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All of that has led to some understandable confusion among consumers about how to find the best deals, according to Sara Skirboll, a shopping and trends expert at RetailMeNot.ca.

A survey from the online coupon site found that just 26 per cent of Canadians said they plan to shop on Black Friday and the following “Cyber” Monday, and 42 per cent said they were confused about how to find the best deals.

“The good news is that the number is down from 48 per cent in 2016, so it appears that Canadians are getting the hang of these big shopping deal days, becoming savvier spenders and sourcing coupons when they can,” said Skirboll. Consumers can maximize savings by doing online research and setting a budget, she added.

Research from PwC found that fewer Americans intend to shop on Black Friday this year than in previous years, with 35 per cent saying they plan to shop on Nov. 25, down from 51 per cent in 2016 and 59 per cent in 2015.

The prevalence of pre-Christmas sales means that many consumers are doing their holiday shopping earlier than in the past. Shipping company Purolator has increased capacity in advance of its two anticipated busiest shipping days, expecting to transport about one million packages each on Nov. 27 and Dec. 4.

“Interestingly enough, as this time of year gets busier and busier, the majority of online shopping takes place on weekends as people take their time checking sales online, creating an influx of shipments going out every Monday morning,” said John Ferguson, president and CEO of Purolator.

Financial Post

hshaw@nationalpost.com

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