Record Number Of Shoppers Anticipated On Super Saturday

Super Saturday falls just eight days before the Christmas holiday this year – making it a potentially huge day for retailers. It’s predicted that more than 158 million consumers will be spending on this day, according to the annual survey released by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics. That figure is the highest since NRF first started tracking this data in 2016, and approximately 10 million more than last year’s expected number of Super Saturday shoppers.

Since the last Saturday before Christmas happens to be on December 24th this year, which is Christmas Eve, Super Saturday falls one week prior, on December 17th.

“Consumers have been shopping in record numbers this year, purchasing holiday items for friends and loved ones,” said Matthew Shay, President and CEO of NRF, the world’s largest retail trade association.

"With Super Saturday falling eight days before Christmas, retailers are prepared to help shoppers fulfill their last-minute purchases that will make this holiday season memorable," said Shay.

With shoppers saying that they’ve completed only 53% of their holiday shopping thus far, Super Saturday has the potential to bring in significant sales as customers purchase the remainder of their gifts.

Among the top gifts that consumers have purchased so far, 50% have bought clothing, 34% have bought toys, and 28% purchased gift cards to give this holiday season. And 28% plan to give experiential gifts such as tickets to a show, a gym membership, or spa services.

Retailers looking to capitalize on the influx of holiday shoppers are offering limited-time deals and incentives. Walmart’s ‘Save Big’ promotion on items throughout the store includes clothing, seasonal decor, among other categories. Target has deals on kitchen appliances, toys, electronics, and video games. Macy’s One-Day Sale is back and ending on Sunday December 18th. Amazon is running a “Very Merry Deals” promotion from December 12th through December 21st, with new deals being added every day.

Of the 158.5 million customers expected to be shopping on Super Saturday, 28% plan to shop at brick-and-mortar stores only, while 27% plan to shop strictly online, and 46% plan to shop both online and in-person.

And shoppers plan to continue shopping even after the Christmas holiday. “Strong shopping is expected after Christmas as holiday shoppers aim to take advantage of retailers’ sales and promotions,” said Phil Rist, Prosper Executive Vice President of Strategy. “In the week following Christmas Day, we expect to see consumers maximize holiday sales and promotions, use gift cards and return or exchange unwanted gifts.”

NRF forecasts that the holiday season, which they define as November 1st to December 31st, will outperform 2021 figures by 6% to 8% this year overall.