatives Ellen Davis said. “Each one of these visionaries and pioneers was handpicked to challenge, inspire and encourage attendees to redefine their brand, explore opportunities, enhance customer experience both in-store and online and constantly embrace change.”

The three-day conference opens on Sunday, when Macy’s Chairman and CEO Terry J. Lundgren, HSNi CEO and NRF Foundation Chair Mindy Grossman, Ashley Stewart Executive Chairman and CEO James Rhee and Walmart U.S. President and CEO Greg Foran will participate in a session titled “Building Tomorrow’s Workforce: How Retailers Are Attracting and Retaining Talent.” The session will discuss how retail employment has grown by half a million jobs since 2012 and is expected to grow by nearly another 1 million by 2022.

Also on Sunday, Deloitte LP Wholesale and Distribution Leader Rod Sides will moderate a session titled “From Data to Delight: An Insight-Driven Revolution of the In-Store Experience.” Sides will be joined by GameStop International Executive Vice President and President Mike Mauler and The Vitamin Shoppe CEO and Chief Health Enthusiast Colin Watts, who will share statistics that matter in measuring and shaping the most impactful experiences with their customers.

At lunch on Sunday, retired Navy captain and NASA astronaut Scott Kelly will address his record-breaking year in space and how he captivated the world while laying the groundwork for the future of space travel and exploration in a session titled “The Sky is Not the Limit: Lessons From a Year in Space.”

Shoes of Prey co-founder and Chief Creative Officer Jodie Fox and Indochino CEO Drew Green will close out Sunday with a session titled “Tailoring The 21st Century Customer Experience,” where they will discuss the future of customization, personalization and perfecting the customer experience.

On Monday, NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay will open the show by discussing The State of NRF and the Retail Industry. His remarks will be followed by A Fireside Chat with Sir Richard Branson, featuring the Virgin Group founder along with Kip Tindell, co-founder and chairman of The Container Store and chairman of NRF.

Later on Monday, Intel CEO Brian Krzanich and Carrie Ask, executive vice president and president of global retail at Levi Strauss & Co., will speak at a session titled “Driving Retail Transformation: How Data and Smart, Connected Technology Deliver Amazing Customer Experiences.” Krzanich and Ask will outline how the industry is undergoing an unprecedented transformation, and how that transformation translates to exciting new experiences for retailers and consumers alike.

Wrapping up Monday, Union Square Hospitality Group Founder and CEO Danny Meyer, Gunther T. Bright, American Express Company executive vice president and general manager for merchant services-U.S., and Phil Wahba, Fortune magazine senior retailer writer, will speak in a session titled “Setting the Table with Danny Meyer – How Focusing on Hospitality Creates Deep Customer Connections.” The session will focus on the success of Meyer’s restaurant brands from fine dining destination Gramercy Tavern to burger joint Shake Shack.

On Tuesday, the show’s final day, Macy’s Lundgren will return to the stage with Federal Reserve Bank of New York CEO William Dudley in a session titled “Evolving Consumer Behavior: A View from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.” Dudley will discuss how consumer behavior has evolved over the last 10 years with a focus on how consumer spending has been financed.

Also on Tuesday, this year’s Retail’s BIG Fast Track session will be hosted by XRC Labs founder and Managing Director Pano Anthos and Executive Director Leslie Cohen. The session will feature Joe Beninato, founder and CEO of Banter, Strypes CEO Alexa Fleischman, Perseus Mirrors co-founder and CEO Erik Skantze and ShopShops founder and CEO Liyia Wu. The program will explore how the speakers see the retail industry shifting beyond traditional approaches to everything from customer engagement and personalization to global markets and customer connectivity.

The last keynote session of the show, “Winning Today’s Socially Aware Customer,” will feature IKEA U.S. President Lars Petersson, 500 Startups Entrepreneur in Residence and Venture Partner Tristan Pollock and The Honest Company founder and Chief Purpose Officer Christopher Gavigan. This session will discuss building trust through brand authenticity and fostering genuine consumer relationships paired with a relentless focus on product excellence.

