Retailers watching sales figures from the Black Friday weekend are seeing shoppers spend more and spend earlier, leading to optimism for the rest of the holiday season.
Spending: Over Black Friday weekend — which began on Thanksgiving day — the National Retail Federation said shoppers spent an estimated $59.1 billion in stores and online, up 12.8 percent from the $52.4 billion spent last year.
Store sales: In-store sales were up 1.2 percent from Thursday through Sunday, according to the Chase Holiday Pulse, slightly lower than the 1.4 percent year-to-date sales increase. The NRF said 28 percent of weekend shoppers were at the stores by midnight on Black Friday. In metro Atlanta, shoppers formed long lines at electronics stores ahead of their openings and in some cases camped out beginning last Monday to get the best Black Friday deals.
Online sales: People began shopping online on Thanksgiving, but according to Shop.org, an estimated 129.2 million people shopped online on Cyber Monday alone. As of 6 p.m., Cyber Monday sales were up 26.6 percent over 2011, according to IBM Smarter Commerce. Cinda Boomershine, founder and chief creative officer of the cinda b handbag line in Atlanta, said late Monday afternoon her online sales were 12 to 15 times higher than on a typical day.
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