The Day Of The Holiday Shopping Season Essay - 884 Words

Thanksgiving day marks the beginning of the holiday shopping season. Americans are more inclined to take out their credit cards – ‘tis the season to be jolly and shop. One would think that consumers holiday shopping greatly affects gross domestic product (GDP). After all, personal consumption expenditure is roughly 70% of U.S. GDP. GDP growth in the last quarters however, have not consistently exceeded the other three quarters of the year looking at data after the 2007-2009 Great Recession. Nevertheless, retail sales - a leading indicator – provide clues on the economy’s overall consumption activity. An uptick in retails sales is expected in December each year. Based on historical data, monthly retail sales – that is retail trade and food services excluding autos, show a definitive pattern: December retail sales are higher than other months of the year. Data going back the last 23 years show double-digit retail sales growth in each December. In December last year, monthly retail sales increased 17.9% from November – a $64.7 billion increase. In 2014 the increase in retail sales from November to December was $55.8 billion. American’s shopping spree affects credit union operations. Unlike auto and mortgage lending which is roughly 80% of credit union loan portfolio combined, last year credit card loans was 6.2% of loan portfolio. In the last five years, credit card loans stayed above 6.0% (but under 7.0%) of credit unions loan portfolio – with a high of 6.6% in 2012. ItShow MoreRelatedEssay on Consumerism526 Words   |  3 Pages If you want to know if all of our holidays have been turned into consumer driven shopping orgies, the answer lies in the major department stores. Take a walk through Macys or Lord or Taylor or any major store in Oct. and notice the Christmas decorations. Thats right, Christmas decorations. `Tis the season to break the bank. Our capitalistic society is always looking for a reason for driving consumerism and what better reason than a holiday! If theres a month without one, well make one upRead MoreBlack Friday Essay837 Words   |  4 PagesThanksgiving Day in the United States, traditionally the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. Black Friday is not an official holiday, but many workers have the day off as part of the Thanksgiving holiday, this increases the number of potential shoppers. Retailers often decorate for the Christmas and holiday season weeks beforehand. Many retailers open extremely early, with most of the retailers typically opening at 5 A.M. or even earlier. Retailers use Black Friday to kick off the holiday seasonRead MoreThe Gift Of Analytics : Ramp Up For The Holidays By Focusing On Customer Analytics Essay1231 Words   |  5 PagesThe gift of analytics. Ramp up for the holidays by focusing on customer analytics. 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Around the holidays the opportunities for attacks from terrorist is prominentRead More Holiday Shopping Essay967 Words   |  4 PagesHoliday Shopping As I skim through the Chadwick’s mail-order catalog, I come across a woman, who looks as if she is in her mid-thirties, standing outside on the snow-covered ground. Her gloved hand is arched back in a ready-to-throw position with a snowball resting in her palm. The woman is wearing a  ¾ length gray wool coat and black leather gloves, which catches my eye. The serene, white-topped leaves of the pine trees lean in different directions, waiting for spring to arrive. â€Å"Winter isRead MoreExamples Of Consumer Spending Throughout The Seasons1236 Words   |  5 PagesConsumer Spending Throughout the Seasons. We are heading towards the season of spending, black Friday is just around the corner, with that exactly 31 days after we have Christmas. Consumer spending should be at an all-time high right, with month long sales and new deals everyday as coined with the popular shopping destinations. Now we all agree that there are four seasons throughout the year, we have the spring equinox, summer solstice, fall equinox, winter solstice. In most firms, they also haveRead MoreBlack Friday History718 Words   |  3 Pages  Ã‚  Black  Friday  is  the  day  after  Thanksgiving  in  the  United  States,  where  it  is  the  beginning  of   the  traditional  Christmas  shopping  season.  Since  Thanksgiving  falls  on  the  fourth  Thursday  in   November  in  the  United  States,  Black  Friday  may  be  as  early  as  the  23rd  and  as  late  as  the   29th  of  November.  More  recently,  there  is  new  understanding  that  the  term  originates  from  the   theory  that  retailers  traditionally  operated  at  a  financial  loss  for  most  of  the  year  (January   through  November)  and  made  their  profit  during  the  holiday  seasonRead MoreEarly Openning on Thanksgiving1451 Words   |  6 PagesThanksgiving Day, which is always the fourth Thursday in November in the United States, is a week from today (today is Nov. 15, 2012; Thanksgiving Day is Nov. 22 this year). The day after Thanksgiving Day is called â€Å"Black Friday† in the business world. â€Å"Black Friday† is the unofficial beginning of the Christmas and Hanukkah shopping season. The word â€Å"black† in â€Å"Black Friday† is an accounting term meaning â€Å"profit.† Businesses that have been operating â€Å"in the red† prior to Thanksgiving Day will hopefullyRead MoreA Commercialized Christmas Essay1079 Words   |  5 PagesStates in this day and age, people are most likely all too accustomed with this typical rush promoted between important festivities. It’s exclusively about generating maximum revenue for the large corporations as frantic shoppers attempt to assuage their stress through hour upon hour of incessant shopping; arising in our society today, an important question of whether or not this avaricious behavior communicates total loss of understanding as to what the true meaning of the season represents. InRead MoreThe Christmas Of The German Christmas Essay1301 Words   |  6 PagesMatt Robidoux Dr. DeMisty Bellinger-Delfeld Writing 1 11/2/16 A couple of years ago my sister was involved in the student exchange program, and we had a student from Germany. She styed with us during the holiday season. She explained to us how the Christmas was celebrated differently in the two countries. Here are some of the things I learned   There is a huge difference of how Christmas is celebrated in America and how it is celebrated in Germany. Many Christmas traditions that we have in America