If the folks around you are looking a bit tired (and turkey leftovers are no longer to blame), chances are they’re some of the 195 million shoppers who visited stores and Web sites this weekend (Thursday through Sunday). For those shopping offline, they braved what were likely packed parking lots and long lines, since 23 million more consumers shopped this weekend than the same weekend last year.  According to NRF’s Black Friday weekend shopping survey, conducted by BIGresearch from November 26 to 28, 2009, these shoppers spent an estimated $41.2 billion, or an average of $343.51 per person over the weekend (down from $372.57 per person last year). A few details on this weekend’s offline and online shopping activity:

• Two-thirds of holiday shoppers headed to stores or online retail sites on “Black Friday” itself, with slightly fewer women than men among those shoppers. However, over half of consumers were out shopping on Saturday as well, with just over a quarter planning to shop on Sunday.
• Clothing and accessories, as well as books/CDs/DVDs/videos/video games, held sway as top gifts purchased over the weekend. Consumer electronics and computer-related accessories, followed by toys, came in at 3^rd and 4^th place. Almost half of men bought consumer electronics, whereas just over one quarter of women did the same. Men also bought more gift cards than did women, and reported more book/CD/DVD/video/video game purchases than did women.
• Overall, department stores beat out discount stores as shopping destinations over the weekend.  Department stores appear to have been even more successful with consumers earning over $50,000 per year, and with shoppers between the ages of 18 and 34. By contrast, among holiday shoppers aged 55 and older, just over one third shopped in department stores, versus not quite half in discount stores.
• High income earners and younger shoppers also tended to shop online more than average, clocking in at over a third for each group. Just over one quarter (28.5%) of all holiday shoppers purchased items online over the weekend.
• Male holiday shoppers spent quite a bit more than did women, spending an average of $396.75 vs. $292.62 for women. This difference could well have something to do with what men purchased (e.g. greater likelihood to buy higher ticket items such as consumer electronics), but I found that striking all the same. Somewhat predictably, higher income earners spent more (average of $426.54) than those earning $50,000 per year or less (average of $254.52).

Online, average holiday spending over the weekend came in at an average of $103.80 per online holiday shopper. Men spent not quite double what women forked out (same reason, presumably), ditto for consumers earning more vs. less than $50,000 per year. Younger online shoppers spent an average of $133.92 per person, vs. not quite half that for online shoppers aged 55 and older.