Washington, November 24, 2009 – With many Americans eager to get their hands on discounted toys, outerwear, books, and even flat-screen TVs, retailers could see shopping levels over Black Friday weekend rise from last year. According to a preliminary Black Friday shopping survey, conducted for the National Retail Federation by BIGresearch, up to 134 million people will shop this Friday, Saturday or Sunday, higher than the 128 million people who planned to do so last year. According to the survey, 57 million people say they will definitely hit the stores while another 77 million are waiting to see what retailers are planning before heading out the door. 

“Regardless of what we’ve already seen these last few weeks in terms of promotions, retailers still have a few tricks up their sleeves to excite Black Friday shoppers,” said Tracy Mullin, NRF President and CEO. “With retailers fully aware that shoppers are looking for incredible deals, Americans can expect huge sales on popular items like toys, electronics and apparel.” 

Where, When and Why People Will Shop Black Friday Weekend

For the first time, NRF polled Americans about their specific Black Friday shopping intentions. According to the survey, discount and department stores will be the biggest attractions for consumers this weekend with 66.3 percent and 62.4 percent, respectively, planning on heading to their favorite big box store. In addition, four in ten (41.0%) will shop at electronics stores, 36.3 percent will head to a clothing and clothing accessories store and 28.8 percent said they would shop at a grocery store. As an increased number of retailers offer special Black Friday promotions on their websites, more than one-quarter (27.6%) will shop online. 

While some people will wait until the sun comes up to head out the door Black Friday morning, one in ten (10.3%) shoppers will brave the elements and get to the store between midnight and 3 a.m. More than one-quarter (28.8%) will check out the early-bird specials and head out between 4 a.m. – 6 a.m., while 28.2 percent will go between 7 a.m. – 9 a.m. Fervent 18-34 year olds, who likely haven’t yet been to bed, will be the majority of retailers’ early hour shoppers, as 18.3 percent plan to head out between 12 a.m. – 3 a.m. 

“May the retailers with the best promotions win,” said Pamela Goodfellow, Senior Analyst, BIGresearch. “While consumers are still expected to remain cautious with their holiday spending, the anticipation of Black Friday deals seems to be coaxing shoppers out of hibernation, many arriving to stores early and with coupons in hand.”

When it comes to what influences people to shop in particular stores over Black Friday weekend, coupons (40.6%), newspaper circulars (38.2%), television ads (27.8%) and word of mouth (26.5%) are among the ways shoppers make decisions. However, most (43.2%) people will base their shopping destinations on what types of items they have on their list. 

Retailers Use Web to Promote Stores’ Black Friday Specials

As another sign that retail stores and websites are collaborating to boost sales, many companies plan to leverage the web for upcoming Black Friday promotions in stores. According to the Shop.org eHoliday survey, conducted by BIGresearch, 39.1 percent of retailers will increase their use of online vehicles to promote Black Friday savings, while an additional 58.7 percent will use the Internet to drive store traffic as much as they did one year ago. More than three-fourths (78.0%) of retailers will send a special email to customers about Black Friday deals and over half (54.0%) will highlight Black Friday deals on their home page. 

CyberMonday.com Announces Black Friday Deals of the Hour 

Shop.org’s CyberMonday.com, which features promotions and deals from more than 700 retailers, will feature a Deal of the Hour on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Retailers participating in the Black Friday Deal of the Hour include Overstock.com, Sears and American Eagle. (Click here for the full list of companies and times.) Offers will include free shipping specials, dollars off, percentages off, and free gifts with purchase. 

In addition, CyberMonday.com will be distributing $250 in gift cards from major retailers each day through Dec. 25 to its fans on Facebook and followers on Twitter. 

Black Friday Contact Information and Additional Details

PRESS AND ANALYSTS ONLY: NRF will release the results of its Black Friday weekend survey by 1:30 p.m. EST on Sunday, November 29 and will hold a special media briefing at 2 p.m. EST to discuss the results of its Black Friday shopping survey and the newest findings from its Cyber Monday survey. Click here to register. See below for NRF spokespeople contact information for Black Friday. Information will include what time people started shopping on Black Friday, where they shopped, how much they spent, and what they purchased. NRF will also be releasing findings from a new survey on the number of people expected to shop on Cyber Monday. 

Offices will be  closed on Black Friday and throughout the weekend, so please use the public relations team’s direct lines to set up print and broadcast interviews with NRF spokespeople: 

- Kathy Grannis: (202) 626-8189 or cell (202) 821-7513 or grannisk@nrf.com 
- Ellen Davis: (202) 626-8127 or cell (703) 474-3446 or davise@nrf.com 
- Scott Krugman: (202) 626-8119 or cell (571) 232-3420 or krugmans@nrf.com 

About the Survey 

The survey estimating the number of shoppers over Black Friday polled 8,692 consumers and was conducted for NRF by BIGresearch from November 3-10, 2009. The consumer poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.0 percent. The Shop.org eHoliday Study, conducted by BIGresearch, polled 70 retailers and was conducted Sept. 14 – Oct. 6, 2009. The survey about shoppers’ Black Friday intentions polled 5,899 consumers and was conducted by BIGresearch for NRF Nov. 13-17, 2009. The consumer poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.3%. 

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 8,000 consumers each month to empower its clients with unique insights for identifying opportunities in a fragmented and changing marketplace. 

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 establishments, more than 24 million employees - about one in five American workers - and 2007 sales of $4.5 trillion. As the industry umbrella group, NRF also represents more than 100 state, national and international retail associations. www.nrf.com