Black Friday Retail Stats & How Your Supply Chain Can Change for Christmas

Retail sales stats from Black Friday are in, and while sales have increased considerably despite the cost of living crisis, a recession and still trying to recover from the detrimental effects COVID had on the entire supply chain industry.

Following the anticipation of the Black Friday to Christmas period, which tends to be the biggest time of the year for most retailers no matter their size, the way people shop during this period is often analysed.

In an article on marketing tips for the holidays, Gartner writes:

Gartner research shows nearly 50% of consumers will start to shop in October or November, with 16% of consumers now shopping year-round for holiday gifts. Only 9% wait until December.?

This implies that if businesses haven’t already, they must consider and rethink their approach to both digital commerce and sales throughout the entire year, and perhaps we’ll see a shift from retailers being prepared for sales throughout the entire year rather than just the Black Friday – Christmas period.

If we look at sales throughout the year, the impact that inflation has had on the various sales held throughout the year has fluctuated and appears unpredictable. Overall, sales still have not returned to pre-pandemic levels and with inflation reaching an all-time high, this is widely impacting how consumers are spending.

BBC reports:

Retail sales rose 0.6% in October, latest figures show, but this followed a drop in sales the previous month when shops closed for the Queen's funeral.

Despite October's rebound, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said sales remain below pre-pandemic levels.

Analysts said October's rise could be a "false dawn" and the key Christmas trading period could be "difficult".

The UK's inflation rate, which measures how quickly prices are rising, hit 11.1% in October - the highest for 41 years - and the government has said the country is in an economic recession.

Returns were estimated to be costing retailers?about ￡20 billion a year?in 2016, roughly half that of shop-bought products. Since then, it will have?increased considerably?– particularly during COVID as online sales went through the roof.

So what can you do about it?

The Conversation writes:

Every time you move a product there are also environmental costs associated with the journey. According to?one recent study, the carbon emissions from returning a product are about a third higher than shipping it out in the first place.

In any case, the sector is developing its own solutions:?a quarter?of leading UK brands now charge customers for returns, including fast-fashion players like?Zara and Boohoo. They will not be doing this lightly: the Royal Mail?estimates 52%?of shoppers would be unlikely to use a particular online retailer if they had to pay for the returns.

We both still see reports online claiming that substantial amounts of returned clothes end up in landfill, but this is not what we hear from our discussions with leading retailers.?Over 95%?of returned clothing can be reprocessed and made available for resale as a new product – subject to cleaning and sewing repairs and retailers having access to ozone cleaning facilities to remove perfume/aftershave smells, which is actually a major one issue.

However, it’s not all doom and gloom for businesses when juggling the multi-faceted sides of the supply chain industry.

If we consider the implications of returns from sales being high, the environmental impact is higher, especially for businesses trying to be more sustainable this can be almost unavoidable.

Being overstocked on underselling items and understocked on bestselling items is something we at AGR are determined to help businesses combat. Organising your demand planning and forecasting is essential in helping you stay one step ahead of the chaos and have all bases covered.

If you’re looking to plan for next year’s sales and predict the unpredictable, get in contact with us here for a demo of our system or for a general discussion on what may suit your company needs best:

Contact us here