Younger consumers head to malls, older generations visit retailer sites this holiday season

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Key stat: Gen Zers and millennials are more likely than older generations to do their holiday shopping in-person at the mall, whereas Gen Xers and baby boomers are more likely to shop online via retailer websites, per The Harris Poll.

Beyond the chart:

• But the most popular shopping method across all generations is shopping online through Amazon.
• Amazon will score a whopping 41.9% of total US retail holiday ecommerce sales this year, reaching $106.18 billion, per our forecast.
• Over half (51%) of US consumers start their online shopping search on Amazon, outpacing search engines (39%), Walmart.com (34%), and YouTube (23%), per an August 2023 Jungle Scout survey.

Use this chart:

• Consider last-minute holiday ad placements.
• Identify generational differences in holiday shopping patterns.

More like this:

• A look back on some 2023 retail predictions
• Large retailers look to capture an outsize share of procrastinators' holiday spending
• How much do return policies impact shopper decisions?
• 4 holiday partnerships and why they matter beyond the season

Methodology: Data is from the November 2023 The Harris Poll report titled "2023 Holiday Shopping Trends." 2,079 US adults ages 18+ were surveyed online during October 13-15, 2023.