The holiday season is upon us, and that means the retail industry is gearing up for its busiest time of year. The National Retail Federation predicts that this year holiday sales will reach $1.7 trillion in total revenue, an increase of 3.4% from last year’s figures.
- October is the busiest month for online sales, but it’s not just a month of preparation for in-store sales that happen in November and December. It’s also when most people are ordering their holiday gifts online, so many retailers have their busiest weeks in October.
- Online shopping is more popular than ever. The majority of holiday shoppers will be turning to their laptops and smartphones to make purchases this season. According to a recent study by the National Retail Federation, 56% of Americans plan on shopping for gifts online this year.
- Stores will open earlier than ever this year to compete with online shopping! Do you remember when stores were always open on Thanksgiving? It was because they were competing with other brick-and-mortar retailers in their area. Now that so many people shop online, the competition has become even more fierce and stores are opening earlier than ever before just to attract customers into their store.