Retailers predict 3.9 percent holiday sales boost
While not as robust as last year, retail sales this holiday season should be strong in Massachusetts, according to new survey results.
November and December holiday sales increased 4.7 percent in 2016 and are projected to rise 3.9 percent this year, the Retailers Association of Massachusetts announced Thursday, citing a survey of its 4,000 members.
“Massachusetts retailers are prepared for the 2016 holiday sales season, and they are optimistic that the sales trends for last year will continue, albeit at lower levels of increases,” association president Jon Hurst said. “Consumer confidence remains stable at the high local level of last season, which was the strongest since the 2007 holiday sales season. Economic growth, low unemployment, rising wages, and continued low gas prices have a lot to do with that consumer confidence, and we have seen that reflected in retail sales growth in recent months.
Online sales are expected to increase by between 7 and 10 percent and will reach $117 billion nationally, according to the association, and will represent about 18 percent of holiday purchases. About 35 percent of consumers made more than half of their purchases online last season, the association reported.
Holiday season sales have risen for seven straight years, after falling over a three-year stretch starting in 2007. Nationally, sales are projected to increase by 3.6 percent this year, according to the National Retail Federation.
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