Huge Device Buys Already Planned Ahead of Black Friday

Black Friday is often regarded as the start of the Christmas shopping season, but there are plenty of people out there who aren't waiting for the Black Friday flag to drop in order to start up their holiday spending spree. A number of shoppers have already started, and lots of them are planning to buy at least one new device to put under the tree, according to consumer electronics holiday shopping research from Parks Associates.

The Parks Associates study in question showed that fully 71 percent of respondents have already started the holiday shopping despite Black Friday being days away, and a full 60 percent plan to purchase at least one new device as a gift. The report gets even more specific, pointing out that 56 percent of broadband-capable homes in the United States are planning for at least one new device before the end of the year, and are planning to spend, on average, $1,050 on gifts this year. Both of these figures are down somewhat from last year, where 63 percent planned a new device purchase and the average gift spend was $1,058.

Director of Consumer Analytics for Parks Associates John Barrett offered some summary on the findings, noting that “pre-Black Friday sales” proved a smart idea, as many shoppers—particularly those in consumer electronics—started early this year. Early shoppers were commonly looking at the major electronics categories, like tablets, televisions, and the new game consoles, two of which recently released in the form of the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One. Barrett also notes that, when it comes to electronics, the amount spent seems to be leveling off, and is likely to maintain that level for some time.

“The percentage of consumers planning to spend more from one year to the next is not rising. At the same time, the percentages willing to spend less is proportional to the percentage willing to spend more, so average spending evens out overall,” Barrett said.

Issues of economics did hamper some buying, though, as 22 percent of non-buyers said that there was no room in the budget for new electronics, and 55 percent said there was no need.

Further, there was some difference in the anticipated purpose of the device. 45 percent were buying devices to serve as an additional device, including 13 percent of households looking to add a tablet to the lineup. 20 percent were looking for a replacement smartphone, and 12 percent planned a replacement game console.

While holiday shopping statistics are avidly watched by retailers hoping to track just how well the season will do overall, it's clear that there are many more pressures on retailers than ever. Not only are there issues of economic health to consider, there are now many more venues at which to shop than ever. Many have moved shopping options to eBay or Amazon or comparable online venues, attracted by both the ease of use and the host of attendant issues—parking, crowded stores and the like—that come with holiday shopping removed by online shopping. Stores are looking for ways to work around these concepts with deep discounts, price matching, and the sheer value of immediacy—buy it in store, take it home immediately—but it's still making for significant challenges.

The holiday shopping season will likely always be the biggest part of a retailer's year, and the end result should be well worth watching. There's certainly plenty at stake, and astute retailers should manage to do fairly well in even an environment where shoppers are being more careful than normal.