Eight in Ten Americans Say Appearance is At Least Somewhat Important When Shopping for Fresh Produce

But six in ten adults say they would feel at least somewhat comfortable eating "ugly produce"

No matter how many times we've been told not to judge a book by its cover, waiting to pass judgement on something until after we get past its outside has never been an easy task for people to accomplish. Whether it's what we're reading or who we're meeting, people have a tendency to set expectations based on surface assessment. But does the same hold true for what we eat? According to a recent Harris Poll, about eight in ten Americans (81%) confirm that appearance (i.e., not blemished or misshapen in any way) is at least somewhat important to them when shopping for fresh produce (i.e., fruits and vegetables), with 43% saying it is very or extremely important. 

When listed alongside other fresh produce descriptors, appearance proved to be more important than provenance (i.e., locally grown or sourced), the retailer's food waste practices, and organic. However, the price and seasonality are more likely to be important to a purchaser than appearance.

"Whether 'ugly' or not, produce is on the rise, up 5% in U.S. dollar sales in the latest 52 weeks ending July 30, 2016," said Jen Campuzano, Director Fresh Perishables at Nielsen. "Choosing healthier and more natural products has become a priority for households across the country. For some, this means transparency in labeling, opting for foods with basic ingredient lists or embracing fruits and vegetables, blemishes and all."

These are some of the results of The Harris Poll® of 2,025 U.S. adults aged 18+ and surveyed online between August 10 and 12, 2016. Complete results of this study can be found here.

Ugly produce

Despite the weight Americans place on appearance, more than three in five adults (62%) say they would be at least somewhat comfortable eating "ugly produce," that is, fruit or vegetables that may be misshapen but otherwise taste the same. Moreover, three quarters of adults (76%) would expect to pay less for "ugly produce," while a fifth (20%) could see paying the same as usual.

Despite professed comfort with eating ugly produce, fewer than three in ten Americans (28%) recall buying "ugly produce" in the past year, compared to 51% who are sure they did not and 21% who are not sure either way. And of those who bought "ugly produce," six in ten (61%) did so for the price discount.

Food waste

While the primary reason Americans bought "ugly produce" was price, the runner up answer from more than a fifth (22%) of purchasers was that they wanted to reduce food waste. Americans estimate that, typically, 10% of the groceries they buy are wasted, that is, spoil or go bad before they can be eaten. Over eight in ten Americans (84%) are at least somewhat concerned about the issue of food waste, primarily because they would like to be less wasteful (62%).

So how do Americans believe we can reduce household food waste? Nearly half (46%) of adults believe better storage for fresh produce is the key to waste reduction, followed closely by more than 2 in 5 (42%) who advocate buying less food, more frequently. Another 38% believe the solution is better meal planning, while 35% say it would help if smaller package sizes were available in the grocery store.

Valentine's Spending Comes Up Roses: 24 Stats and Facts

Americans shelled out nearly $19 billion in 2015. "TraditionalValentine's Day gifts are always the lead for widespread retail sales this time of year," stated Brent Shelton, FatWallet online shopping expert. "More recently though, we're seeing a big marketing push for smart tech as Valentine's gifts, especially wearables, which should increase spending in excess of $20 billion in 2016."

24 Fun Facts for Valentine's Day Spending (see full infographic):

1. Half of Americans will buy candy to the tune of $1.7 million
2. More than 36 million heart-shaped boxes of chocolate are sold
3. 48% of women expect to receive chocolates as a Valentine's gift
4. Valentine's Day ranks #1 for fresh flower purchases in the US
5. 20% of all flower transactions happen during Valentine's
6. 1 in 4 Valentine's shoppers will buy flowers, half are bought for spouses
7. 250 million roses get produced for Valentine's Day
8. 40% of Valentine's flower purchases are red roses
9. Half buy greeting cards to the tune of more than 180 million
10. Valentine's ranks a far second to Christmas card sales (1.5 billion)
11. 85% of Valentine's cards are purchased by women
12. About 1/3 will do a Valentine's dinner and/or a movie
13. About 1 in 5 buy jewelry as Valentine's gifts
14. Almost 9% of all diamond jewelry is sold as Valentine's gifts
15. 2 to 1, men outspend women for Valentine's
16. More than 1/4 will shop online for Valentine's gifts, 1/3 of those from tablets
17. Valentine's shoppers spend an average of 30% more online
18. About 1 in 5 will buy for their pets
19. Almost half of marriage proposals happen on Valentine's Day
20. Almost 1/3 of Valentine's shoppers procrastinate
21. 40% of procrastinators believe it's too late to find a deal after Feb. 13
22. 38% want smartphones as a Valentine's gift
23. 1/2 of women that don't receive a gift would end their relationship
24. Tucson, AZ spending increases 68% during Feb. Valentine's Day sales

