The percentage of consumers who plan to sustain or increase their holiday spending in 2012 when compared to 2011 is growing, according to a recent survey by the NPD Group.
The survey saw increases in respondents who plan to spend “About The Same” or “More” and a decrease in those who plan to spend “Less”:
Survey Response
2012
2011
“Plan to Spend More”
10%
9%
“Plan to Spend about the Same”
67%
64%
“Plan to Spend Less”
23%
27%
An article in the Baltimore Sun quoted NPD’s chief industry analyst Marshal Cohen as seeing “a light at the end of the tunnel with more consumers telling us they plan to 'spend about the same' and less planning to 'spend less.'"
While the survey results paint a somewhat rosy picture for retailers such as Target, Sears, JC Penney and Kohl’s (four businesses named as stores the plan to shop at this holiday season in the survey), Cohen believes that stores will have to find “creative ways to lure shoppers into the stores,” and that the election will delay the start of the holiday shopping season.
Are you like a majority of the surveyed shoppers who plan to spend “about the same” or “more” than last year? Tell us what you plan to do this holiday season in the comments.