Members of the news media and accredited retail analysts can click here to register online for show, call 855-NRF-PRESS or email eventpress@nrf.com.

About NRF
NRF is the world’s largest retail trade association, representing discount and department stores, home goods and specialty stores, Main Street merchants, grocers, wholesalers, chain restaurants and Internet retailers from the United States and more than 45 countries. Retail is the nation’s largest private sector employer, supporting one in four U.S. jobs — 42 million working Americans. Contributing $2.6 trillion to annual GDP, retail is a daily barometer for the nation’s economy.

Contact:

Ana Serafin Smith
(202) 626-8189
press@nrf.com
(855) NRF-Press

Source: NRF

Posted on November 22, 2016 by Retail News Editor

Former MACY’S CMO Martine Reardon to serve as Senior Advisor for NRF’s Retail and Marketing Strategies

To serve as Senior Advisor for Retail and Marketing Strategies

WASHINGTON, 2016-Nov-22 — /EPR Retail News/ — Today (November 21, 2016) the National Retail Federation announced that Martine Reardon, former Chief Marketing Officer for Macy’s, has partnered with NRF to serve as a Senior Advisor for Retail and Marketing Strategies.

“As CMO, Martine is widely acknowledged as the leader at Macy’s who successfully built the company’s omnichannel brand,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. “We have a long history of providing the industry with the insights, tools and expertise they need in order to meet the challenges that enable them to grow their business in a highly competitive environment. Martine’s hands-on experience and in-depth knowledge ensures we take that opportunity to the next level.”

Mindy Grossman, president and CEO of HSNi and incoming chairman of the NRF, said, “I have known Martine for a number of years and I am thrilled she has agreed to take this role with NRF. Martine is well-known, respected and admired by retailers across the diverse community of the industry. Her consulting work with the NRF will enhance our ability to remain at the forefront of thought leadership for retailers large and small, providing real world business solutions to real world business challenges.”

“I have worked most of my professional life in retail, and I am thrilled to join in this partnership and engage with the NRF and the top retail leaders in the industry,” said Ms. Reardon. “Retail evolves at a pace that requires constant vigilance with foresight and planning. To be part of creating paths and finding the voices that can help grow the industry is a tremendous opportunity and I am looking forward to the challenge.”

Contact:
Treacy Reynolds
press@nrf.com
(855) NRF-Press

Source: NRF

Posted on September 27, 2016 by Retail News Editor

NRF’s 2016 Halloween Consumer Top Costumes Survey: More children will be dressed as their favorite superhero

WASHINGTON, 2016-Sep-27 — /EPR Retail News/ — More children this year than ever before will be celebrating Halloween dressed as their favorite superhero, as princess costumes fall to the number two spot after an 11-year reign, according to NRF’s 2016 Halloween Consumer Top Costumes Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics. Spending on Halloween costumes is expected to reach $3.1 billion, with 67 percent of Halloween celebrants planning to purchase costumes this year.

More than three million children will dress as their favorite action or superhero, 2.9 million will dress as their favorite princess and 2.5 million plan to dress as a cat, dog, bunny or other animal.

CHILDREN’S COSTUMES:

Action/Superhero
Princess
Animal (Cat, Dog, Lion, Monkey, etc.)
Batman Character
Star Wars Character
Tie: Witch AND DC Superhero (excl. Batman)
Frozen Character (Anna, Elsa, Olaf)
Marvel Superhero (excl. Spiderman)
Zombie
Spiderman

As millennials plan for their party attire for Halloween weekend, more than nine percent will reach for a Batman costume, followed by 6.1 percent opting for witch hats and brooms and five percent planning to dress as an animal.

ADULTS 18-34-YEARS-OLD:

Batman Character (Batman, Harley Quinn, The Joker, etc.)
Witch
Animal (Cat, Dog, Bunny, etc.)
Tie: Marvel Superhero (Deadpool, Spiderman, etc.) AND DC Superhero (Wonder Woman, Superman, excl. Batman)
Vampire
Video Game Character
Slasher Movie Villain (Freddy, Jason, Michael Myers, etc.)
Pirate
Star Wars Character
Zombie

Halloween isn’t just a holiday for kids and young adults, and this year plenty of adults will be getting in on the action. More than 76 percent of adults have already decided what to dress as this Halloween. While most adults will don a witch or pirate costume, with no surprise, more than four percent of older adults will turn to current events like the presidential election for their costume inspiration.

