A screenshot of Hayneedle.com, an online retailer of home goods based in Omaha, Nebraska.
According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), 212 million shoppers visited U.S. stores and websites this past weekend, up from 195 million last year. That trend is predicted to continue today as another NRF survey shows that 106.9 million Americans plan to shop this “Cyber Monday,” up significantly from the estimated 96.5 million who shopped on this day last year.
Local online retailer of home goods, Hayneedle, is feeling the impact of increased traffic. Although the company’s marketing director, Donna Faust (left, photo by Danny Schreiber), couldn’t provide numbers, she said the eight-year-old company is very optimistic about today. “Hayneedle.com had record sales for Thanksgiving, Black Friday and this weekend,” Faust said in an email interview.
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She said that their message to consumers this past weekend – now taken off the homepage and replace with the “Cyber Monday” messaging – was “Don’t Get Malled.”
“It is clear from sales trends that customers are choosing to shop online this year,” Faust said. To handle this increased volume of costumer interaction, the annual holiday rush, Hayneedle hired over 150 additional team members in its customer care and distribution centers to work during the holiday season.
“We have daily meetings with representation across the functions to ensure everything is ready on the site, we are all aware of inventory status and we can manage any last minute details,” Faust said.
And in the spirit of its more than 220 unique stores, Faust is confident consumers can find what they’re looking for this holiday season at Hayneedle. “[F]rom barstools and daybeds to Christmas trees and wreaths,” Faust said.
