US’ Black Friday orders up 5% despite growing inflation: Report

Retailers in US saw a 5-per cent increase in the number of orders on Black Friday compared to last year, while there was a 1-per cent increase in average order values, as per the new insights from retail marketing platform Bluecore. It also reported that retailers saw an 11-per cent growth in day-of Black Friday site traffic, despite growing inflation pressure.

Repeat shoppers accounted for more purchases, about 63 per cent, than first-time buyers, about 37 per cent, as retailers focused on bringing back shoppers they identified and engaged earlier in the year, Bluecore said in its report.

Retailers in US saw a 5-per cent increase in the number of orders on Black Friday compared to last year, while there was a 1-per cent growth in average order values, as per the new insights from retail marketing platform Bluecore. It reported that retailers saw an 11-per cent growth in day-of Black Friday site traffic, despite growing inflation pressure.

The retail marketing platform looked at shoppers’ real-time and historical Black Friday shopping patterns for the fifth year in a row across 138 retail brands and eight retail categories, including apparel, sporting goods and outdoor, footwear, etc. The result was a comprehensive look at this year’s day-of Black Friday behaviours, as well as a comparative look at Black Friday 2021.

Bluecore analysed 729 million shopper events on brands’ ecommerce sites, including shoppers viewing products and completing sales transactions. The resulting data was derived from 91 million first-party cookies and represents interactions with 4 million unique products, 3.2 million orders, and $388 million in total sales.

Among the findings from Bluecore’s Black Friday 2022 Report, site traffic was up by 11 per cent compared to Black Friday 2021. More shoppers researched products before they purchased. Six per cent more shoppers researched their purchases in advance of Black Friday compared to last year. An average of 37 per cent of brands’ total Black Friday shoppers were first time buyers, but first-time buyers decreased by 5 per cent compared to last year.

Retailers focused on driving repeat purchases, not just attracting first-time shoppers. Of all shoppers who made a first purchase from a brand in 2022, an average of 5 per cent returned to make another purchase on Black Friday. Brands were also able to entice 2.3 per cent of shoppers who made a November purchase to make another purchase on Black Friday. Apparel brands experienced 5.9 per cent higher than average repurchases on Black Friday.

Average order values remained relatively consistent among first-time and repeat buyers. First time orders averaged a value of $128 while second-time shoppers and beyond spend an average of $118.

“Consumers started their holiday shopping earlier than ever this year and are navigating higher product costs due to inflation. These trends, paired with retailers’ efforts to bring back their existing shoppers — rather than simply attract new ones — resulted in more loyal shoppers buying from brands they already trust,” said Fayez Mohamood, CEO of Bluecore.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DP)