NRF: Easter Apparel Spending Expected to Increase

The long, cold wait for spring is expected to add significantly to consumers’ purchases of apparel as the Easter holiday approaches. Among those celebrating the holiday, overall purchases per person are expected to rise 2.3 percent to $140.62, 2.3 percent above the $137.46 budgeted for last year’s holiday. Overall holiday-related spending is seen growing 2.9 percent to $16.37 billion, according to purchase intention data collected from 6,106 respondents polled by Prosper Insights & Analytics for the National Retail Federation. Apparel is expected to be responsible for a larger share of the anticipated spend. Holiday celebrants are expected to spend $24.74 on clothes for themselves and their loved ones, up 8.9 percent from the 2014 figure of $22.71, and total holiday-related expenditures on apparel are seen growing to $2.88 billion, up 9.6 percent from $2.63 billion in 2014. Easter takes place April 5 this year, 15 days earlier than in 2014. “Easter will be the perfect segue into spring for both consumers and retailers who have longed for warmer weather for quite some time,” said Matthew Shay, president and chief executive officer of NRF. “As one of the busiest times of year for several retail sectors and as shelves begin filling with both traditional spring

Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

Read More...