| Consumer Spending Snapshot of Holiday Budgets |
| Holiday 2001 Special Report |
| Holiday
Special Report Home Holiday Index -- 2001 |
Americans are keeping a tighter rein on their holiday budgets, although they are loosening their grip in certain spending categories, according to the findings of the 2001 American Express Retail Index on holiday shopping.
Consumers plan to spend $1,564 per household during the holidays, down $120 (7%) from last year, but $6 more than the average holiday budget in 1999. They plan to spend $216 on entertaining this year, up $19 (10%) from 2000.
Americans have budgeted, on average, $1,042 for gifts, $139 for holiday travel, $78 for decorations and $88 for miscellaneous holiday expenses. Seventy-seven percent of consumers say events on September 11th will not affect their holiday spending decisions; 70% say the current economy won't affect their budgets.
Shoppers Will Start Later
Only 29% of consumers report they had started their shopping before November, compared to 40% in 2000. Thirty-seven percent will begin their shopping this month, up from 30% in 2000; of those, 10% plan to start during Thanksgiving weekend, up from 6% in 2000. In fact, 42% of Americans plan to shop or browse for holiday gift items on the day after Thanksgiving this year.
More than twice as many consumers as in 2000 will wait until the week before the holidays to start their shopping, 7% compared to 3%. Men are more likely than women to wait longer to start; 10% of men will begin just days before the holidays, versus 5% of women.
Cyber-Retailers Will Gain More Customers
Forty-two percent of consumers plan to use the Internet in some way this year - to browse, compare prices, shop or send cards or photos electronically - compared to 34% in 2000. While 27% of this season's online shoppers will browse the Internet for gift ideas, 22% say they plan to make online purchases, up 7% over 2000.
Those making online purchases will spend, on average, 26% of their overall holiday budget on the Internet. And men, again this year, will outspend women online, though not by much; men will spend 28% of their holiday budget online, compared to 24% for women.
According to the 2001 American Express Retail Index, the most popular online purchases will be music, tapes, CDs and movies (65%); clothing and accessories (62%); toys and games, including video games (58%); computers and accessories (56%); and books/magazine subscriptions (52%). Last year, clothing and accessories came first on online shopping lists, cited by 57% of respondents.
"This year we are seeing some notable differences in holiday shopping patterns," said John Theiss, vice president, retail industry, American Express. "Americans will start holiday shopping later than usual. One in ten will start over the Thanksgiving weekend. A third will wait until December. In years past consumers started to shop earlier. Americans will also turn to the Internet as never before. One in four will log onto their computers to browse or purchase. That's a significant increase over last year."
Malls Are More Popular than Ever
Shopping malls remain the most popular shopping destination among consumers, cited by 86% of shoppers. Sixty-three percent will shop at individual, stand-alone stores; 34% at factory outlet villages; 33% in catalogs via phone or fax; 23% online; and 7% via TV and home shopping networks. These shopping venues have remained relatively stable as consumers' favorites over the years, except for the Internet, which ranks among the top five shopping destinations for the first time.
The most popular retailers will be mass merchandisers, such as Kmart and Wal-Mart (81%), department stores (76%), toy stores (61%), music/video stores (54%) and discount department stores such as Marshalls and T.J. Maxx (52%).
Traditional gifts will be as popular as always. Once again, clothing will top most shopping lists, cited by eight out of ten respondents. Toys and games are also popular with consumers, cited by 72% of respondents this year, followed by gift certificates and money (66%); music, tapes, CDs and movies (66%); perfume/cologne (50%); books/magazine subscriptions (44%); hardware, tools and automotive supplies (40%); jewelry (40%); and women's accessories (40%). Patriotic gifts - such as flags and apparel with national emblems - have become a popular category, with about 20% of shoppers seeking them.
'Tis
the Season for Charitable Giving
The spirit of giving remains strong among Americans. Eight out of 10 (78%) plan
to make charitable contributions this year, similar to last year. However, one
in five donors (19%) plan to increase the overall amount of their contributions
in order to support September 11th relief and recovery efforts.
Other charities will benefit as well. One in three Americans (34%) plan to split their donations between September 11th relief efforts and other charities; 16% plan to increase their charitable giving to only their usual charities, and 3% plan to redirect all of their donations to September 11th relief efforts. Twenty percent of those who plan to shop online also plan to make charitable donations on the Internet.
Majority of Americans Will Visit Family and Friends During Holiday Season
Thirty-seven percent plan to travel over the holiday season. Most (89%) will visit family and friends, up from 80% in 2000. Eighty-five percent will travel by car, up from 72% in 2000, while 24% will travel by airplane, down from 33% in 2000.
Twenty-three percent will travel for Thanksgiving, up from 19% in 2000, while 24% will travel for Christmas, up from 21% in 2000, and 3% will travel during Hanukkah, up from 1%.
People plan to stay closer to home than in prior years. On average, people plan to travel 550 miles during this holiday season compared to 636 miles last year. The majority of trips will be to domestic destinations.
How Consumers Pay for Holiday Purchases
Credit card use
is rising among consumers. To pay for holiday purchases, 57% of shoppers will
use credit cards, up from 52% last year. Shoppers will also use cash (90%),
checks (59%) and ATM/debit cards (34%).
About the American
Express Retail Index
The American Express Retail Index on holiday shopping was conducted by telephone
between November 5th and November 11th and surveyed 804 heads of households,
age 18 and older. The 2001 American Express Retail Index looked at consumer
spending, buying attitudes, shopping trends and preferences. For more information
visit http://www.americanexpress.com/.
Source: American Express press release -- November 20, 2001