Data was aggregated from published surveys and reports by FatWallet.com. Data resources include: statisticbrain.com, aboutflowers.com, AMEX, EdahnGolan, Greeting Cards Association, Hallmark, Cardlytics, momentology.com, Ebates, Inc., Georgetown Institute for Consumer Research and National Retail Federation.

157 Million Americans Will Celebrate Halloween This Year

Ready to embrace cooler weather, fall traditions and spirited celebrations, more than 157 million Americans plan to celebrate Halloween this year, according to the National Retail Federation’s Halloween Consumer Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics. The average person celebrating will spend $74.34, compared with $77.52 last year. Total spending on Halloween is expected to reach $6.9 billion.*
"Consumers are ready to take advantage of promotions on candy, decorations and costumes, and retailers are ready to serve them.”
Matthew Shay

“After a long summer, consumers are eager to embrace fall and all of the celebrations that come with it,” NRF president and CEO Matthew Shay said. “We expect those celebrating Halloween this year will look for several different activities to do with their family and friends. Consumers are ready to take advantage of promotions on candy, decorations and costumes, and retailers are ready to serve them.”

Consumers celebrating Halloween plan to spend an average of $27.33 on co

stumes for the whole family, and a total of $2.5 billion on store-bought, homemade, large and small costumes. Those celebrating will spend the most on adult costumes ($1.2 billion), and will spend a total of $950 million on children’s costumes and $350 million on fashionable and fun costumes for their furry friends. It’s estimated that 68 million Americans will dress up this Halloween and another 20 million pet owners will dress up their pet.

Nine in 10 (93.7%) Halloween shoppers will buy candy, spending a total of $2.1 billion, and an additional 33.5 percent will buy greeting cards, spending a total of $330 million. Two in five celebrants (44.8%) plan to decorate their home or yard, meaning there’s no question consumers will see their fair share of pumpkins, hay bales and even life-size Minions and black cats strewn across their neighborhoods. The average person planning to buy decorations will spend $20.34 with total spending expected to reach $1.9 billion.

When it comes to how consumers plan to celebrate, most will hand out candy (67.8%), or dress in costume (43.5%), though there will be no shortage of jack-o-lanterns lighting up windows this year with 41 percent of people planning to carve pumpkins. Nearly one-third of consumers (31.5%) plan to throw or attend a party with friends and family.

More consumers have decided to head to stores or shop online early to pick out costumes and decorations. More than one-third of consumers (34.1%) will start their Halloween shopping before the first of October, up slightly from 32.1 percent last year, while 40.9 percent will get started in the first half of the month and one-quarter (25%) of celebrants will wait for the final weeks of October.

“People shouldn’t be too surprised when they see Halloween candy and decorations available in stores as early as September first,” Prosper Insights Principal Analyst Pam Goodfellow said. “Given that more than a third of Americans enjoy taking advantage of early-bird deals to kick off their fall celebrations, it seems there’s plenty of appetite among consumers to enjoy a perfectly ‘frightful’ Halloween.”

Similar to past years, the majority of consumers will find inspiration for their co

stumes online (31.4%) or will head to costume shops and retail stores (26.8%) before they make a final decision.. Pinterest continues to grow in popularity among those looking for costume inspiration (13.3%), as this year’s percentage is nearly double the amount who used the site for inspiration just three years ago (7.1%).

