Holiday Shopping Season Gets Early Start

BOSTON (TheStreet) -- The end-of-year holiday trilogy -- Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas -- could make or break retailers this year. Stores will be working harder to attract consumers who curtailed spending last year.

October's retail sales might serve as a bellwether for the rest of the holiday shopping season. More consumers are planning to start their holiday shopping this month, well ahead of November's traditional "Black Friday," several surveys show.

American Express(AXP Quote) recently looked at consumer attitudes on seasonal gift giving and travel. Its Spending & Saving Tracker surveyed 2,009 adults and focuses on two sub-groups, the "affluent" and "young professionals."

The survey found that 80% of consumers still intend to buy gifts for the holidays this year. In what American Express calls "an encouraging sign," one in five consumers intends to do so in October, with women outnumbering men by 28% versus 16%.

A similar survey, by PriceGrabber.com, Experian's comparison shopping Web site, reports that 22% of consumers will start their holiday shopping in October. If shoppers start buying earlier this year, big box retailers like Wal-Mart(WMT Quote), Target(TGT Quote) and Macy's(M Quote) may get an early read on whether sales will rebound from last season's recession-inspired frugality.

"The study confirms that consumers are definitely planning to open up their wallets for the holiday season," says Pamela Codispoti, American Express' general manager for cardmember services. "Despite the economic environment, consumers are not going to miss out on the enjoyment of the holiday season. Shopping is starting early, which I think bodes very well for the retail industry."