Richa Naidu & Arriana McLymore

RALEIGH, North Carolina (Reuters] – U.S. customers spent slightly less online on Black Friday, this year. Many shoppers returned to physical shops despite concerns about coronavirus and tight supply. Retailers also tried to encourage early holiday shopping.

According to Adobe Analytics (NASDAQ:) Analytics data, which is a wing Adobe’s business, data analytics specializes in tracking transactions at over 80 U.S.-based retailers, Black Friday was the lowest ever recorded online shopping day.

The supply-chain jam has caused retailers to lure shoppers into shopping online, allowing them to sell holiday merchandise as quickly as possible. Adobe reported that Black Friday saw a total of $8.9 trillion in online purchases, which was less than the $9.3 billion spent by 2020 shoppers. Adobe stated that Thanksgiving Day online spending was flat at $5.1 trillion.

Many physical retailers shut down their stores this Thanksgiving, just as in 2020. This was due to the lack of workers and the outbreak of coronavirus. Sensormatic Solutions data shows that stores were reopened one day after Thanksgiving. However, shopper visits fell 28.3% compared with 2019, which was the previous year before the pandemic.

In order to ensure Christmas gifts arrive on time, shoppers may have visited stores to overcome supply-chain problems and delays. Online shopping is becoming more popular as they are able to pick up their items in-store. This keeps shipping costs low.

Macy’s, Walmart (NYSE:), Target (NYSE:) and Kohl’s (NYSE:), for example, gave shoppers the flexibility to shop online, in stores or through hybrid methods, walked away as winners on Black Friday, said Louis Navellier, chairman of investor Navellier & Associates.

A slightly higher percentage of online shoppers used smartphones to make purchases. Shopify, a Canadian online e-commerce platform (NYSE:), said that the percentage of customers who use smartphones for shopping increased to 72% this year from 67% in 2017.

Cyber Monday is the Monday following Thanksgiving, and retailers’ efforts to promote holiday gift buying earlier may also help lessen its importance.