Millennials remain the drivers of Pinterest traffic around Halloween though with 24.9 percent of 18-24 year olds and 23.7 percent of 25-34 year olds using the site for costume inspiration.

About the survey
NRF’s 2015 Halloween Consumer Spending Survey was designed to gauge consumer behavior and shopping trends related to Halloween spending. The survey was conducted for NRF by Prosper Insights & Analytics. The poll of 6,754 consumers was conducted September 1-8, 2015. The consumer poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.3 percentage points.

Approximately 32 Million Consumers Have Already Started Their Holiday Shopping

Summer hasn't even officially ended and yet the holiday shopping season is already well underway for millions of Americans, according to a new survey by CreditCards.com.  

About 1 in 7 American adults (14%) said in a survey done over Labor Day weekend that they had already begun their holiday shopping. That means that about 32 million American adults started crossing gifts off their holiday shopping list before many kids around the country even finished their summer break.

Holiday shopping early birds include:

• Parents: Parents are about twice as likely (20% to 11%) as those without kids to have started holiday shopping already.
• Whites: 16% of whites have begun holiday shopping, compared to just 9% of non-whites. 
• Online shoppers: 18% of those who said they'd primarily do their holiday shopping online said they'd already started.

Fifteen percent of Americans said they plan to start shopping earlier this year compared to last year, particularly millennials.  Over one-fifth (22%) of 18-29 year olds say they are more likely to start their holiday shopping earlier this year than last year.  Only 9% of people aged 50+ are eager to do the same.

"We love to complain about stores putting up holiday displays earlier and earlier each year," said Matt Schulz, senior industry analyst at CreditCards.com, "but the truth is that millions of Americans start holiday shopping long before the first Christmas tree appears in a store."

Amazingly, 2% of all consumers – or about 4.6 million people – have already finished their holiday shopping. Grandma and Grandpa are most likely to be ahead of the game: 7% of those over 65 years old have finished shopping, compared to 1% or fewer of those 64 or younger.

About 1 in 4 holiday shoppers (23%) expect to finish shopping by the end of November. The less money you make, the more likely you are to aim to finish your shopping early. Just 19 percent of those who make $75,000 or more per year expected to finish their holiday shopping before December 1, compared to 30% of folks making $30,000 per year.

"If you're on a budget, getting an early start on holiday shopping can be a great idea," Schulz said. "For example, it can make it easier to take advantage of layaway programs, which can allow you to make bigger purchases without worrying about running up credit card debt."

Labor Day deals kick-off summer clearance as stores prep for holiday

FatWallet.com, where millions of deal hunters go to stack coupons with cash back, presents a one-stop-shop to quickly compare the best Labor Day deals and coupons from hundreds of top retail stores. Early Labor Day sales bring the kick-off of summer clearance which coincides with Back to School clearance, as well as the clearing of other big ticket inventory, like major appliances, mattresses and furniture. Shoppers can reap savings to the tune of 20-80% on patio furniture, grills, tailgating gear, summer clothing and shoes, and a variety of items for the home as retailers look to make inventory room for holiday merchandise. FatWallet members will stack additional savings from increased cash back from dozens of top stores including Walmart, Home Depot, Sears and Overstock.

Lke President's Day and Memorial Day, retailers now lengthen Labor Day sales into a 10 day marathon resulting in some of the best prices of the year on a wide variety of items," states Brent Shelton, Online Shopping Expert from FatWallet. "September can be very fruitful to family budgets, if they know what to shop for."

Seven Labor Day and Seasonal Clearance Hacks:

