Written on November 28th, 2011 by Samanthano shouts
Retailers waited anxiously for what has become the biggest day in retail for decades now—Black Friday. Occurring on the day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday has been used as a determining retail factor for financial figures for the rest of the holiday season for decades. Retailers that do well on Black Friday may expect to do well financially by the year’s end. This has lead to an expected frenzy of encouraging sales to lure shoppers so that they get a jump making on holiday purchases—including extending Black Friday to “Black Friday weekend.”
Everything and Anything Goes
Televisions, cell phones, computers, house wares, laptops, clothing, furniture, jewelry, and of course the crowd favorite—toys. Retailers had all of these on sale. Savvy consumers made the most out of some of the best shopping deals on the momentous day. Items that were usually sold at much higher prices earlier in the year were offered at a deep discount this past weekend. Retailers have been following suit by offering new items during the Black Friday event. Manufacturers have also been playing along, by offering new and updated items with late fall release dates. This spanned from e-readers to the latest and greatest video games. All of these retail forces worked together for the largest profit imaginable.
So how well did American retailers do this year? Very well, and better than expected according to experts. The National Retail Federation has estimated that during the weekend of Black Friday consumers spent a “record $52 billion dollars.” There were an estimated 14 million more shoppers in stores this past weekend, and nearly 25% of all shoppers that visited stores did so during the 12-midnight opening time on Friday. The earlier shopping hours went over well with shoppers that just wanted to get it out of the way as soon as possible and felt this was a welcoming alternative than getting up in the early morning to beat other shoppers to the door. Some shoppers would have been able to have dinner and camp out in front of stores with dessert—only in America.
And the Winner Is…
Lots of deals had eager shoppers flying in and out of stores this year, and Best Buy was a “big winner,” according to Reuters. Seen by experts as a retailer that may be closing up shop soon earlier this year, Best Buy turned a nice profit by attracting more shoppers than last year. Last season, Best buy concentrated on having some of the best items, but not at the best or most affordable prices as compared to other retailers offering the same or similar items. This year, Best Buy took a huge lesson from last year’s shortcomings and offered some of the best and most wanted items for lower prices. This was definitely their saving grace from this holiday season.
However, online shopping went up by over 30% from last year. The “leader of the pack” being Amazon. Wal-Mart came in second—Macy’s, Target, and Apple online stores also did very well.
Resources:
Associated Press: http://www.ap.org
National Retail Federation: http://www.nrf.com
Reuters: http://www.reuters.com
Written on August 31st, 2011 by Samanthano shouts
How the American Family Is Dealing With the Costs
The summer season is coming to a close and thoughts of going back to school or entering college is on the minds of many. The economic state that we are in is having a definite impact on the back-to-school purchasing ritual, this school year. The season for back-to-school shopping is currently in full swing: starting the last week of July. However, a majority of the shopping can be expected to spike within the next 2 weeks, as children start heading into classrooms.
How much is expected to be spent, and in comparison to last year?
According to the National Retail Federation, a survey conducted by BIGresearch® reveals that parents of school age children from K-12 are expected to pay approximately $3 dollars less, per child, than last year ($606.40/2010 vs. $603.63/2011). Experts consider this to be a tremendous blow to this category of revenue that had previously been going up steadily. These experts have determined that parents want children to be less wasteful and seek to reuse items that are still in good condition. This way they (parents) will be able to afford other necessities for children during the school year.
Returning college students will be spending approximately $27 dollars less than last year ($835.73/2010 vs. $808.71/2011). College students and their parents have noted that the economy is a definite reason why they will be changing their spending habits this year. “Economy driven” purchases are the only way to go, according to 90% of the college students that participated in the BIGresearch survey.
Overall, more students will be shopping for “generic brands,” and shopping at local discount stores as well as at drug stores for school supplies. Clothing will be reused and anything that is bought will be after a thorough comparison pricing. This includes online purchases, which are expected to go up in correspondence to this trend as well. More people will be looking for bottom of the barrel discount pricing or just doing without it this year.
How to cut costs
Big retailers have caught on to this recent trend and are attempting to meet it with offerings of big savings on their merchandise.
For instance, college students can rent textbooks from certain major book retailers as opposed to purchasing them at full price. The student pays a significantly lower price and agrees to send back the book at a designated time. This can be for a period of up to 2 months at a time. This is being offered for printed copies and electronic copies (where available).
Students may also find online-based selling venues offering college textbooks at a considerable discount along with having a book buy back program, where students may sell back their books.
Both types of sellers may also offer used books – which are at a much lower price – as well.
Other retailers such as office supply stores are having deep discount deals and are offering coupons for customers through circulars and email.
There is also the public library. This is such a valuable resource for all students. You may borrow or have unlimited access to textbooks, testing guidebooks, tutoring help, dictionaries, encyclopedias, specialized reference books and much more. All it will cost is the time it takes to get to your local library. Students may also be able to borrow electronic versions of their textbooks, readers, and even videos. This will save a tremendous amount of time and makes bringing books back so easy, as the books will electronically dissolve from the existence of your e-reader at the time the book is due. No late fees.
More tips to remember
Get only what you really need – wait for the list from the teacher or syllabus from the professor before you begin to purchase items. This way you can focus your costs only on what you will really use. This will minimize the chance of having a supply surplus.
Read reviews on the products that you are considering. This is especially important because you will hear from the consumer how the product actually works and how practical it is to purchase. This is especially true of electronic purchases. Use a reputable reviewing resource to learn what is really out there and if it will be a good fit for you.