Holidays 2024 Installment 2: Nikhil Raj Predicts the Spending Future
Our next spending prediction for Holiday Season 2024 comes from Nikhil Raj, VP of Retail Media of Moloco. The company is a machine-learning-powered adtech company. Raj was on the co-founding leadership team at WalmartLabs via the acquisition of Kosmix and started Walmart’s retail media business.
What is your #1 prediction for holiday shopping season?
“While inflation has improved over the past few months, consumer sentiment remains cautious, evidenced by recent retailer earnings. As a result, I anticipate mid-single-digit growth this holiday season compared to last year, but traditional and e-commerce retailers could see varied success. I expect e-commerce spending to rise in the high single to low double digits, while traditional retail sales will likely remain flat. This may motivate more traditional retailers to create their own ad businesses to drive revenue and better compete for their share of consumer attention this holiday season.”
What will people be buying?
“During the holiday season, categories like toys, electronics, apparel and accessories typically drive growth. However, high-ticket items such as furniture, appliances and large electronics may struggle this season due to shifting consumer sentiment around spending. Black Friday and other deals on these items can make them appear attractive to shoppers this year, especially if consumers receive personalized offers.”
How will marketers and brands up their game this year?
“Consumers will take cues from influencers, friends and even AI for gift ideas, and marketers will need to keep up. Marketers and brands must invest in the growing influence of social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram when it comes to influencing consumer spending behavior. Additionally, AI has become an important shopping engine, powering recommendations through distribution channels or AI search engines like Perplexity.”
How will AI and other technologies impact the shopping process?
“AI will play a significant role in the shopping process this holiday season. Perplexity, Amazon Alexa and Google are readily available to assist customers. Additionally, Apple Intelligence will play a meaningful role despite being behind in the AI race given the penetration of iPhones in today’s market. For any company, it will be about who can use AI to best deliver on the value each individual consumer is looking for this holiday season.”
What are you asking “Santa” for this year or expecting to find by the candles at your holiday celebration?
“I’d love a nice family experience as my gift. Perhaps a week on a sunny beach with my wife and our dog, or a hike deep into Yosemite with my daughter who loves the outdoors, or baking all sorts of yummy things with my son.”
The latest answer is indicative of a timeless consumer trend — experiences matter as much as “things” to today’s consumers!
For more trends, join us at Street Fight LIVE 2024!
