When Labor Day coincides with the back-to-school season, Americans' desire to spend rises sharply

A new survey by market intelligence firm Numerato shows that most U.S. consumers plan to celebrate the upcoming Labor Day holiday (Monday, September 4).

According to Numerato’s “2023 Labor Day Intentions Preview,” 60% of U.S. consumers surveyed intend to celebrate Labor Day this year, a 20% drop from 75% in 2022.

The survey found that inflation will have an impact on consumer spending, with 42% of consumers saying that rising prices will affect their Labor Day spending. Of those surveyed, 86% expect to take steps to save money during Labor Day, including buying discounted items (54%), preparing more affordable meals (35%), using more coupons (32%), specializing in store brands (23%), and visiting dollar stores or discount stores (20%).

This year, the same number of Americans plan to grill during Labor Day as last year (61%). However, many Americans are shifting from attending or hosting a gathering/party (41% in 2023, 53% in 2022) to plans for cooking/baking (26% vs. 20%), entertaining (21% vs. 12%), traveling (19% vs. 13%), and watching fireworks (16% vs. 10%).

Nine in ten (89%) consumers surveyed plan to buy food, including hamburgers (83%), hot dogs (67%), chicken (60%) and steak (41%). The most popular alcoholic beverages are beer (74%), hard seltzer (34%) and wine (33%).

Nearly all (98%) respondents to the survey intend to shop during the holiday season, with the most popular non-food categories including party supplies (16%), decorations (12%), games/activities (10%) and clothing (8%).

Back-to-school season overlaps with Labor Day, and e-commerce traffic explodes

This year, Labor Day shopping and back-to-school shopping take place simultaneously. According to the National Retail Federation, back-to-school spending is expected to reach a record $41.5 billion in 2023, far higher than the $36.9 billion in the same period last year and the peak of $37.1 billion in 2021.

As of early July, 55% of consumers shopping for “back to school” said they had already started shopping. This percentage is the same as last year, but up from 44% in 2019, which is in line with the trend of consumers shopping for major consumer events in advance. Although many consumers have already started shopping in advance, 85% of consumers still say they have at least half of their shopping tasks unfinished.

Editor ✎ Nicole/

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