Category: Business

Shirley Spillane’s holiday shopping list is decidedly no-frills this year: cutting boards, coffee, and socks.

The Los Angeles-based school counselor used to spend big for Christmas. But this year, with stubbornly high prices, rent, and utilities, as well as a 6-month-old baby, she’s paring back. Spillane is buying a car duster for her husband and jam for her aunt — all within her $200 budget, made up almost entirely of gifts she can pick up grocery shopping at Sam’s Club.

“This season looks different than usual,” the 26-year-old said. “With the economy the way it is and a new baby, we’re keeping it small.”

Across the country, Americans are putting a practical spin on holiday shopping. Another year of stubborn inflation and new tariffs that have lifted the prices of appliances, shoes, and toys has led many families to think twice about what they’re buying, and why. Early holiday spending data shows people are scooping up more necessities like appliances, clothing, and furniture than they did last year.

On Cyber Monday alone, online sales of refrigerators and freezers rose 1,700% from average levels in October, according to data from Adobe Analytics. Other run-of-the-mill products in high demand included vacuum cleaners (up 1,300%), small kitchen appliances (up 1,250%), cookware (up 950%), power tools (up 900%), and jackets (up 850%).

“These are items that are, in many instances, absolutely essential,” said Vivek Pandya, director of Adobe Digital Insights. “Consumers are cognizant of the broad environment and they’re being very strategic about purchases, whether it’s for themselves or gift-giving.”

While inflation has risen modestly this year, five years of price increases have led to deepening dissatisfaction with how much things cost. That sentiment helped cement political wins last month for Democrats in Virginia, New York, and New Jersey and spurred President Trump to kick off an “affordability tour” touting what his administration has done for the economy. “Our prices are coming down tremendously from the highest prices in the history of our country,” he said at a Pennsylvania casino last week.

But in interviews with nearly a dozen shoppers around the country, the Washington Post found that almost all of them said they had become more strategic about their holiday shopping this year. They were looking for discounts and comparing prices. Many were buying fewer gifts, and for fewer people.

Some parents, like Meghan Orr in Austin, said they’d begun wrapping everyday items like diapers and baby shampoo to fill the space under their Christmas trees. “At this point we’re just being silly, but it’s fun to unwrap things.”

When it came to their own wish lists, several said they wanted to do away with gifting conventions and ask family for help paying the bills — though very few thought the approach would work.

Alecia Bencze, director of career services for a law school in Akron, Ohio, has had a good year financially. Still, she’s spending about half of the $1,000 she usually does on Christmas gifts, and is sticking to items she knows will come in handy: golf balls for her father, a barbecue set for her brother, and shoes for her sister-in-law. Her own wish list includes a skillet and measuring cups.

“I’m not feeling the pinch as much as other people are, but this is the least I’ve ever spent on Christmas,” Bencze, 35, said. “I just went through and got one thing from each person’s list.”

Early holiday shopping data shows a discernible shift in spending patterns, with lower- and middle-income Americans pulling back, and the wealthy trading down from luxury stores to lower-priced retailers. Although Black Friday sales were unexpectedly strong, those gains were largely concentrated at discounters, dollar stores, off-price department stores, and online marketplaces such as Amazon and eBay, according to Consumer Edge, which tracks transactions from more than 100 million credit and debit cards. The firm’s data showed that purchases between Black Friday and Cyber Monday tumbled 10% at high-end department stores, while luxury clothing brands saw a 5% decline from the same period last year, as even the most well-off looked for deals.

At Twiggy, a small business that sells tote bags and other gifts in Oahu, Hawaii, more customers are veering toward everyday items like kitchen towels, reusable snack bags, and sticky notes this holiday season, owner Jessica Leong-Thomas said.

“It started during the government shutdown, when people became hesitant to buy frivolously,” she said. “Since then I’ve seen a real shift. People come in and say, ‘I want to buy something that will be useful.’” (Leong-Thomas understands the impulse: “Personally, what I want for Christmas is for someone to buy me toilet paper and dish soap,” she said.)

When they do shop, data shows Americans are increasingly turning to off-price retailers such as TJ Maxx, and warehouse discounters such as Costco and Sam’s Club, for discounts on basic items, according to Mary Brett Whitfield, senior vice president for shopper insights at the data analytics firm Kantar. Overall, she said, Americans appear to be spending more than they did last year, but on fewer items.

“You look at what’s happening with prices, tariffs, and other inflationary pressures, and it definitely seems like people have a more practical mindset,” she said. “I see it with my own adult children: One of them asked for socks.”

In all, holiday sales are expected to grow about 4% this year, slightly less than last year’s 4.3% increase and a notable slowdown from 13% growth in 2021, according to the National Retail Federation.

When JoEllen Barnes’s refrigerator broke down in mid-November, she and her family made do until they could scoop up a discounted replacement on Black Friday. With food and utility costs up this year, the mother of two says it’s been tougher to cover everyday costs. Instead of splurging on a Nintendo Switch for her sons like she did last year, she’s been scouring neighborhood Facebook groups for lightly used toys.

“I usually ask my husband for jewelry but that doesn’t feel appropriate now, given the extra cost of things,” said Barnes, a 43-year-old educator in Charlotte. Instead of their usual wish lists, they’re sticking to the utilitarian this year. She got him a discounted iPad on Black Friday; he’s already bought her gift too, though she doesn’t know what it is.

