Latest news with #TargetCircleWeek
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Passing Grades for Back-to-school Shopping
The world is in turmoil, consumer confidence is shaky and prices continue to rise — but the back-to-school shopping this season is holding up. Sales of school supplies, apparel and footwear have so far met retailers' expectations, though inventories were planned very conservatively. Typically, the bts season peaks in August, but this year consumers in many parts of the country took to the malls and outlet centers earlier than ever hoping to avoid price increases later in the year due to tariffs. More from WWD LuisaViaRoma Files for Protection Measures With Florence Court, Italian Chamber of Commerce Space 519 Aims to Be More Than a Luxury Store Hailey Bieber Preps Rhode for Sephora Debut Retailers jumped on the Amazon Prime Day bandwagon with a panoply of offerings, including sharp discounts and free shipping. The 'Walmart Deals,' 'Target Circle Week' and 'Macy's Black Friday in July' events were all timed around Amazon Prime Day, which this year was extended from two to four days — July 8 to 11 — as the Internet giant sought to offset increased competition. Tax-free days last month in Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi and New Mexico, gave another lift to traffic at stores, and some of the better-than-expected business retailers witnessed in July would be attributed to the first day of classes for the new school year starting in certain areas of the South and West. 'It's been a back-to-school season unlike any other,' Marshal Cohen, chief retail industry adviser for Circana, told WWD. 'You've got all these new dynamics and added pressures, from elevated temperatures across the country and regional flooding, to concerns about pricing and things costing more, and more sophisticated systems of supplying school supplies earlier.' According to Cohen, core needs for the classroom and basic apparel — shorts, T-shirts, underwear — as well as athletic footwear and some beauty products have top families' shopping lists. Consumers are not rushing to buy more fashionable styles, he said. Cohen said prices are higher than they were, but 'not by that much.' 'Consumers have demonstrated an acceptance of the relatively marginal price increases witnessed to date,' he said. 'They are picking and choosing what they spend on, which introduces some variability into more granular discretionary retail activity. We've got a consumer prioritizing purchases between price increases and the economy, but they rarely cut back on spending for kids going back to school.' Overall, for the four weeks ended Aug. 2, U.S. retail sales rose 2 percent across discretionary general merchandise, food and beverage, and nonedible consumer packaged goods, from the same period in 2024, while unit demand fell 1 percent, according to Circana. 'Back-to-school is off to a really good start for us,' said Stephen Lebovitz, chief executive officer of CBL Properties, a real estate investment trust with 89 properties in 22 states. 'The economy has held up. Traffic has stayed steady and is even up a bit. This is definitely surprising compared to what we would have projected three months ago. In the spring, everybody was worried.' Tax-free weekends in July, Lebovitz added, 'were really strong for a number of our malls and retailers.' Two Tennessee centers, Hamilton Place in Chattanooga and CoolSprings Galleria in Nashville, had particularly strong tax-free weekends, he said. 'Retailers were saying it was like Black Friday in the summer, but a lot of people were also buying early because they were worried about the impact of tariffs and retailers passing on higher costs.' According to several industry analysts and surveys, most consumers are spending the same or more than last year, though roughly a quarter to a third of consumers expect to spend less on bts. Analysts believe the bts season can be considered a barometer for how the holiday season plays out. 'Spending remains. It doesn't seem like what was feared is coming to fruition,' said Michael Gunther, vice president and head of insights at Consumer Edge, a data insights company specializing in analyzing consumer behavior and transactions across 40 million credit and debit cards. 'Consumers are just being a little more discerning of where they spend,' said Gunther. 'They're price-conscious.' With August almost one-half over, 'There doesn't appear a deceleration in sales growth as a result of all that pull front,' Gunther said, referring to the unprecedented level of bts shopping seen in July and June. 