1. Summer Clothing Clearance: The perfect opportunity to buy t-shirts, shorts, sandals, swimwear and sunglasses at the lowest seasonal prices from 50-75% off retail at both bigbox and branded stores like AERO, Levi's, Nike and PacSun.
2. Back to School Clothing and Tech Clearance: Hitting back to school clearance the last week of August during early Labor Dayevents can offer savings of up to 25% more than in August and July, including laptop deals and older cell phone deals in September (thanks to new iPhones).
3. Yard, Grills and Patio Furniture Clearance: Starting Labor Day and through September, home and garden items see huge discounting from 20% to 60% off, including savings on other accessories like seat cushions, grilling utensils and weed whackers. 
4. Appliances and Mattresses: To make room for new models, Labor Day sales offer 50% or more discounting on the big ticket home items, especially last year's appliances and mattresses (not refrigerators) - the lowest prices we'll see until Black Friday.
5. Fall Fashion: Waiting until mid to late September will pay dividends on buying fall fashion as sale pricing becomes more in focus on the items once summer inventory is cleared out, ramp up to 40% off by the end of the month on boots, jeans, jackets and sweatshirts.
6. Sports and Outdoors: Expect end of season clearance on baseball, golf, biking, camping and fishing and in season sale pricing for hunting apparel and gear from Cabela's, Walmart, Gander Mountain and Bass Pro Shops.
7. Holiday Travel Deals:  Best time to book in advance for Thanksgiving and Holiday travel (times, selection and price) as top travel sites offer up to 50% off on airfare, hotels and packages. TIP: Add cash back from more than 100 travel sites shopping through FatWallet and find insider tips for best rates, credit card hacks and stackable travel offers on FatWallet's Travel Discussion forum.

Back-to-School Shoppers Slowly Tackling Lists This Summer

As families artfully craft their back-to-school shopping plans around promotions and even their state’s sales tax holiday, it seems there is still quite a bit of shopping left to be done. According to NRF’s latest Back-to-School Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics, the average family with children in grades K-12 has completed just half (50.4%) of their shopping, which is even with results from last year’s survey (49.9%).

“As expected, families are carefully measuring where, when and how they should spend on fall apparel items, school supplies, electronics and other necessities,” said NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. “Late summer promotions and sales tax holidays around the country are likely contributing to the delay in back-to-school shopping this year, which means the next few weeks could be exceptionally busy for retailers large and small.”

“Retailers, hoping to strike a chord with both budget-conscious and value-focused parents, will roll out hard to pass up promotions designed to capture the attention of those last-minute shoppers,” said Shay.
"As expected, families are carefully measuring where, when and how they should spend on fall apparel items, school supplies, electronics and other necessities."
Matthew Shay

Though fewer people this year admit that they have not yet started their shopping (19.5%) compared to last year (23.6%), it’s clear that most of those who have started shopping still have quite a bit left on their lists. A number of families, however, stated they already have everything they need for the first day of school with 13.3 percent saying that they have finished their shopping.

Coupons and promotions continue to resonate with today’s shopper, and the survey this year found that mom and dad certainly have done their own homework when it comes to the new supplies, apparel and electronic items on their lists: those who have already started shopping indicate that about half of their purchases (51.3%) were influenced by coupons, sales and promotions, down from 58 percent last year.

When it comes to classroom needs, the survey found parents are on the hook to contribute several items. On average, parents say that 64.4 percent of their purchases of pencils, folders and other school supplies are influenced by classroom lists or school requirements. In addition, 45.9 percent of their electronics purchases for back to school are influenced by the lists and requirements of their family’s schools.

“Given the extra costs some parents take on these days when it comes to stocking their children’s classroom, many will certainly look to take advantage of retailer’s sales and promotions as well as their state’s sales tax holidays as they wrap up their lists,” said Prosper’s Principal Analyst Pam Goodfellow. “More retailers than ever are in the back-to-school spectrum, so it won’t be difficult for mom and dad to find what they need wherever they shop, be it their favorite website for free shipping offers or their local drug store for last-minute deals on supplies.”

When asked what payment method families shopping for back-to-school used most often, 44.6 percent have or will use their debit cards, while others have or will swipe their credit cards (27.7%) or pay with cash (25.5%).

As for where consumers will finish their shopping, discount stores will see the most traffic (53.4%), while 46.8 percent will shop at department stores, 36.6 percent at clothing stores and 12.8 percent will wrap up at electronics stores; 27.2 percent will check out retailers’ best online deals, up from 24.8 percent this time last year.

In-store ads, coupons and promotions continue to be the big influencers for families shopping back to school. Parents say traditional media has the most impact, saying that coupons (43.4%), in-store promotions (35.3%) and advertising inserts (31%) influence them the most to shop at a particular store. Word of mouth (21.5%) and television ads (19.4%) also make a difference.


