Washington, March 14, 2008 – Apart from those who have reached their 95th birthday, Americans have never celebrated Easter as early as they will this year. With Easter falling on March 23, the earliest Easter since 1913, consumers will be welcoming the first tastes of spring while planning for the holiday. According to the National Retail Federation’s 2008 Easter Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by BIGresearch, consumers are expected to spend a total of $14.44 billion on Easter food, apparel, gifts, flowers, decorations and candy. The average consumer will shell out $135.03 on the holiday, similar to last year’s expected $135.07. 

This year, 79.0 percent of consumers will hit the stores to stock up on marshmallow-shaped chicks, Easter baskets, plastic bunnies, flimsy hats and chocolate-covered eggs. Of those celebrating, the majority will spend the most on Easter meals ($41.09 on average). Consumers will also dish out an average of $23.82 for apparel, $21.42 for gifts, $18.12 on candy, $9.11 on flowers and $7.21 on decorations.

“Easter is typically seen as the official kick-off to spring, when retailers debut new clothes and consumers are in the mood to buy for warmer weather,” said NRF President and CEO Tracy Mullin. ”Although this is one of the earliest Easter holidays on record, retailers are hoping that this year will be no different.”

Discount stores will see the most Easter traffic this year (58.8%) while department stores (35.6%), specialty stores (23.6%) and specialty clothing stores (7.6%) will also benefit from shoppers.

The average young adult between 18-24 years old is expected to spend the most on decorations this year ($11.09), sprucing up dorms and apartments. Young families aged 25-34 will spend an average of $10.00 on decorations, followed by 35-44 year olds ($7.44) and 45-54 year olds ($5.85). In total, 25-34 year olds will spend the most this Easter ($151.41).

“Consumers who are planning big family gatherings will head to grocery stores in droves this week,” said Phil Rist, Vice President of Strategy at BIGresearch. “Many will also purchase gifts for children, grandchildren and other loved ones while they are shopping for a seasonal outfit or decorations.”

About the Survey

The NRF 2008 Easter Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted for NRF by BIGresearch, was designed to gauge consumer behavior and shopping trends related to Easter. The poll of 7,796 consumers was conducted from March 4-11, 2008. The consumer poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.0 percent.

BIGresearch is a consumer market intelligence firm that provides unique consumer insights that are gathered online utilizing very large sample sizes. BIGresearch’s syndicated Consumer Intentions and Actions survey monitors the pulse of more than 7,000 consumers each month to empower its clients with unique insights for identifying opportunities in a fragmented and changing marketplace. www.bigresearch.com

The National Retail Federation is the world's largest retail trade association, with membership that comprises all retail formats and channels of distribution including department, specialty, discount, catalog, Internet, independent stores, chain restaurants, drug stores and grocery stores as well as the industry's key trading partners of retail goods and services. NRF represents an industry with more than 1.6 million U.S. retail companies, more than 25 million employees - about one in five American workers - and 2007 sales of $4.5 trillion. As the industry umbrella group, NRF also represents over 100 state, national and international retail associations. www.nrf.com