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the year prior which was 40 percent. In the years since, Fifty-eight percent of consumers surveyed by Project44
consumer demand for speed and convenience, combined said they were unlikely to shop at a retailer that missed
with improved mobile shopping experiences, has driven a a past delivery date. "Retailers are starting promotions
steady uptick in mobile usage, Adobe said. earlier than ever," said Shay, adding that this can help cut
down on shipping delays.
Cyber Week—the five-day period including Thanksgiv-
ing, Black Friday and Cyber Monday—is expected to drive Consumers started seeing deals beginning in October,
$40.6 billion to the online spend total, up 7.0 percent YoY with Amazon's Prime Day event, which drove discounting
and representing 16.9 percent of overall holiday season across major U.S. retailers, Adobe said. Adobe added that
spending, according to Adobe's predictions. discounts will ramp up again beginning Nov. 1, and Cyber
Week discounts are likely to linger through the month of
Adobe expects Cyber Monday to remain the season's and December.
the year's biggest shopping day, driving a record $13.2 bil-
lion in spend, up 6.1 percent YoY. But Black Friday (with a "We're seeing broader promotional activity than last year,"
predicted $10.8 billion in spend, up 9.9 percent YoY) and Shay said. "We're seeing retailers cutting prices on thou-
Thanksgiving Day ($6.1 billion, up 8.7 percent YoY) are sands of items and SKUs across entire stores." He pointed
both expected to outpace Cyber Monday in growth, as out that these price cuts are being made broadly across
consumers embrace earlier sales promotions. more categories than in years past.

In a survey of 5,000 consumers fielded by Adobe in Sep- Adobe said it also anticipates major discounts this sea-
tember 2024, 71 percent said they planned to shop online son—up to 30 percent off list prices—as retailers compete
on Black Friday, with 70 percent saying they proactively for consumer dollars. Of 18 categories tracked by Adobe,
check for deals during Cyber Week. discounts for electronics are expected to peak at 30 per-
cent off list prices, while discounts for toys are set to hit
Shay said retailers don't expect shoppers to confine them- 27 percent.
selves to one channel of shopping. "Consumers aren't com-
partmentalizing their shopping. We expect robust activity Record high discounts are also expected for televisions (24
across channels." percent), apparel (23 percent), computers (23 percent), fur-
niture (19 percent), appliances (18 percent) and sporting
ACI's survey results echoed this sentiment. The global goods (18 percent).
payments company observed that omnichannel retailers
hold a competitive advantage, as convenience-oriented BNPL making big splash
consumers spend 70 percent more when choosing click Buy now, pay later (BNPL) deals are expected to set new
and collect or buy online pickup in store. "Consumers' records this season, after already setting records in the
shopping journeys are evolving with more channels, hy- first half of 2024, when global BNPL transactions sky-
brid services and diverse payment options," said Bobby rocketed by an astounding 237 percent, nearly tripling in
Koscheski, head of merchant at ACI. volume, according to ACI. "We're seeing a meteoric rise

'Material changes in shopping behavior' in buy now, pay later," Amanda Mickleburgh, a product
director at ACI, said in a recent webinar.
"The holiday shopping season has been reshaped in recent
years, where consumers are making purchases earlier, Adobe expects BNPL to drive $18.5 billion in online sales,
driven by a stream of discounts that has allowed shoppers up 11.4 percent YoY. In November alone, BNPL purchases
to manage their budgets in different ways," said Vivek will reach $9.5 billion, Adobe predicted. Cyber Monday,
Pandya, lead analyst for Adobe Digital Insights. which falls on Dec. 2, is expected to be the largest single
day for BNPL, with an expected record of $993 million in
"These discounting patterns are driving material changes sales.
in shopping behavior, with certain consumers now trad-
ing up to goods that were previously higher priced and BNPL will be driven predominantly by mobile shopping,
propelling growth for U.S. retailers," Pandya added. with its share of spend expected to hit a staggering 74 per-
cent to 79 percent, Adobe said.
"Holiday creep," a phenomenon whereby retailers stock
holiday merchandise earlier each year, has driven a shift Also, according to Statista Consumer Insights, millennials
in consumer preferences. "We're seeing consumers shift stand out as the nation's BNPL generation. In Adobe's sur-
their buying and sustainability habits when it comes to vey, 39 percent of millennials said they planned to use the
their holiday shopping," said Carson Kind, director of payment plan this winter shopping season. Generation Z
global alliances at Project44, an integration platform for consumers aren't far behind, with 38 percent of those sur-
freight companies. "Shopping for gifts before peak season veyed planning to use BNPL.
can help shoppers save money, lower carbon emissions
and limit delayed shipping headaches."
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