SUMMARY
Thanksgiving is the second-largest holiday in terms of sales uplift for food and beverage retailers, surpassed only by Christmas. Inflation will make the average Thanksgiving meal cost nearly 14% more this year, with various holiday staples showing varying degrees of inflation.
The new edition of IRI’s Thanksgiving Tracker shares the latest year-over-year inflation figures by category and examines the historical sales by category in the runup to the holiday. It also highlights current trends in consumer Thanksgiving shopping and some Thanksgiving dinner deals from major retailers.
Highlights
- The Thanksgiving meal product set — including meats, side dishes, pies, baking products and beverages — experiences billions of dollars in sales uplift from the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving through December.
- Despite inflation, shoppers aren’t yet buying early to spread the cost or seeking deals associated with Thanksgiving.
- Overall, 56% of shoppers report that fewer items they want are on sale now, and 44% say that items on sale are not discounted as much as they used to be.
- Retailer deals include a Walmart promotion setting Thanksgiving basics at 2021 prices and Lidl’s and Aldi’s promotions of a Thanksgiving dinner for up to 10 people for less than $30.
