The National Retail Federation released its post-Thanksgiving Day shopping survey and found things not quite as bleak as expected.
Predicting a 2.2 percent increase over last year’s holiday shopping season, Black Friday started things off with a hearty 7.2 percent increase over the holiday weekend last year. The survey, conducted by BIGresearch, covers spending data for Thursday, Friday and Saturday and projections for Sunday.
Shoppers — some 172 million in stores and on Web sites compared to last year’s 147 million — spent an average of $372.57. Last year’s shoppers averaged $347.55
The bulk of shoppers were early risers, too, according to the NRF; one quarter of Friday shoppers were at stores by 5 a.m. And probably most were buying clothing and electronics, the survey found.
More from OC Retail:
- Retail analyst expects deeper discounts
- Clothing retailer to close as many as 100 more stores
- Bankrupt retailer starts liquidation sale for O.C. store
- Downtown Disney store owner files for bankruptcy
- Do store-closing sales offer the best deals?
- Brea Mall store closes
- 1,000-plus store closures expected after Christmas
- Worst O.C. mall parking during the holidays?
- Downtown Disney store to close
- Fitness retailer with 5 O.C. stores files for bankruptcy
- Macy’s exec addresses store closure rumors
- $35 movie ticket may be coming to O.C.
- Bella Terra store closes
- Holiday parking tips at O.C. malls
- Circuit City closing O.C. store
- Bankrupt shoe retailer closing last 2 O.C. stores
- Nordstrom reduces prices on 800-plus styles
- O.C. clothing maker to shut down











Yes they were there nice and early and trampling over employees at Walmart. I’m so angry over that story. People today are so about themselves now
Woo hoo! Up 7.2% so everything is right in the retail world? NOPE! shops closing up left and right. Dealerships, retail stores, and restaurants all folding up. Stock market dropped nearly 700 points today so obviously the overwhelming sentiment is that the economic news today as a whole was extremely disappointing
Lets explain it this way…. The economy is in the toilet, millions are losing jobs and homes, but hey…I found a penny on the sidewalk today.
Call me a skeptic but I find this hard to believe.
Is the OC Register owned by FOX news? Economy is in a recession so lets spin a positive lie? weak - The OC is high on itself….read elsewhere.
All it means is that people are looking for deals now.
Steffy - Isn’t it crazy? I couldn’t believe it when I heard about it. Is there really anything at Walmart worth taking a man’s life over? Seriously….