ADULTS 35+:

Witch
Pirate
Political (Trump, Clinton, etc.)
Vampire
Batman Character (Batman, Catwoman, etc.)
Animal (Cat, Dog, Bunny, etc.)
Tie: DC Superhero (Superman, Wonder Woman, excl. Batman) and Star Wars Character
Tie: Ghost and Zombie
Scary Costume/Mask
Marvel Superhero (Iron Man, Hulk, Spiderman, etc.)

PETS:

Many families want the whole house dressed up on Halloween, including their pets. Sixteen percent of consumers plan to dress their pets in costume this year and 86.7 percent of those consumers already have a plan for their pet’s costumes. Pumpkin, hot dog and bumble bee are at the top of the list again this year.

Pumpkin
Hot Dog
Bumble Bee
Tie: Lion and Star Wars Character
Devil
Batman Character
Witch
Superman
Action/Superhero
Cat

The survey asked 6,791 consumers about Halloween costume plans. It was conducted September 6-13 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.2 percentage points.

About Prosper Insights & Analytics
Prosper Insights & Analytics delivers executives timely, consumer-centric insights from multiple sources. As a comprehensive resource of information, Prosper represents the voice of the consumer and provides knowledge to marketers regarding consumer views on the economy, personal finance, retail, lifestyle, media and domestic and world issues. www.ProsperDiscovery.com

Contact:

Treacy Reynolds
press@nrf.com
(855) NRF-Press

Source: NRF

Posted on November 20, 2015 by EPR Retail News Editors

NRF’s Preliminary Thanksgiving Weekend Survey: Millennials love Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday Shopping

WASHINGTON, 2015-11-20 — /EPR Retail News/ — Although nearly 60 percent of holiday shoppers had already started checking off their shopping lists by November 10, millions more are eagerly waiting to hear what retailers have in store – and online – for the biggest holiday shopping weekend of the year. According to NRF’s Preliminary Thanksgiving Weekend Survey, an estimated 135.8 million shoppers (58.7%) definitely will or may shop on Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and/or Sunday, similar to the 61.1 percent who planned to last year and more than the 55 percent of holiday shoppers who said they did shop in stores and online over the weekend in 2014.

NRF’s 2014 Thanksgiving Weekend results Survey found 133.7 million holiday shoppers were in stores and online over the holiday weekend.

“The importance of Thanksgiving weekend to both retailers and consumers will never change. However, retailers have already given consumers several good reasons to start their holiday shopping earlier,” said NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. “We suspect early holiday shoppers could still be on the fence about whether or not to try their hand at finding online and in- store deals Thanksgiving weekend.”

“To make it even easier on holiday shoppers this year, we expect retailers will offer exclusive savings each day of the big weekend, including Thanksgiving and Black Friday-only deals and even extended Cyber Monday promotions throughout the week that follows,” continued Shay. “But this weekend isn’t the end-all-be-all; it’s important to remember, there will be several important weekends to keep an eye on before we wrap up the holiday season.”

Of those who plan to or are anticipating they may shop online or in store over the weekend, most will shop on Black Friday (73.5% vs. 68.2% from NRF’s preliminary survey in 2014), though 22.3 percent say they are eagerly anticipating retailers’ Thanksgiving Day deals, compared to 18.3 percent in NRF’s preliminary 2014 survey. Saturday is often overlooked because it’s sandwiched between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but the numbers speak for themselves: 49 percent of those surveyed say they will shop in stores and online on Saturday, up from the 42.9 percent in last year’s preliminary survey. One in five (23.1%) say they will or may shop on Sunday.

NRF also asked those Saturday shoppers if they would specifically shop for Small Business Saturday: the survey found 22.3 percent said they would and 54 percent say maybe.

