Retail Store Shopper Traffic and Sales Up on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday, Says ShopperTrak

CHICAGO, Nov. 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- With the allure of deep discounts, "door-buster" promotions and extended store hours, shoppers visited more stores and spent more money across the days of Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday (Nov. 28 and 29) than they did last year.

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ShopperTrak, the leading provider of shopper analytics, estimates that, when compared to Thanksgiving and Black Friday last year, brick-and-mortar shopper traffic increased 2.8 percent, to more than 1.07 billion store visits. Retail sales also increased by 2.3 percent, as shoppers spent an estimated total of $12.3 billion across the two days.

ShopperTrak estimates that total in-store shopper traffic and sales by region, compared to Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday in 2012, changed as follows: 

The numbers tell a very different story when viewing only data for Black Friday (Nov. 29). When compared to Black Friday last year, brick-and-mortar shopper traffic fell 11.4 percent and retail sales also decreased by 13.2 percent.

"The Black Friday shopping experience is changing with more shoppers choosing to go out on Thanksgiving Day," says Bill Martin, ShopperTrak founder. "Consumers increasingly research products online before entering stores. When they arrive, customers know exactly what they want to buy – retailers now need to make their experience a satisfying one."

For retailers, it's not just about getting the customers to the stores – it's about recognizing the value of each shopper who chooses to enter their store, advises Martin.  Brick-and-mortar retailers must provide their customers a quality shopping experience that creates incentive to purchase immediately. This is their key to a successful holiday season.

On Tuesday, Dec. 3 at 9 a.m. ET, ShopperTrak will present the sales and traffic statistics for the entire "Black" weekend – Thursday, Nov. 28 through Sunday, Dec. 1.

About ShopperTrak
ShopperTrak is the leading global provider of shopper insights and analytics to improve retail profitability and effectiveness. Retailers rely on ShopperTrak for the most comprehensive and integrated solution for accurate retail store traffic counting, interior analytics and industry benchmarking to better understand in-store shopper behavior. More than 750 of the world's leading retail brands have ShopperTrak services deployed in over 60,000 locations across 90 countries and territories. The Chicago-based company has more than 200 employees, with offices in San Francisco; High Wycombe, England; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Shenzhen, China; and Helsinki, Finland. Find out more at http://www.shoppertrak.com.

SOURCE ShopperTrak