US Holiday Shopping Study

Simon-Kucher experts weigh-in and provide insights from this year's holiday shopping study.

We know that inflation and economic uncertainty will continue to put pressure on both brick-and-mortar and online retailers through the upcoming holiday season.

Though our 2022 Holiday Shopping Study results show that 89% of consumers will be shopping at pre-pandemic levels, more than two-thirds (71%) of shoppers expect to spend less than $200 on Black Friday, which accounts for a significant drop in spending habits compared to prior years.

Our young spenders will be rising to the occasion, though. Gen Z will spend more than previous years as budgets increase and spending habits evolve. In all major promotional holidays, Gen Z has expressed the highest participation intent across generations with 88% planning to participate in Black Friday, 80% in Amazon Prime Day and 78% in Labor Day and Back-to-School Shopping.

Retailers are not only being forced to navigate many highs and lows with consumers' shopping behavior, but now they must contend with the increasing inventory in warehouses and on shelves. Retail inventory glut is becoming a growing concern as margins continue to get squeezed by necessary promotions. Lengthening inventory turnover and operating cycles leads to cash flow constraints, and a rush to employ short-term levers potentially exposes a company to further margin dilution in the mid- or long-term.