Retailers are preparing for a busy holiday shopping season as ninety-one percent of consumers plan on purchasing gifts this year, according to a recent AAA Consumer Pulse Holiday Shopping survey. 

Nearly one in three shoppers (28%) will wait until the final two weeks of November to purchase their gifts. Twenty-four percent of people began their holiday shopping before November, taking advantage of early retail discounts, while the remaining consumers (29%) will wait until December to purchase gifts. Click here to view the full survey and year-over-year comparisons from 2008 to 2014.   

"Retailers are trying to grab customer's attention earlier every year," said Belinda Dabrowski, managing director, AAA Partnership Development, The Auto Club Group. "That can only help consumers, who according to our research, may spend slightly more this year, but are still looking for a good deal. Economic factors like lower gas prices leave customers with extra money in their pockets, which helps raise consumer confidence and spending.”

Consumer confidence is at its highest level since July of 2007, according to a survey from Thomson-Reuters/University of Michigan. This holiday shopping season, over 1 in 10 shoppers (14%) will spend more on gifts than they did last year. An increase in disposable income, stable labor market, and gas prices at a four year low should indicate a good holiday season for retailers. 

Top Five Holiday Gifts:

• Apparel and accessories (71%)
• Gift cards (65%)
• Books (39%)
• Toys (38%)
• Jewelry (36%)

Nearly half of holiday shoppers (46%) plan to participate in Black Friday this year, which is about the same as last year. However, 1 in 3 people (33%) plan to do the majority of their shopping online. Cyber Monday is expected to be bigger than ever this year. The online shopping day has seen a 14 percentage point increase in the number of consumers since 2010. This year, six in ten people (63%) are expected to take advantage of Cyber Monday sales, the highest number on record. 

Save this holiday season by using the benefits of one of the largest member discount programs in the world. AAA Discounts provide instant discounts at retail locations in North America including Payless ShoeSource®, Sears and Gap Outlet, as well as with popular online retailers through AAA.com like Dell, FTD and more.  AAA members in Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee can also earn AAA Dollars that can pay for their membership when shopping at over 70 online retailers through AAA.com like Walmart.com, Best Buy and iTunes. AAA members earn 5% of their gift card purchases in AAA Dollars. The top selling gift cards at AAA branches are Amazon, Starbucks, and Whole Foods. Visit AAA.com/Save for a complete list of retailers and AAA Discount & Dollars offers.