BALTIMORE — Thanksgiving is about seven weeks away but retailers are not waiting for Black Friday or even November to keep them out of the red. Many retailers are jump starting the holiday shopping season in October to boost year-end sales.
Experts with the business consulting firm Deloitte said current inflation may raise overall sales dollars for retailers but the higher prices are expected cut overall consumer spending, causing lower sales volume.
Forget Black Friday, Thanksgiving Thursday, Cyber Monday or any of those November sales, WalletHub analyst Jill Gonzalez said retailers are trying to get a head start on holiday sales in October to entice consumers who are worried about rising inflation.
“Inventory delays, shipping delays, logistical nightmare‘s that get even worse the more that we approach Christmas Day. So, I think that retailers are trying to kind of surpass all of those things this year by offering these new ‘Black October’ deals,” Gonzalez said.
Walmart will be offering special deals October 10 through October 13. The giant retail also offers a holiday guarantee, with a newly extended holiday return policy including electronics. Eligible purchases made on or after October 1 can be returned through January 31.
While Target promises deep holiday discounts on must-have items and everyday essentials with it's “Deal Days” promotion from October 6 through October 8. The popular retailer also is offering a longer holiday price match guarantee, from October 6 through December 24.
Amazon heats up the competition for consumer dollars by bringing back a two-day fall edition of its Prime Day sale. The exclusive Prime member shopping event runs October 11 and October 12.
The Prime Early Access sale gives members a chance to kick off the holiday shopping season early with hundreds of thousands of deals.
Amazon also is introducing a top 100 list of some of the most popular items this holiday season with discounts on electronics, clothes, home furnishings, kitchen items, and even toys.
“Retailers are trying something new out of necessity. They want to make sure that they get this first wave of consumers that might be the most anxious about the holidays out of the way, and then I think we will see your traditional Black Friday deals,” Gonzalez said.
Financial experts at Deloitte forecast holiday retail sales to increase between 4% and 6% this year. Those numbers are down compared to last year, when holiday sales grew by 15.1% in the same November to January time period. Deloitte's U.S. economic forecaster believes the lower projected growth for the 2022 holiday season is a result of the sluggish economy.
While inflation may raise overall sales dollars, higher prices are expected curb consumer spending as retailers see less growth in sales volume. The questions remains if this attempt by retailers to jump start the holiday shopping season become the ‘October surprise’ they need to boost sales.
“This data is something that I know we can’t wait to get our hands on to see how well this does with consumers, what they’re buying, how many people are biting this October versus waiting for a little bit. So, it is definitely an experiment that we are wondering how to see, plays out,” Gonzalez said.
Shoppers may wonder if it’s better to buy now and take advantage of these October deals or hold out for Black Friday. Gonzalez said it depends upon what consumers have on their shopping list.
Anyone wanting to buy fall or winter apparel might want to wait until later in the season but stock up on next summer’s clothes now are retailers are clearing out this past season’s merchandise. Those looking for jewelry might want to try and wait until they can catch bigger sales closer to Valentine’s Day.
“Small to midsize appliances have really good sales during the Black Friday season. Toys, it’s not the best time to be buying but obviously no way around it if you have little kiddos,” Gonzalez said.
Gonzales recommends consumers use shopping apps or browser extensions as another way shoppers to beat inflation this holiday season.
MORE: Online shopping tips to beat the high price of inflation
“Make sure that you’re comparing what Amazon lists to price as versus what Walmart lists to price. There are also third-party apps like Honey and Capital One Shopping that you can install on your web browser on your phone, if you’re on the go, and they can actually tell you if you’re getting the best deal or if it’s listed for a different price elsewhere,” Gonzalez said.
