The entire holiday shopping season is expected to have Black Friday type deals according to David Overfelt with the Missouri Retailers Association.
Nearly 20% of holiday shopping is expected to be done over Thanksgiving weekend, but Overfelt said the best sales day of the year for retailers is not Black Friday.
“It could be the Saturday before Christmas or sometimes even Christmas Eve can be the biggest sales day of the year,” said Overfelt.
He said the deep discounts should help with the state’s holiday retail sales.
Missouri’s holiday sales are expected to increase 3.7% this year from the same time period last year. Overfelt said Missouri’s projected holiday sales increase is usually reflective of the national figures.
Overfelt touted the diverse retail choices the state has.
“Our impact is, of course, more than just one state. We have a lot of cross shopping between Illinois, Kansas, Arkansas and Kentucky.”
Online sales are projected to be more than $600 billion during the holiday season.
“It’s also a good time for people who are looking for employment or who might be underemployed to try to get on with a good store and see where it can lead to,” said Overfelt. “Retail is paying much more and has more benefits than in the past because there’s more competition.”
An estimated 750,000 seasonal employees are expected to be hired this year.
