So, Black Friday came and left. Did you go out to stores on Black Friday or just shop online? According to Adobe, U.S. consumers spent a record $6.1 billion online up 8.8% from last year’s $5.6 billion. I know I’ve been shopping online for years now with an occasional trip to a store. Some retail stores have been promoting in-store only merchandise to drive foot traffic but mostly, shoppers seem to be online. Cyber Monday sales totaled about $13.3 billion with a whole cyber week that followed.

Credit card debt continues to soar to $1.17 trillion during the third quarter with a buy-now pay later mind frame. It marks the highest level on record since 2003. Did you buy your gifts on a credit card? All of this shopping is great for the economy but Black Friday in-store shopping just doesn’t generate the huge crowds of the past as many retailers ran promotions well ahead of Black Friday.

What is the future for holiday shopping? Sheerine Reid, senior director of commerce marketing at Coveo, said “AI… enables personalized product discovery and providing tailored recommendations through rich content. Specialized gift guides can help shoppers find the perfect items for everyone on their list, but with AI, you can go even further and start to understand a shopper’s intent, much like an in-store associate would.” With rise of AI and e-commerce, those Black Friday in-store fights might come to an end soon. What do you think?

Sincerely,

“Fashionably-Late”

Malinda Frances Knowles