84.51° October Digest: More Insights Into Thanksgiving Plans, Holiday Shopping

84.51°, Kroger’s retail data and insights company, has shared its October Digest report detailing how consumers are shopping as Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas draw closer, giving retailers a better sense of how to position private label assortments.

With Halloween around the corner, retailers can expect a last minute push for candy and supplies. 84.51°’s data showed that 30% of all trips for candy in October last year happened in the last seven days leading up to and including Halloween, and 17% of all trips for candy in October happened in the last three days of the month.

Of those surveyed in the October Digest report, 38% of shoppers say they will cut back on their Thanksgiving meal due to inflation, echoing the similar findings of 84.51°’s Holidays 2022 white paper. Nearly half (45%) of respondents said they will cut back on turkey or pumpkin pie, 37% will cut back on corn bread, and 32% will cut back on side dishes like cranberry sauce, stuffing and mac & cheese.

Once Thanksgiving passes, many Americans will shift to holiday shopping. As of October, 25% of customers have already begun their holiday shopping, with another 57% beginning in the next few weeks to month. Nearly 20% of those either won’t shop until the last week before their holiday or won’t shop at all.

In the age of digital, Cyber Monday is becoming more popular than Black Friday when it comes to shopping events. According to the October Digest, over half (56%) of those surveyed plan to buy items on Cyber Monday, compared to 48% on Black Friday and only 19% on Small Business Saturday. 

The full report from 84.51° can be found here.