U.S. e-commerce sales will continue to grow during the shopping season, reaching $206.88 billion

Thanksgiving store closures could push more consumers to shop online and set the stage for the rest of the holiday shopping season.

“With stores closed, consumers who would normally shop after Thanksgiving dinner may turn to online shopping to avoid missing out on sales — making e-commerce an even more important focus than before the pandemic,” the eMarketer report said.

Many retailers have announced their stores will be closed on Thanksgiving Day, including Target, Walmart and Best Buy, similar to last year when stores were closed in part as a safety measure to limit in-person shopping during a winter COVID-19 surge.

Thanksgiving e-commerce sales were $4.13 billion in 2019, before the pandemic . By comparison, this year’s total is expected to reach $6.21 billion, according to eMarketer’s forecast.

"Consumers may have grown accustomed to online shopping last year and may choose e-commerce again this year, while others may simply want to avoid long lines during the busy holiday shopping season," the report said. "But a Thanksgiving weekend that starts with online shopping could set the stage for more e-commerce transactions throughout the rest of the holiday season."

E-commerce sales are expected to account for 18.9% of total holiday sales this year, reaching $206.88 billion, according to a report by eMarketer, up from 17.5% in 2020, when e-commerce sales reached $185.88 billion.

According to eMarketer, online sales are expected to continue to grow during Black Friday, but the increase will be smaller because more stores will be open on that day.

In addition, the report pointed out that "digital push may once again trigger an earlier holiday." Last year's holiday shopping season, because the epidemic greatly suppressed offline shopping, merchants would launch online promotions in advance to maximize holiday sales. In addition, starting promotions in advance will also help reduce logistics congestion during the shopping season. Therefore, this year's shopping season may start early, and sellers should also prepare in advance.

Holiday Shopping Season

American e-commerce

Thanksgiving Day