And for the first year NRF asked about plans to shop on Cyber Monday. According to the survey 79.6 percent – or a potential 183.8 million unique shoppers – said they would or may shop on Cyber Monday.

Millennials love Thanksgiving Day, Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday Shopping

When it comes to holiday celebrations over the Thanksgiving weekend, it is clear millennials are still quite interested in being a part of the shopping experience. According to the survey 77.8 percent of 18-24 year olds and 77.4 percent of 25-34 year olds said they definitely will or may shop online and in stores over the Thanksgiving weekend.

“Millennials love shopping in stores and online over Thanksgiving weekend for several reasons, including the opportunities afforded to them that allow them to splurge on ‘non-gifts’ for themselves and even the potential to sleep in on Black Friday after having spent the night before bouncing from store to store,” said Prosper’s Principal Analyst Pam Goodfellow. “For these adults, it’s less about making room for pumpkin pie and more about going out with friends, checking out the deals through their mobile phones and experiencing retailers’ night owl hours and perhaps making a dent in their shopping lists.”

“Given how shoppers today overall gravitate towards all things digital, there’s a high likelihood online shopping will be bigger than ever over the holiday weekend and on Cyber Monday,” continued Goodfellow.

Although the entire weekend is seen as one big social experience, Black Friday is expected to be the biggest day for these age groups. Of those millennials who will or may shop over the holiday weekend, the survey found 84.3 percent of 18-24 year olds and 80.2 percent of 25-34 year olds say they will shop on Black Friday. One-quarter (25.4%) of 18-24 year olds will or may shop on Thanksgiving Day and nearly one-third (32.7%) of 25-34 year olds will make room for shopping after turkey and dessert.

Twenty-five to 34 year olds also seem to be more likely to specifically support Small Business Saturday: 34.7 percent of those who are planning to or may shop on Saturday will specifically shop to support small businesses over the weekend.

And when it comes to Cyber Monday, there’s no question that young adults still love the idea of exclusive Cyber Monday deals. According to the survey 88.7 percent of 18-24 year olds and 90.9 percent of 25-34 year olds say yes or maybe when asked if they will shop online on Cyber Monday.

CyberMonday.com Announces Black Friday Deals of the Hour

Shop.org’s CyberMonday.com, which features promotions and deals from hundreds of retailers, will feature a Deal of the Hour on Black Friday from more than 20 different retailers. Select deals include:

Time (EST)    Merchant
12 – 1am        Under Armour
1 – 2am          Apple
2 – 3am          Sierra Trading Post
3 – 4am           Bose
4 – 5am          Omaha Steaks
5 – 6am          Magazines.com
6 – 7am Saks
7 – 8am        Overstock

Click here for a complete list of companies and times. Offers will include free shipping specials, dollars off and even free gifts with purchase. Retailers will also use CyberMonday.com to promote their Cyber Monday Deal of the Hour. NRF will announce retailers’ Cyber Monday promotions on Sunday, November 29.

NRF Thanksgiving Weekend Spending Results and Weekend Contact Information

NRF will release the results of its Thanksgiving Weekend Survey by 1:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, November 29. Information will include what time people started shopping on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday, how many people say they shopped for Small Business Saturday and the percentage spent online in total over the weekend. NRF will also release an updated number of people who as of that Sunday are planning to shop online on Cyber Monday.

MEDIA AND ANALYSTS ONLY: Additionally NRF will host an exclusive media call with President and CEO Matthew Shay at 2 p.m. An advisory will be sent to retail, trade and business media in the coming days.

NRF offices will be closed Friday, November 28, but members of the media relations team will be available from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. on the press line. To request a print or broadcast interview with a NRF spokesperson at any time, please use the below contact information:

Treacy Reynolds (8 a.m. – 3 p.m.) 855-NRF-PRESS or ReynoldsT@nrf.com or press@nrf.com,

Kathy Grannis Allen, allenk@nrf.com

Kathy Grannis Allen
(202) 783-7971
press@nrf.com
(855) NRF-Press