US shoppers set to boost online spending this holiday season: Survey

About 32 per cent of consumers intend to shop more online than they did last year, while 48 per cent expect to spend the same amount. Only 20 per cent of the respondents plan to cut down their online spending, figures that remain consistent with last year’s data. Among those planning to spend less, just over half are decreasing overall spending, marking a significant drop from 71 per cent last year who expected to do so, as per the Boxpoll survey that offers key insights into American consumer behaviour ahead of the peak shopping season.

Moreover, younger demographics like Gen Z and Millennials show a declining tendency to reduce online spending, registering 22 per cent and 18 per cent year-on-year declines, respectively, in intentions to spend less online.

The survey also probed into consumers' attitudes towards free shipping. About 39 per cent of respondents have noticed it’s become more challenging to qualify for free shipping recently. Additionally, 42 per cent anticipate that qualifying for free shipping this festive season will be more difficult compared to last year. To navigate this, consumers are most likely to either add more items to their cart (44 per cent) or switch to a different online brand offering free shipping (37 per cent).

These trends in consumer behaviour are occurring against a backdrop of retailer difficulties, including challenges in comparing carrier costs, providing differentiated customer tracking experiences, managing return frauds, and identifying cross-border shipping partners capable of handling both compliance and logistics.

“While US consumers grapple with economic challenges including the lingering impacts of inflation, their discretionary spending—particularly online—appears to defy gravity headed into the holidays,” said Vijay Ramachandran, VP of GTM (go-to-market) enablement and experience at Pitney Bowes. “Online sales so far this year are up more than 7 per cent versus 2022, even though online prices have been on a deflationary trend for more than a year.”

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)