Head of Consumer and Diversified Industries in CBA’s Business Banking division, Jerry Macey, said the uptick in spending over the four-day period showed just how keen some Australians were to take advantage of the sales in the lead up to the Christmas period.
“It’s no surprise to see Aussies looking to refresh their wardrobes given that many parts of the country have recently emerged from an extended period of lockdown, and retailers are providing attractive discounts to encourage discretionary spending ” he said.
“In addition to refreshing their own wardrobes, it would seem many Australians were also keen to take advantage of the sales and get an early start on their Christmas shopping.
“Businesses are acutely aware of how popular the Black Friday to Cyber Monday period has become with customers in recent years, and are successfully using the opportunity to attract new customers, win Christmas sales from competitors, and emerge from this recent period of lockdown with some strong momentum that can put them in good stead for the New Year.”
While spending at Aussie retailers over the four-day Black Friday to Cyber Monday period was up in comparison to 2019, it was relatively flat in comparison to 2020.
Mr Macey said this was largely unsurprising given that supply chain challenges associated with the global health pandemic over the past two years had ultimately encouraged Australians to start their Christmas shopping early to ensure they received their purchases on time.
Note to Editors:
Data based on CBA merchants data (terminals and eCommerce) from 26 - 29 November 2021 (inclusive) compared with 27 - 30 November 2020 (inclusive) and 29 November - 2 December 2019 (inclusive).
Data from 26 - 29 November 2021, represents all Card Present (EFTPOS) data up to 10pm on 29 November 2021, eComm data up to 8pm, Mastercard/MPGS data up to 5:30pm.