Families Shopping for College Necessities Waiting for Late-Season Deals, NRF Survey Finds

College shoppers are delaying the inevitable and waiting until absolutely necessary to fill up the family car with their college needs. NRF’s Back-to-College Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics found college students and their families have completed about half (49.1%) of their shopping lists compared to 53.7 percent this time last year. Nearly one-quarter (24%) of those planning to shop for college necessities have been busy enjoying the summer days and have not yet begun their shopping, down slightly from last year (26.2%).

College shoppers are also turning to coupons, sales or promotions to get the best bang for their buck: the survey found nearly half (48.1%) of what parents have purchased has been influenced by early summer deals and promotions, which is the same as last year but higher than the 44.4 percent in 2013.

Many colleges and universities today require incoming and/or current students to come armed and ready with their own computer. The survey this year found 49 percent of the electronic items college students and their parents have already purchased were influenced by their class or school requirements, down from 56 percent last year.

While most back-to-college shoppers say that they have or will use debit cards to make purchases (41.8%), a number of shoppers have already or will use their credit cards (31.9%) or have chosen to pay with cash (22.1%) when buying supplies, apparel and electronic items for class.

Much like back-to-school shoppers, most of those shopping for college will cross off bedding, apparel and other items from their lists at discount stores (46.3%), department stores (38.8%), clothing (28.8%) and electronics stores (20.3%).

Traditional media also resonates well with back-to-college shoppers. The survey found four in 10 (42.3%) college shoppers agree coupons influence their purchases, and nearly three in 10 (27.6%) responding that in-store promotions and advertising inserts (26.2%) are also big influencers.

After Splurging in 2014, Families Trim Back-to-School Spending for 2015

Average Spending on Back to School Has Grown 42 Percent in Past 10 Years

After spending more on school supplies and electronics in 2014, parents this year will head into the back-to-school season evaluating what their children really need before spending on new items. According to NRF’s Back-to-School Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics, the average family with children in grades K-12 plans to spend $630.36 on electronics, apparel and other school needs, down from $669.28 last year. Total spending is expected to reach $24.9 billion. Additionally, indicating the continued growth in the back-to-school arena, families on average have spent 42 percent more on school items over the past 10 years.

Regardless of the slight decrease, survey results point to a more confident consumer when it comes to spending and the impact of the economy. The survey found 76.4 percent of families with school-age children say they will change their spending because of the economy, the lowest in the seven years NRF has been tracking it, and down from 81.1 percent last year.

“As seen over the last 13 years, spending on ‘back to school’ has consistently fluctuated based on children’s needs each year, and it’s unlikely most families would need to restock and replenish apparel, electronics and supplies every year,” said NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. “Parents this summer will inventory their children’s school supplies and decide what is needed and what can be reused, which just makes good budgeting sense for families with growing children."

“Heading into the second half of the year, we are optimistic that economic growth and consumer spending will improve after a shaky first half of the year,” said Shay.

As Economy Improves, Impact on Spending Lessen

Solid growth in job creation and consumer confidence have greatly contributed to the economic recovery, which could be positively impacting how families shop for school items this year. The survey found 40.6 percent of those who say the economy is impacting their spending plans will look for sales more often, down from the 46.2 percent last year and the lowest since NRF began tracking this in 2009. Additionally, 29.8 percent will buy more generic or store brand products, down from 34 percent last year and another survey low.

For those who have to restock what their children need for school, 92.7 percent will purchase new apparel, spending an average of $217.82, though most (94.1 percent) will head out for new school supplies, spending an average of $97.74; families will also spend $117.56 on new shoes.

In 2014, 58.3 percent of parents said they would buy electronics for their school-age children, and planned to spend an average of $212.35 — one of the highest amounts seen in the survey’s history. Having less of a need for electronics this year, however, families said they would decrease their spending on gadgets for their children and will spend an average of $197.24.



