Annual Week Six Holiday Shopping Slump Weighed Down by Declines
Port Washington, New York (PRWEB) December 21, 2017 -- The week following Cyber Week, the traditional week six slump, took a deeper dive this year. Cumulatively, U.S. retail sales for the first six weeks of the 2017 holiday shopping season are even with last year across the key general merchandise categories in NPD’s Holiday Shopping Bag. So far, prestige beauty and small home appliances are the leaders of the season, each with cumulative dollar sales gains just shy of 10 percent.
Week Ending December 9, 2017
Overall Performance
• Dollar sales in the first full week of December 2017 were 7 percent lower than during the same week in 2016.
• Prestige Beauty was the leader this week, continuing to show growth while all other segments tracked saw some level of declines, as steep as low-double digits.
Top Performing Categories
• Home Automation (driven by Security & Monitoring, Power & Sensors)
• Stereo Headphones
• Video Cards
• Home Environment Appliances (driven by Specialty Cleaning)
• Facial Skincare
“The season has been a mess of inconsistencies, from seemingly universal apparel promotions and novelties like ‘ugly’ sweaters, faux fur, and hats with earflaps emerging as the season’s standouts, to an implied focus on self-gifting with make-up, skincare, and innovative products for the home leading Holiday 2017,” said NPD’s Chief Industry Advisor, Marshal Cohen. “The season’s crunch-time will likely bring some lift in sales, especially as consumers take advantage of the extra full weekend of shopping before Christmas for last-minute gifts.”
Information is collected from a panel of leading retailers that provide weekly point-of-sale data covering U.S. in-store and online sales of Apparel, Toys, Technology, Athletic Footwear, Prestige Beauty(Fragrance, Makeup, Skincare), Small Home Appliances, and Office Supplies.
Note: Shifts may occur from week to week in reporting results, due to retailer reporting updates.
For more information, or to speak with Marshal Cohen, please contact Janine Marshall, 516-625-2356 or [email protected], and visit NPD’s Holiday Insights page.
Janine Marshall, The NPD Group, http://www.npd.com, +1 (516) 625-2356, [email protected]
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