Holiday shoppers to get a late start

Consumers will start their holiday shopping later than ever this year and impulse buying will be down, according to market research firm NPD Group Inc.

NPD surveyed almost 2,000 consumers last month, and 41% said they didn’t anticipate starting their shopping until after Thanksgiving. That’s 10% more than reported in last year’s survey.

“Retailers are looking to start the season earlier but consumers just aren’t ready,” said Marshal Cohen, chief industry expert at NPD.

“There isn’t one must-have item, coupled with the fact that consumers are conditioned to expect deeper discounts as it gets later in the season.”

One big worry is that shoppers won’t be doing a lot of impulse buying.

According to Cohen, impulse purchases typically account for about 26% of holiday sales, but that figure dropped to 19% last year.

“This year, we’ll be lucky to hit 17%,” Cohen said.