Source: 2015 NRF Back to School/College Spending Survey conducted by Prosper Insights & Analytics.
"Heading into the second half of the year, we are optimistic that economic growth and consumer spending will improve after a shaky first half of the year."
NRF President and CEO
Matthew Shay


Early Birds Change Course; Omnichannel Offerings Desired by Shoppers

More families with children in grades K-12 are opting to wait before rushing out to shop. According to the survey, 19.6 percent will shop at least two months before school, down from 22.5 percent last year. Starting a little later this year, two in five (42.8 percent) will shop at least three weeks to one month before school, down slightly from 44.5 percent last year. More families (30.3 percent) will shop one to two weeks before school, up from 25.4 percent last year.

When asked why they begin shopping for back to school at least two months out, 64.9 percent said they shop early to spread out their budgets, and half (51.1 percent) do so to avoid crowds associated with school shopping. Other popular reasons include not wanting to miss out on popular merchandise (21.5 percent) and prices and promotions being too good to pass up (45.3 percent).

Planning to shop around for their school merchandise, families will head to their local department (56.4 percent), discount (62.2 percent), clothing (53.5 percent), electronics (22.4 percent) and office supply stores (35.9 percent). And slightly more than one-third (35.6 percent) of those looking for school items will shop online.

For the first time, NRF asked about shoppers’ intentions to use retailers’ omnichannel offerings; of those planning to shop online, nearly half (48.4 percent) say they will take advantage of retailers’ buy online, pick up in store or ship to store options, and 17.3 percent will look for expedited shipping offers. Nine in 10 (92.1 percent) will take advantage of retailers’ free shipping offers.

“Savvy and budget-conscious parents today have plenty of experience when it comes to looking around for great deals and value-add promotions, and it seems mom and dad will use that to their advantage this summer to take advantage of retailers’ omnichannel services,” said Prosper’s Principal Analyst Pam Goodfellow. “To ease hectic schedules and long shopping lists, it’s likely that we’ll continue to see consumers try out and regularly use services like free shipping, reserve online and even same-day delivery — options busy parents have been waiting for.”

Broken out by age, Millennials are much more likely to use these channels: Two-thirds of 18-24- and 25-34-year-olds will use a buy online, pick up in store or ship to store option (65.7 percent and 65 percent respectively), and 15.4 percent of 25-34-year-olds will use a reserve online option, much higher than the 9.1 percent of average adults who plan to do so. Additionally, 23 percent of 18-24-year-olds will use same-day delivery, significantly more than the 10.2 percent of average adults.


Three-quarters Say Half of What they Buy for School is Influenced by Children

Fashion-forward teens and tweens know just how to get mom and dad’s attention when it comes to new school gear to make their friends stop and stare. According to the survey, 86.4 percent of school shoppers say their children will influence one-quarter or more of their back-to-school purchases. And for the smaller purchases, children plan to chip in some of their own money; teens will dole out $33.27, and pre-teens will spend an average $17.57.

- See more at: https://nrf.com/media/press-releases/after-splurging-2014-families-trim-back-school-spending-2015#sthash.l4mBg9yf.dpuf

Four Tips to Hack Holiday Clearance Online

FatWallet.com, where millions of online deal hunters go to stack deals and coupons with cash back, presents early-bird shoppers with a one-stop resource to compare after Christmas clearance sales and deals. Dozens of e-tailers will launch their holiday clearance sales early online starting Christmas day, before physical stores reopen again onDecember 26. Savvy FatWallet shoppers will look to get a head start and stack clearance deals with increased cash back from stores like Home Depot, Sears, Newegg, Amazon, eBay and American Eagle.

"The majority of seasonal items that see significant price-reductions will sell out fast, so timing is essential when navigating holiday clearance," said Brent Shelton, FatWallet shopping expert. "Early bird shoppers know retailers launch most online sales ahead of in-store events and will begin looking for these deals online on Christmas night."

Four tips to help shoppers hack holiday clearance and New Year's Deals to find the optimum savings:

1. Stack savings ops:  Look to combine clearance pricing with coupon codes, store-wide discounts or free shipping offers. The add on increased rewards during FatWallet's annual Holiday Cash Back Sale which runs through to the end of December.

