Holiday


Strong November Retail Sales Hidden in Latest Results

Retail spending slowed in November, according to the latest government data. Or did it really? While the seasonally adjusted sales data suggest moderating growth, the unadjusted data suggest a strong November at the expense of a weak October—that consumers held back…


Post-Election Jump in Confidence Led by Boomers

Spending confidence has moved higher led by Baby Boomers while it continues to slump among Millennials in the wake of the presidential election. The net impact should boost retail sales for the holiday, although results will remain mixed by category and…


Holiday outlook is unclear, given latest retail sales

What do the latest retail sales numbers tell us about the outlook heading into the holiday? It depends whether you believe more in the seasonally adjusted or unadjusted data. If you believe in the adjusted data, then sales growth improved significantly—to…


What consumers want as holiday gifts—what it means

The winners and losers among categories this holiday will include gift cards, clothing, home-related goods, and media from books to video games. That’s the takeaway from an October survey of holiday shoppers—and comparisons with responses spanning more than 10 years. Given…


Holiday Spending Will Be Slightly Weaker This Year

Spending will be slightly weaker online and in stores this holiday season. Sales will grow 2% in stores and 14.5% online—resulting in 3.5% overall growth, according to projections by MacroSavvy™. The forecast shows that the weakness will be most evident at…


Holiday Results Better than First Reported

Household retail spending perked up in January and was a bit better during the holiday than first reported, according to the latest U.S. retail numbers. The revised holiday numbers show that the holiday results were close to the 3.5% forecast by…