'It's too early to say early shopping for the season will pull business out of August.' Based on its U.S. credit and debit card data, Consumer Edge listed Aéropostale, Factory, Carter's, Hollister, PacSun, Express, Janie & Jack and Pacific Sunwear as achieving double-digit sale gains for the July 7 to 18 period, while Gap was right around 10 percent, underscoring the robust early bts shopping. But two backpack brands, Kipling and Herschel Supply, as well as American Eagle and Tilly's saw spending declines. Retailers have been prepared for the early-bird rush, having placed orders with vendors much sooner this year before the tariffs kicked in. U.S. President Donald Trump has put tariffs on dozens of U.S. trading partners, ranging from 15 percent on the EU to 50 percent on Brazil. Many of the tariffs went into effect Aug. 7. CBL's Lebovitz cited Gap, Hollister, Abercrombie, The Buckle, American Eagle and Palmetto Moon, a regional retailer for family apparel, gifts and home goods, as having solid seasons so far. Asked if retailers were any more promotional this year for bts than last year, Lebovitz replied, 'Being promotional is always part of it. There is an expectation' of shoppers wanting it. 'But I don't think it's any more extreme this year.' He also said he hasn't seen much in the way of recent price increases. 'If there were any price increases, there were also discounts, so the net pricing is comparable to what it has been.' 'Advertisers should take note: this is not the season for overly showy or out-of-touch creative campaigns,' Tony Gemma, vice president and global head of Yahoo Creative, said in a statement. 'Shoppers want value. Ads that emphasize discounts, practical tips, and ease of purchase are more likely to win.' Here's how Yahoo and other industry sources and tech-oriented firms evaluated BTS 2025: Yahoo's '2025 Back-to-School Shopping Survey' of 1,000 consumers indicates that 70 percent of K-12 parents and 55 percent of college students plan to spend more this season, largely driven by inflation and increased tech needs. Nine in 10 shoppers are worried about U.S. macroeconomic factors, such as inflation and the rising cost of living. Still, the average back-to-school shopper plans to spend just $371, with many budgeting less than $500. Samsung Ads, the advertising platform for the South Korean conglomerate, surveyed shoppers and found that three-quarters of bts shoppers plan to spend the same or more on bts merchandise than a year ago, with 41 percent planning to spend the same amount as last year; 33 percent planning to spend more, and 26 percent expecting to spend less. Eighty-two percent of bts shoppers say mid-summer (July) is the most impactful time to influence their bts purchase decisions, Samsung reported. GumGum, an adtech company, conducted a bts shopping survey of 3,000 consumers across the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany in mid May. Sixty-eight percent of the respondents said price and promotions were the top factors when buying bts supplies; 35 percent said they're actively hunting for sales due to economic pressures, and 27 percent said they would be buying less than last year. GumGum also indicted that 61 percent of the consumers' bts spending would be for clothing and footwear. The National Retail Federation, with Prosper Insights & Analytics, predicted based on their annual bts survey that spending for students in grades kindergarten through high school will reach $41.5 billion — up 12.5 percent from $36.9 billion last year. The previous high was $37.1 billion in 2021. The survey also concluded that back-to-college spending is expected to hit $94 billion, about $20 billion or 27 percent more than last year's record $74 billion. The NRF sees U.S. retail sales for all of 2025 increasing 2.7 to 3.7 percent over 2024. As NRF president and CEO Matthew Shay previously said, 'Retailers have been preparing for months to ensure they are well stocked with essential items that families and students need for the school year.' Best of WWD Macy's Is Closing 66 Stores in 2025 — Here's the List, Live Updates Inside the Demise of Lord & Taylor COVID-19 Spikes Elevate Retail Concerns Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Fibre2Fashion
18-07-2025
- Business
- Fibre2Fashion
Early shopping, tariff concerns drive US back-to-school trends: NRF
