Personal selling rebounded this holiday season, according to new data.
New Mastercard SpendingPulse data reviewed by the New York Times showed that same-store sales rose 2.9% this holiday shopping season, from Nov. 1 to Dec. 24.
A Macy's employee who has worked behind the beauty counter for 32 years had this to say: Times that custom stores “are still hanging around, and we're still making our numbers because people are shopping.”
Related: How small businesses can capture $76 billion in holiday spending
Shop owners at a mall in Henderson, Nevada he said New York Post that they met or exceeded their vacation goals this year and that it gets busier year after year.
“We actually hit (our) goal, so that was good,” Bring It Back store owner Brandon Nova told the media.
Americans were expected to spend a record $989 billion on holiday shopping this year, for National Retail Federation (NRF), with online shopping and in-person sales driving growth.
Shoppers were projected to spend up to $33.4 billion more this holiday season than last year, according to NRF data. On average, buyers decide aside $902 in holiday spending this year. The top gifts purchased were clothing and accessories, toys, gift cards and books.
The NRF survey also showed that while in-person sales increased this year, online shopping continues to be popular – sales were is projected to grow between 8% and 9% in 2024, from $295.1 billion to $297.9 billion.
Meanwhile, despite the strong presence of holiday shoppers at retail stores, new data showed 7,300 retail store closures this year, an increase from 4,627 closings last year.
Family Dollar led the way, with 718 closings, followed by CVS and Big Lots, each with over 500 store closings.