Rachel Warren

I don't currently, but I used to have a few pairs.

Okay.

Yeah, I think there were a lot of analysts that were watching what these numbers would tell us about the health of the consumer.

And, you know, the headline numbers look good, but there's more when you dig beneath the surface.

So to start off, U.S.

consumers spent a record $11.8 billion online on Black Friday.

That was a 9.1% increase from 2024.

But what's interesting is that nearly 4 in 10 consumers bought fewer items this year.

This suggests, obviously, that they're trimming their shopping lists, prioritizing certain purchases.

Now, globally, for Black Friday, which is not just a U.S.

phenomenon anymore, online sales hit a new peak of $79 billion.

What's interesting is that store visits were really a mixed bag.

There was some data that showed there was a slight decline in foot traffic.

Consumers are taking a bit more of an intentional approach when they're shopping.

Really important to note as well, total spending increased year over year, but at the same time, average selling prices for products were up by around 7%, and the number of units per transaction dropped.

So what this indicates is that a lot of the sales growth that we saw on Black Friday was driven by inflation rather than increased purchase volume.

And another thing as well that I think speaks to the health of the consumer, usage of buy now, pay later services was up about 9% year over year on Black Friday.

So we're seeing a time where consumers are looking for more flexible payment options to manage their budgets as wallets are constrained.

They seem to be more price sensitive, less impulsive.

We saw a lot of use of digital tools and AI to compare prices and find the best value for shoppers.