2. Get a head start:  Stores start tagging items for clearance Christmas week. Gift wrap, bags, bows, decorations, party supplies, candy, food, beverages and household items that were packaged in with holiday branding can be bought for 50-75% off. Scan Fatwallet's Today's Best Deals for up-to-the-minute specials.

3. Strength in numbers:  FatWallet's Hot Deals forum is home to thousands of the savviest deal hunters online who share current "steals" and members add insider information on how to make them even better. Set instant notifications so you know when the best clearance deals are shared as they can sell out within hours.

4. Avoid out-of-season items:  Tech products (HDTVs, cameras, laptops, tablets, and smartphones) will see better prices after the new year through to March, especially for TV deals which will see the best prices of the year on higher quality models leading up to 2015 Super Bowl parties.

Final 2014 Desktop Online Holiday Sales Reach $53.3 Billion, Up 15 Percent vs. Year Ago

comScore (NASDAQ : SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today reported holiday season U.S. retail e-commerce spending from desktop computers for the entire November-December 2014 holiday season. For the holiday season, $53.3 billion was spent online, marking a 15-percent increase versus the corresponding days last year. Cyber Monday (Monday, Dec. 1) once again ranked as the heaviest spending day of the year with more than $2 billion in desktop buying.

2014 Holiday Season Spending vs. Corresponding Days* in 2013 Non-Travel (Retail) E-Commerce Spending Excludes Auctions and Large Corporate Purchases Total U.S. – Home & Work Desktop Computers Source: comScore, Inc.
	Millions ($)
	2013	2014	Percent Change
Nov. 1–Dec. 31	$46,546	$53,305	15%
Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 27)*	$766	$1,009	32%
Black Friday (Nov. 28)*	$1,198	$1,505	26%
Holiday Weekend (Nov. 29-30)*	$1,594	$2,012	26%
Cyber Monday (Dec. 1)*	$1,735	$2,038	17%
Thanksgiving thru Cyber Monday*	$5,293	$6,564	24%
Green Monday (Dec. 8)*	$1,401	$1,615	15%
Free Shipping Day (Dec. 18)*	$868	$926	7%
*Corresponding days based on corresponding shopping days

"The 2014 online holiday shopping season was very strong overall as spending slightly exceeded our fairly optimistic forecast heading into the season," said comScore chairman emeritus Gian Fulgoni. "Despite a shortened holiday calendar between Thanksgiving and Christmas and erroneous reports of flagging holiday sales, the American consumer proved resilient and flexed their spending muscle online this year. Increasing positive consumer sentiment, improving job growth and declining gas prices all combined to create a more favorable spending environment, and consumers responded by opening up their wallets in a way they hadn't since before the financial crisis. In the end, we saw growth rates in the mid-double digits as the online channel continued to gain meaningful share from brick-and-mortar."

Top 10 Desktop Spending Days in 2014 Holiday SeasonCyber Monday (Dec. 1), for the fifth consecutive year, ranked as the heaviest online buying day with $2.038 billion in desktop spending. The day after Cyber Monday ranked second for the season at $1.796 billion, followed by Green Monday (Dec. 8) with$1.615 billion and Black Friday with $1.505 billion. For the entire season fifteen individual days exceeded $1 billion in online spending via desktop, a significant increase from ten the previous year.

Top 10 Desktop Spending Days in 2014 Holiday Season Non-Travel (Retail) E-Commerce Spending Excludes Auctions and Large Corporate Purchases Total U.S. – Home & Work Desktop Computers Source: comScore, Inc.
Day	Desktop Spending ($ Millions)
Monday, Dec. 1 (Cyber Monday)	$2,038
Tuesday, Dec. 2	$1,796
Monday, Dec. 8 (Green Monday)	$1,615
Friday, Nov. 28 (Black Friday)	$1,505
Friday, Dec. 12	$1,463
Tuesday, Dec. 9	$1,343
Thursday, Dec. 11	$1,192
Wednesday, Dec. 3	$1,172
Wednesday, Dec. 10	$1,168
Tuesday, Dec. 16	$1,162