“We had projected Cyber Monday to be a $3.36 billion day, and to win the crown of largest shopping day ever,” said Tamara Gaffney, principal analyst and director at Adobe Digital Insights. “But Cyber Monday may not have as much gas left in the tank.”
The widespread use of mobile phones and access to high-speed Internet are likely contributing to more shoppers turning to the Internet ahead of Cyber Monday, Gaffney said. Retailers are also increasingly making available online the type of door-buster deals typically reserved for store locations on Black Friday.
Lisa Collins of Gilford, New Hampshire, will buy gifts online if she finds a better price and free shipping. “Never pay full price,” she said.
She felt like prices were better than in past years. “I think there’s better deals. I think they’re paying attention to online sales,” she said.
Tablets had some of the steepest price markdowns online this Black Friday, with an average discount of 25.4 percent, Adobe said. Televisions were down an average of 23.2 percent, while markdowns for toys online were around 15 percent.
All told, shoppers spent $5.27 billion in online purchases on Thursday and Friday, up 17.7 percent from the two-day period last year, Adobe said.
Even as online spending hit new highs this Black Friday, many shoppers across the U.S. still ventured to malls looking for deals. The Mall of America in Minnesota, which opened 24 years ago, reported that Friday was the highest traffic day it can recall.
Courtney Weitz of Meredith, New Hampshire, picked up a few small gifts at Target in Concord early Saturday. She wasn’t able to hit the stores on Black Friday or Thanksgiving because she had to work.
“I checked online and didn’t really find anything I wanted,” said Weitz, 24. “I only came for a Swiffer and toothpaste, and I’m leaving with a bit more than that.”
All told, the National Retail Federation projects that shoppers will spend $655.8 billion in November and December. That would be a gain of 3.6 percent from a year ago.
(Associated Press writers Don Babwin in Chicago and Holly Ramer in Concord, New Hampshire., contributed to this report.)
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