Back-to-school shoppers in US are kicking off their purchases earlier than ever in 2025, driven by tariff concerns and a hunt for deals, according to the latest annual survey by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Prosper Insights & Analytics. As of early July, 67 per cent of shoppers had already begun buying items for the upcoming school year—the highest rate since NRF began tracking early shopping in 2018 and a sharp increase from 55 per cent last year. The early shopping trend is largely influenced by economic uncertainty, with 51 per cent of back-to-school families starting earlier specifically due to fears of price hikes caused by tariffs. Back-to-school shopping in US is starting earlier than ever in 2025, with 67 per cent of shoppers beginning by early July, driven by tariff fears and deal-hunting. While average spending per student is down slightly, total Kâ€'12 and college spending is set to hit $39.4 billion and $88.8 billion, respectively. Online and discount stores remain top channels amid economic caution. Despite the early momentum, 84 per cent of consumers reported having at least half of their shopping still left to complete. The primary reasons for holding off include waiting for better deals (47 per cent), uncertainty about required items (39 per cent), and spreading out budgets over time (24 per cent). Retailer-led summer sales events such as Amazon Prime Day, Walmart Deals and Target Circle Week are playing a pivotal role, with 82 per cent of shoppers timing purchases around these promotions, NRF said in a release. 'Consumers are being mindful of the potential impacts of tariffs and inflation on back-to-school items, and have turned to early shopping, discount stores and summer sales for savings on school essentials. As shoppers look for the best deals on clothes, notebooks and other school-related items, retailers are highly focused on affordability and making the shopping experience as seamless as possible,' said NRF vice president of Industry and Consumer Insights Katherine Cullen . For K–12 students, families expect to spend an average of $858.07 this year—slightly below 2024's $874.68. Nonetheless, increased participation is projected to push total K–12 spending to $39.4 billion, up from $38.8 billion last year. Spending is led by electronics at an average of $295.81 per household ($13.6 billion total), followed by clothing and accessories ($249.36 or $11.4 billion), shoes ($169.13 or $7.8 billion), and school supplies ($143.77 or $6.6 billion). Online remains the top shopping channel (55 per cent), followed by department stores (48 per cent), discount retailers (47 per cent), and clothing stores (41 per cent). College shoppers are also scaling back per-person budgets—$1,325.85 on average, down from $1,364.75 in 2024. However, broader participation means total back-to-college spending is forecast to hit a record $88.8 billion, up from $86.6 billion. 'This increase can largely be attributed to higher income households, while lower income households are pulling back across categories because of economic uncertainty. Regardless of income, families want to ensure their students are set up for success. They are cutting back in other areas, using buy now, pay later or buying used or refurbished items to have everything they need for the school year,' stated Prosper executive vice president of strategy Phil Rist . Online leads again as the most popular shopping channel (48 per cent), while discount stores have grown in appeal (36 per cent, up 5 percentage points), followed by department stores (35 per cent) and college bookstores (27 per cent). The NRF's annual survey, based on responses from 7,581 consumers polled between July 1 and July 7, has a margin of error of ±1.1 percentage points and has tracked back-to-school shopping behaviour since 2003. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (HU)
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Travel + Leisure
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Travel + Leisure
Target Circle Week Has Endless Deals on Fashion for Summer Travel—Up to 76% Off