“Part of me is like, ‘Please don’t let it be an appliance or pots,’” Barnes said. “Although, well, it would be nice to get new pots.”

The Trump administration is seeking to boost U.S. companies as they compete for dominance in the burgeoning air-taxi sector — with an eye toward showcasing the technology at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

Through executive orders — as well as a new effort to gather data that could help fast-track adoption of these aircraft — the administration has embraced it as part of its transportation agenda.

In September, Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy announced the launch of a pilot program aimed at exploring ways to integrate these technologies — including air taxis, more formally known as electric vertical takeoff-and-landing aircraft — as well as hybrid-electric and battery-powered planes into the nation’s aviation system.

For decades, the dream of flying above traffic-clogged roadways has been just that — a dream. But companies such as Archer Aviation, Joby Aviation, and BETA Technologies are pitching their battery-powered aircraft, which take off and land vertically, as a way to revolutionize the way people travel. Meanwhile, Wisk, a Boeing subsidiary, and Reliable Robotics are working on versions that can operate without a pilot — an innovation that could improve the economics of air service and cargo delivery to smaller and more isolated communities.

BETA Technologies raised more than $1 billion when it went public on the New York Stock Exchange last month, and investors have poured millions into the sector. However, questions remain about whether it will live up to the hype. A plan for air taxis to transport spectators during the 2024 Paris Olympics fizzled, while other high-profile ventures have faltered. Lilium, a German eVTOL company, received an infusion of cash after filing for bankruptcy last year, but was still unable to continue operations, filing for bankruptcy again earlier this year.

Experts say one key to financial success is making the leap from a novelty for the rich to a transportation option for the masses. Skeptics say the technology is still too unproven to merit government support.

“We’re talking about spending taxpayer money on something that’s not here yet,” said Rep. Scott Perry (R., Pa.) at a House hearing last week. “The private sector is free to chase this enterprise. As I see it, it can’t beat the physics of a 1960 helicopter.”

Pilot program hopes

The public may soon see how these new types of aircraft could change how people and goods move.

Dec. 19 is the deadline for submissions to the administration’s Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing Integration Pilot Program (eIPP). Modeled after a similar initiative for drone operations launched during President Donald Trump’s first term, it seeks to explore how quieter, cleaner, battery-powered aircraft that take off and land like helicopters can transform aviation. At least five applicants will be chosen.

“This program represents the launch of a new era of American aviation,” said Greg Bowles, chief policy officer at Joby Aviation, which has been working for more than a decade to bring its aircraft to market. He predicted it will “introduce Joby aircraft into the skies over major U.S. cities” starting next year.

Sapan Shah, senior director of portfolio management for Advanced Mobility at Honeywell Aerospace, said he expects significant interest from state and local governments across the country that are eager to explore how these new types of planes can benefit their residents. The data collected from the program will offer participants an early look at how these aircraft operate in real-world conditions, and what changes will be needed to incorporate them into existing transportation systems, he said.

Major players in the industry, including BETA Technologies and Joby Aviation, have already said they plan to apply for the pilot program. In September, Archer Aviation said it hoped to participate in the program alongside United Airlines, an early investor in the company. The selections are expected to be made in March, with operations anticipated within 90 days. The pilot programs are expected to run for three years; Joby and Archer also aim to have a fleet of air taxis flying Olympic spectators around Los Angeles in 2028.

The state of Michigan also plans to apply, said Bryan Budds, aeronautics director for the Michigan Department of Transportation. As part of a partnership with BETA Technologies, it has installed a network of chargers for electric aircraft at four airports. While much of the focus around air taxis is on how they can move people in dense urban areas, Budds said one potential use in Michigan is moving pharmaceuticals and medical goods to the state’s rural areas.

There’s also been movement in Congress, which included several provisions aimed at bolstering air taxis in last year’s Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill. The industry received another major boost that year when the FAA released standards for air-taxi pilot training and certification.

To supporters, a main case for investing in these technologies is to ensure the U.S. continues its dominance more broadly of the global aviation industry. China, for example, has already certified an air taxi capable of carrying passengers.

At the House hearing last week, lawmakers emphasized the importance of ensuring that lead.

“Either we choose to embrace and unleash American innovation, or we carry on with the status quo and watch as other nations surpass us in new and emerging technology,” said Rep. Troy E. Nehls (R., Texas).

Even in the early stages, experts say, such programs can yield valuable information.

With a demonstration program, “we’re getting technology out into the actual markets,” said Laurie Garrow, a civil engineering professor at Georgia Institute of Technology who has followed developments in advanced air mobility.

These real-world projects will help communities and the FAA understand how these aircraft operate in the existing air traffic system and where the pain points might be, and the data gathered will help policymakers as they attempt to scale up to larger operations, she added.

Savanthi Syth, an aviation analyst with Raymond James, said giving manufacturers and communities an early opportunity to “try out” the technology in controlled environments means that by the time the aircraft are fully certified, they won’t be starting at square one — they’ll already have information allowing them to move into the next phase of operations.

Said Syth: “This is a better way than ‘Oh, you have a certified aircraft but now you have to get community buy-in.’”