Shopper Foot Traffic Grows Over Black Friday Weekend

The 2023 holiday shopping season appears to have started on the right foot as early figures from RetailNext show a 2% increase in store traffic on Black Friday. 

Additionally, the report showed increased interest from consumers in health and beauty and jewelry as retailers focused on those categories saw increases in foot traffic of 13% (health and beauty) and 7% (jewelry). 

According to RetailNext, this year’s traffic data comes on the heels of a complex time for retailers as they aim to close out the year strong amidst a combination of inflation headwinds, shopping fatigue, consumer vulnerability due to gas and grocery prices, and an overall rise in consumer debt. The company anticipated that its initial footfall expectations for Black Friday week and Black Friday itself would slightly outperform the preceding weeks due to retailers investing heavily in discounts and promotions, in-store experiences, and perks like Buy Online, Pick Up In Store (BOPIS). 

"The U.S. has been trending at -2% to -5% over the past few weeks, so we expected a marginal lift for the week-over-week trends and a slight decline to flat YoY for the entire week,” said Joe Shasteen, global manager, Advanced Analytics. “By comparison, physical store traffic rose an impressive 7% in 2022. Today’s results give us a glimpse into the consumer mind, which is increasingly cautious about discretionary spending amidst pressures like higher interest rates, student loan repayments, gas and grocery cost increases, increased credit card debt, and reduced savings rates.”

He noted the increase in U.S. store traffic at the start of the holiday season is a positive development considering recent trends and is on the higher end of our expectations. “With discounting at an all-time high this year, it's likely the wider variety of discounted merchandise is boosting footfall as shoppers browse the best deals available,” he said. “Other trends we expect to help drive traffic this year are the personalization in media and ads while the influence of social media (TikTok, Instagram) has continued to grow.” 

Results for the first two days of the Black Friday holiday weekend include:

• US Overall:
  • Black Friday: +2.1%
  • Saturday: +0.7%
  • Friday/Saturday Average: +1.6%
• Midwest:
  • Black Friday: +3.0%
  • Saturday: -0.2%
  • Friday/Saturday Average: +1.9%
• Northeast:
  • Black Friday: +2.6%
  • Saturday: +0.4%
  • Friday/Saturday Average: +1.9%
• South:
  • Black Friday: +0.2%
  • Saturday: +0.7%
  • Friday/Saturday Average: +0.4%
• West:
  • Black Friday: +2.1%
  • Saturday: +1.8%
  • Friday/Saturday Average: +2.0%