Online shoppers set Thanksgiving Day spending record after big discounts

Holiday shoppers got an early jump on Black Friday shopping this year, spending a record $6.1 billion on Thanksgiving, according to Adobe Analytics. Sales on the holiday increased year-over-year by 8.8%, a jump from 2023, which saw Thanksgiving sales climb by 5.5% as consumers looked to keep stretching their dollar. Toys were popular with parents with discounts peaking at 27.2%, and electronics, which are expected to be more popular this weekend as people look for TV and computer upgrades, made up more than 26.5% of sales. Mobile shopping, meanwhile, also hit an all-time high. Shoppers found their phones were more convenient than their computers to make purchases this year, making up almost 60% of online sales. The $3.6 billion in online sales showed a 10.5% increase year-over-year. “Cyber Week is off to a strong start, where bigger-than-expected discounts on Thanksgiving propelled impulse shopping in categories like electronics and apparel,” Vivek Pandya, lead analyst of Adobe Digital Insights, said in an emailed report. This year’s price cuts had people considering more expensive electronics than usual when compared with pre-season sales. They were also “trading up” when it came to appliances, sporting goods, personal care and toys. Shoppers were also looking for guidance on their spending habits this year, with people clicking through from chatbots to retail sites and looking at company partnerships — including social media influencers — more often than in 2023. The “Buy Now, Pay Later” installment payment plan options gained more popularity as well, driving $430 million in online spending. Adobe projects that will grow even more on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, another year-over-year increase from the payment option’s all-time high last year, as shoppers continue to look for ways to manage their budgets. Adobe expects Black Friday sales will set more online records, predicting $10.8 billion in spending with electronics as the most popular purchase. Meanwhile, the National Retail Federation predicts a record 183.4 million people in total will shop between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday.