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US online retailers earn record $9 billion on Black Friday

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US online retailers earn record $9 billion on Black Friday

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Last Black Friday, November 27, US online retailers earned a record $9 billion, according to Adobe Analytics, a website that tracks digital sales.

Such a boom in online sales was triggered by concerns over surging COVID-19 cases. As a result, many consumers chose to buy online. Experts calculated that online spending jumped by 22% from the previous peak of $7.4 billion a year ago.

Retail tracker Sensormatic Solution reported that traffic at brick-and-mortar stores dropped by 52% in 2020 due to the social distancing requirements. As COVID-19 infections continue to rise around the world, retailers are forced to take virus containment measures, including shorter working hours and a limited number of customers.

Amid the coronavirus crisis, analysts recorded a decline in consumption in some categories. According to data from shopping tracker RetailNext, jewelry and footwear saw massive drops in sales. Apparel sales were down by 50%, while sales of household goods decreased by 39%.

Despite the current economic turbulence, consumer confidence remained high. Even with that drop, Black Friday ended up as one of the biggest shopping days in the United States in 2020, Brian Field, a senior director of global retail consulting at Sensormatic Solutions, said. Americans made a lot of major purchases that day. Field believes that many customers are still ready to shop offline, but at a convenient time and with deep discounts.

One of the reasons for an increase in spending was online purchases of groceries and alcohol. Traditional gifts in the US on Black Friday included such major purchases as Hot Wheels MAT cars, Apple gadgets, Samsung Electronics TVs and video games, and Lego sets.

Big retailers such as Walmart and Target benefited from the surge in online sales, Adobe Analytics noted. On Thanksgiving and Black Friday, sales at their stores soared by 403%. Sales at smaller stores also increased by 349%.

One trend that could remain after the pandemic ends is that stores could be closed on Thanksgiving Day. Experts believe that this holiday does not guarantee retailers huge gains. That is why many of them kept their doors closed. As a result, store traffic on Thanksgiving Day in 2020 decreased by 95%.

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