NPD Forecasts Holiday Shopping Behavior for 2019

Retailers were doling out holiday deals even before we doled out the Halloween candy. But there is still a lot of holiday shopping left to do. “A roller-coaster season will lead to holiday sales growth between 2.7 percent and 3.2 percent compared to last year,” reports Marshal Cohen, NPD’s Chief Industry Advisor.

Here’s an overview of what Cohen anticipates from consumers’ holiday shopping in 2019:

• Consumers plan to spend an average of $740 on holiday shopping this year.
• Seventeen percent of consumers plan to start holiday shopping on Black Friday, up significantly compared to 2018.
• More than 75 percent of consumers will shop online this holiday season, but more than 50 percent of purchases will be done in-store.
• One in four consumers plan to buy all their holiday gifts on sale.
• More consumers plan to buy tech and spend more. More consumers will buy home products but spend less. Fewer consumers plan to buy clothing/accessories but plan to invest and spend more.