Vacation season is the ideal time to take stock of the essentials you need for long travel days, strolling around new cities, and relaxing by a pool. Odds are, that list includes supportive shoes, comfortable clothes, lightweight dresses, and sandals. Target makes snagging all of those necessary items easy and stress-free with its vast selection of clothing and shoes from top brands, including Vera Bradley, Reebok, Dr. Scholl's, and Hanes. The best part? So many pieces are on sale during Target Circle Week—up to 76 percent off. The week-long sale ends on July 12, which means there are only three more days to save big on warm-weather essentials. Below, shop the 20 best Target Circle Week deals on summer fashion while prices start at $10. The best deals on summer fashion include these Vera Bradley flip flops for beach days, French terry Hanes pants that come in six colors and are a comfortable option for long flights, and this Cupshe spaghetti strap maxi dress that has a tiered, flowy skirt and can be easily dressed up or down. Keep scrolling to shop more must-have deals on clothes and shoes. Cupshe Coastal Charm Mini Dress, $44 (originally $48) Hanes Essentials Cotton T-Shirt Dress, $11 (originally $17) Cupshe Waffle Knit Short Sleeve Button-Up Top, $31 (originally $35) Hanes Originals SuperSoft Comfywear Boxy T-Shirt, $15 (originally $19) Hanes Originals French Terry Wide-Leg Cropped Pants, $13 (originally $23) Cupshe Striped Spaghetti Strap Maxi Dress, $48 (originally $60) Cupshe Charming Chambray Ruffle Dress, $40 (originally $48) Inspire Chic Summer Gingham Peplum Top, $24 (originally $32) Cupshe Striped V-Neck Buttoned Top, $26 (originally $32) Lands' End Cotton Tank Top, $15 (originally $30) August Sky Smocked Ruffle Strap Sundress, $32 (originally $48) Cupshe Gingham Print Smocked Shorts, $30 (originally $33) Allegra K Summer Smocked Maxi Skirt, $36 (originally $48) Spruce Fashion Essential Summer Moisture-Wicking T-Shirt, $18 (originally $45) Whether you're packing for a long-awaited trip or stocking your closet for a summer of local fun, a few staples are essential. Hot summer days require breathable dresses both for casual and dressy events, and Target Circle Week has this cotton Hanes T-shirt dress and Cupshe mini dress that are fit for both occasions. The sale is also overflowing with lightweight summer tops like this waffle knit piece from Cupshe and this gingham peplum top. Every wardrobe should have at least one maxi dress that is flowy, breathable, and easy to dress up with the right accessories. This striped option from Cupshe can be worn with sneakers for a day of running errands or going out to lunch, but you can also style it with heels for more formal occasions. It has adjustable straps for a comfortable fit and the fabric is lightweight, providing an airy feel. Flexible pants are a good travel companion for long flights and busy travel days. This cropped style with an elastic waistband from Hanes offers all the comfort while also providing a stylish and polished look. One shopper said the 'thin terry material' makes them ideal for summer, adding that they can 'be dressed up with sandals and jewelry.' Snag them in one of six colors while they're on sale. Journee Collection Casha Mesh Dress Flats, $60 (originally $86) Reebok Premier Trinity Shoes, $65 (originally $130) Journee Collection Emelie Espadrille Flat Sandals, $50 (originally $70) Mizuno Wave Horizon 6 Running Shoe, $85 (originally $170) Cushionaire Weston Woven Mary Jane Flat, $55 (originally $90) Cushionaire Chai Strappy Sandals, $30 (originally $50) Cushionaire Cruise Flip Flops, $25 (originally $40) Vera Bradley Outlet Webbing Strap Flip Flops, $10 (originally $39) Journee Dasha Casual Sneakers, $50 (originally $72) Dearfoams Sophie Slip-On Sneaker, $45 (originally $60) Journee Pazey Platform Casual Sneakers. $50 (originally $72) Mizuno Wave Horizon 6 Running Shoe, $85 (originally $170) Dr. Scholl's Sheena Strappy Sandal, $30 (originally $95) A summer shoe collection requires a mix of breathable sandals for hot days as well as supportive sneakers for outdoor activities and miles of walking. Target's current sale features both options from top brands including Dr Scholl's, Vera Bradley, and Reebok. Snag classic black flip flops for the pool, platform sneakers with a cushioned footbed, and stylish mesh flats ahead of summer travel. Sneakers are a must-have item for any vacation that requires long periods of time on your feet, and this pair from Reebok provides comfort without sacrificing style. The classic sneaker has a suede, leather, and mesh exterior, and the neutral color scheme makes it a versatile pick that can go with multiple outfits. You never want to be the person who has to turn in early on vacation because your feet are hurting. Ensure that doesn't happen with these elevated sandals from Dr. Scholl's that have a cushioned footbed, flexible straps, and supportive wedge design. The style features a faux snake print, and they're on sale in black and beige. Keep scrolling to shop for more summer fashion essentials while they're on sale during Target Circle Week.
