NEW YORK – Black Friday and cyber Monday are in the rear-view mirror and the holiday shopping season continues to hum along. Initial numbers are positive, but how’s it going out there in the trenches? Pathway asked a few FOPs (friends of Prosper) for a progress report.
“This year’s BFCM proved something I’ve been saying for years…consumers don’t need huge discounts to buy – they just need the right offer at the right moment. Even with promotions staying flat year over year, consumers still purchased. What stood out most was statistics showing that units per order dropped while average selling price increased, showing shoppers were waiting for bigger-ticket items rather than impulse add-ons. The narrative of economic hesitation didn’t match actual behavior, and brands can take this as a sign that smart strategy beats deep discounting.” — Andrew Maffettone, founder and CEO, BlueTuskr
“BFCM 2025 felt strange in the Amazon space. Shoppers showed up, but they acted smarter and slower. Brands that relied on brute force discounts had a rough time. Creative quality mattered more than price. Listings with strong hero images, clear value props, and tight ad funnel work pulled ahead. CPCs rose. CTR gaps between winners and losers widened. The brands that tested early and fixed weak assets before November saw stable lifts. The brands that guessed watched spend climb with flat results. This weekend made one thing clear; Optimization beats discounts now.” — John Aspinall, founder and CEO, Aspi
“When will brands realize that not offering free shipping is the quickest way to lose a sale, especially during BFCM? 60% off is all well and good, but if you ask me to pay $10 for shipping, then I’m not paying at all. Call it petty behavioral economics, but this is still where Amazon Prime will continue to beat out all other marketplaces, especially during peak season.” — Shannon Curley, director of Marketing and Growth at Tactical Logistic Solutions and head of her own consulting business
“What always surprises me is how sharply Thanksgiving Day sales dip. People really do unplug and spend the day with family only for spending to surge again on Friday and Monday. Given all the concerns about the economy, seeing a record e-commerce BFCM makes me wonder where all that discretionary money actually came from. I’m also very curious to see how heavy the BNPL usage was this year; I suspect it played a bigger role than most people realize.” — Charles Chakkalo, Brooklyn, N.Y.-based entrepreneur (www.CharlesTheSeller.com)
“There was plenty of good news to go around for this Cyber Five—Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Not only did fears of lower buying trends turn out to be unfounded (given the $14 billion on Cyber Monday, $44 billion total for the five day stretch) but also there was more good news. We heard far fewer complaints of AI listing takedowns or last-minute competitor attacks killing off big revenue for the brands we work with. Clearly, brand defense strategies are working, and abuse reporting gets problems fixed quicker than last year. This all bodes well for 2026.” — Chris McCabe, founder, ecommerceChris