Polls in the US show that 57% of consumers may not go to physical stores this Black Friday because of the risk of infection COVID-19. This may hit the sales of such chains as Walmart, Target, Macy’s, Dick’s Sporting Goods and others.
The season of sales in the US in 2020, it seems, will be very different from the traditional crowds in the stores. This Thursday in the USA will be Thanksgiving, followed by sale Black Friday.
Many retailers, including the largest supermarket chain Walmart (WMT) has already declared that will count the number simultaneously staying in the shop visitors and limit the traffic.
In addition, according to a survey conducted by Deloitte in the period from October 9 to November 2, 57% of consumers said they are concerned about shopping in physical stores during the holidays because of the pandemic coronavirus. This is more than 51% on a similar Deloitte survey in September.
61% of respondents stated that they were either “not sure” or “no plans” to shop with family and friends the week of thanksgiving. 74% plan to shop online to avoid crowds, compared to 62% a year earlier.
“I assume that this percentage is probably even higher,” said Rod Sides, a Vice Chairman of Deloitte and head of retail and wholesale distribution in the United States. According to him, pandemic “makes people search for products on the Internet and change their behavior.”
Last week, the United States was was a new record morbidity Covid-19 of 187 833 cases, while the number of hospitalizations is also a record figure at 80 698. On Thursday, the U.S. Centers for control and disease prevention urged Americans not to travel on Thanksgiving Day and limit contacts.
It seems that many will heed the warnings. For the first time in the history of research Deloitte before thanksgiving, more consumers plan to shop online on Black Friday than in the shops.
CEO of Macy’s Jeff Kennett confirmed the trend and said: “We definitely expect that we will reduce the traffic in stores on Black Friday and get that demand before.”
“Pandemic Covid really changed the shopping experience,” said Marshal Cohen, chief retail analyst at NPD Group. “Now nobody even wants to stand next to someone, not to mention fighting in the crowd to get something”.
It’s the holiday season, the U.S. will benefit those who have a digital strategy
However, this does not mean that all retail chain will suffer losses. Many retailers have started their digital transformation to the pandemic and has accelerated during this crisis.
The season of discounts in the USA began in mid-October as physical retailers followed by sale of Prime Day Amazon (AMZN) to compete with the largest online store.
Shared Walmart Black Friday into three separate sales, beginning November 4, and touting every in your online store.
This year as popular holiday gifts like new game consoles, for example, generally does not appear in physical stores. For example, Walmart’s popular game consoles such as Sony PlayStation 5 and XBox Series X, each of which costs $499, will be available online only.
Apple (AAPL) will sell AirPods Pro discount $50 and Apple Watch Series 3 discount $60 online only.
Best Buy has also gone this route, publishing all promotions and discounts on its web site on Sunday, limiting the sale of consoles-only online to reduce long queues and crowds.
Network Target attracted buyers service Drive Up, which became very popular during a pandemic, because it gives the opportunity to pick up their online orders without leaving the car. The number of purchases via Drive Up increased by 500% in the third quarter and this holiday season, the company doubles the number of Parking spaces Drive Up.
Minus the online sales analyst Cohen of the NPD sees that this type of shopping is less affected by the excitement and festive atmosphere created by the physical stores to increase sales. According to him, on impulse buying has traditionally accounted for about 25% of all holiday shopping. Discount and delivery terms will remain the main competitive factors among sellers.
