Shoppers Spent More Than Ever This Thanksgiving—Here's What They Bought
Once again, the usual Thanksgiving dishes of stuffing, green bean casserole, and mashed potatoes were accompanied by another popular indulgence this year—online shopping. Across the country, as people finished their Thanksgiving meals, many of them picked up their laptops and phones to take advantage of the plethora of pre-Black Friday deals.
In total, online shoppers spent a record-breaking $5.29 billion on Thanksgiving Day, according to data shared by CNBC. That's an increase of 2.9% over last year.
The numbers quite possibly prove that the deep discounts available on Thanksgiving and the days that follow the holiday have been successful in drawing customers.
“Given the macroeconomic headwinds and backdrop coming into the season for consumers, the big question was, ‘Would the strength of discounts be able to keep demand strong and have it be stable – on par with what we saw last year?’” Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe, shared with CNBC. “What we are seeing is the discounts being strong enough to entice consumers to continue to spend.”
The not-so-eager consumers who wanted to rest a bit and begin their shopping on Black Friday spent just as voraciously. NPR reports that sales on Black Friday were quite robust at $9.12 billion from online sales, which is also a record.
Although some might credit the increase from last year's $8.92 billion on Black Friday to inflation, the increase in online sales in particular was driven by demand, according to Pandya. Among the items most in demand were toys, apparel, and grills and other outdoor equipment.
Sounds like a lot of folks are getting a head start on grilling season.
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