This fourth newsletter highlights some big gains in the first month of the 2010 holiday season. Consumers made a strong showing, driving November same-store sales up 5.8% and online sales up 13% over last year. Such a strong start to the season is encouraging, but we are only partway home. As we head into December, retailers face the challenge of maintaining the momentum and keeping consumers coming back. In this newsletter we also take an in-depth look at the Thanksgiving weekend. We discuss some game changers that had a big impact on holiday weekend shopping, and the tactics that retailers turned to for a successful Black Friday.