Black Friday and Cyber Monday are two of the days retailers circle with eager anticipation. This year, while there was still wildly active shopping, overall spending slipped slightly on both days. Klarna’s partner retailers didn’t notice any downturn though, as our 21+ million US shoppers showed up in full force throughout the holiday season’s busiest shopping days.
Klarna’s Black Friday sales were bigger than ever.
This year Klarna saw purchases on Black Friday increase by 141% year-over-year, as millions of shoppers chose flexible payment solutions for their holiday shopping.
And our savvy shoppers didn’t just show up for one day. During the entire week of Black Friday (Nov. 21-29) Klarna’s shoppers engaged with their favorite retailers, driving a 126% YoY increase in sales. Each purchase represents a massive boost for our partner retailers, who get paid in full immediately, while shoppers can checkout in ways convenient to their budgets.
Peeking at the peak Black Friday sales hours.
As soon as the clock struck midnight on November 26, Klarna users hit the checkout. During the first hour of Black Friday (1 am ET), Klarna saw sales grow by 499%, compared to a normal day’s sales. But the biggest spike of the day came twelve hours later during the 1 pm ET hour, when the majority of the US was awake and active–Klarna’s sales rose by 886% during that time, compared to an average shopping day.
Klarna’s Cyber Monday sales were also huge.
On Cyber Monday—online shopping’s biggest day—Klarna saw a 129% increase in sales over an average day; overall Cyber Monday sales through Klarna grew 127% YOY. During the 11 pm ET hour, with work over and time to focus on shopping, we saw a gigantic 894% increase in sales as compared to an average shopping day.
Look who’s buying too.
A common misconception of BNPL services is that they’re only utilized by younger shoppers–and Klarna’s users continue to prove that false. While Millennials (51%) made up the largest share of Klarna purchases during the week of Black Friday and Cyber Monday (Nov. 22-29), Gen Xers—who made up 29% of purchases—saw the highest increase in sales of any generation during that period, compared to an average day.
Meanwhile, Gen Zers made up 13% of total purchases, while Baby Boomers came in at 6%.
As holiday shoppers looked to get everything on their lists and score good deals, when it came time for them to checkout, they looked for Klarna more than ever. The holiday shopping days have been a huge boon for brands already offering Klarna, and a wake-up call to those who are still considering—our users love to shop and are ready and eager; when they see Klarna is available, they’re even more likely to turn their browsing into a purchase.