Canada's Black Friday total retail sales fell 6%! Multiple categories suffered setbacks

It is learned that according to NPD, total retail sales in Canada (excluding clothing and footwear) fell by 6% during the Black Friday week ending November 27, 2021, with sales in multiple categories falling. The main reason is that consumers brought forward holiday shopping and extended the duration of holiday shopping.

Data shows that one-third of Canadians said they started or completed their holiday shopping in October. Retail sales in October increased by 6% compared with 2020 and 11% compared with 2019. But this may mean that Canadian retail will be challenged for the rest of the fourth quarter.

Small appliances, technology, toys and housewares were among the sectors that reported lower sales during Black Friday week. Television sales, which historically perform well during Black Friday, were down 37% year-over-year this year. Toy sales were also down significantly year-over-year, a drop that could be due to many of the best-selling toy items being harder to find this year.

But the picture is more positive for sectors such as apparel, footwear and beauty. Demand for these categories will rise as consumers return to work, study, socialize and entertain themselves. An example of this is the beauty industry, where sales for the week ending November 27, 2021, were 43% higher than in 2020 and 26% higher than in 2019.

Editor ✎ Xiao Zhu/

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