NBC News
09-07-2025
- Business
- NBC News
Retailers log $7.9 billion in online sales in first 24 hours of Prime Day
U.S. online sales jumped 9.9% year over year to $7.9 billion on Tuesday, the kickoff of Amazon 's Prime Day megasale, according to Adobe Analytics. At that level, it marks the 'single biggest e-commerce day so far this year,' Adobe said. It also eclipsed total online spending during Thanksgiving last year, when sales on the holiday reached $6.1 billion. Amazon's Prime Day bargain blitz began on Tuesday and lasts through Friday. The event, first launched in 2015 as a way to hook new Prime members, has pushed other retailers to launch counterprogramming. Walmart 's six-day deals event also started Tuesday, while Target Circle Week kicked off on Sunday and Best Buy launched a Black Friday in July promotion that began Monday. Home and outdoor goods showed signs of strong demand during the first day of Amazon's discount event, said Kashif Zafar, CEO of Xnurta, an advertising platform that serves more than 20,000 online businesses. Other historically well-performing categories such as beauty and household essentials saw softer demand early on, but could see demand pick up as Prime Day continues, he added. 'Early Prime Day numbers might look soft compared to last year's surge, but it's too early to call the event a miss,' Zafar said in an email. 'With four days instead of two, we're seeing a different rhythm, consumers are spreading out their purchases.' Adobe expects online sales to reach $23.8 billion across all retailers during the 96-hour event, a level that's 'equivalent to two Black Fridays.' U.S. online shoppers spent $14.2 billion during the 48-hour Prime Day event last year, according to Adobe. This year's Prime Day is landing at an uncertain time for retailers and consumers as they grapple with the fallout of President Donald Trump 's unpredictable tariff policies. U.S. consumer confidence worsened in June after improving in May as Americans remained concerned about the tariffs' effect on the economy and prices, according to the Conference Board. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said last month the company hasn't seen prices 'appreciably go up' on its site as a result of tariffs. Some third-party sellers previously told CNBC they were considering raising or had already raised the price of some of their products manufactured in China as the cost of tariffs became burdensome.
CNBC
09-07-2025
- Business
- CNBC
Retailers log $7.9 billion in online sales in first 24 hours of Prime Day
U.S. online sales jumped 9.9% year over year to $7.9 billion on Tuesday, the kickoff of Amazon's Prime Day megasale, according to Adobe Analytics. At that level, it marks the "single biggest e-commerce day so far this year," Adobe said. It also eclipsed total online spending during Thanksgiving last year, when sales on the holiday reached $6.1 billion. Amazon's Prime Day bargain blitz began on Tuesday and lasts through Friday. The event, first launched in 2015 as a way to hook new Prime members, has pushed other retailers to launch counterprogramming. Walmart's six-day deals event also started Tuesday, while Target Circle Week kicked off on Sunday and Best Buy launched a Black Friday in July promotion that began on Monday. Home and outdoor goods showed signs of strong demand during the first day of Amazon's discount event, said Kashif Zafar, CEO of Xnurta, an advertising platform that serves more than 20,000 online businesses. Other historically well-performing categories like beauty and household essentials saw softer demand early on, but could see demand pick up as Prime Day continues, he added. "Early Prime Day numbers might look soft compared to last year's surge, but it's too early to call the event a miss," Zafar said in an email. "With four days instead of two, we're seeing a different rhythm, consumers are spreading out their purchases." Adobe expects online sales to reach $23.8 billion across all retailers during the 96-hour event, a level that's "equivalent to two Black Fridays." U.S. online shoppers spent $14.2 billion during the 48-hour Prime Day event last year, according to Adobe. This year's Prime Day is landing at an uncertain time for retailers and consumers as they grapple with the fallout of President Donald Trump's unpredictable tariff policies. U.S. consumer confidence worsened in June after improving in May as Americans remained concerned about the tariffs' impact on the economy and prices, according to the Conference Board. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said last month the company hasn't seen prices "appreciably go up" on its site as a result of tariffs. Some third-party sellers previously told CNBC they were considering raising or had already raised the price of some of their products manufactured in China as the cost of tariffs became burdensome.
