Doesn't it seem as though they put the Christmas stuff out earlier and earlier each year? I suppose on one hand, it does give people who are into all the hoopla of the holidays more time to get all their loot so that they are not spending quite as much money all at once when the season arrives. Still, who wants to think about Christmas that early (if at all) with some many other things on the horizon?
Christmas items has been appearing earlier and earlier each year. Its as though companies have forgotten about the other holidays before Christmas. I went shopping recently and a number of store already had Christmas items on display.
You mean just leave it out all year long? I could go for that if the stuff was marked down. If I'm going to buy Christmas stuff in April, I want a discount. Last year the Christmas stuff at Walmart stayed in the clearance section until March, so it was pretty similar to the lazy neighbors that leave their lights up all year.
On the same token, putting the trees out early could really help someone who was financially struggling. Since stuff is out early, they can buy little by little over a longer period of time. It might be difficult for some people to buy their children gifts and a tree all in a month or two! It may be a "marketing ploy" but it has some functional aspects. It really doesn't have to be all bad.
You're right, I hadn't thought about how Christmas rolling out early gives people with financial troubles more time to spread out their purchases over a few months. I might start my shopping early too. I always feel a little pressure around this time of year because of the costs associated with the holidays.
People who are having financial struggles but still want to enjoy an extravagant Christmas will still be able to if they start saving early for Christmas, as my family always did, rather than actually buying early. Furthermore, as somebody noted, stores tend to have Christmas things in the clearance section well into February and sometimes into March. People who are struggling financially can make use of post-season sales. Stores don't extend the season to cater to people who are financially struggling. They want to cater to impulse buyers. The longer the season is, the more chances there are to spend needless money on something.
I don't like the store putting up Christmas items so early either. I love Christmas and get so excited for it to come, especially now that my son is getting to the fun age of opening presents. But it does seem too early, like you want to get excited but can't yet. I want to enjoy Halloween and Thanksgiving first. I know the stores would be way to busy preparing for the Black Friday sales, but I think it would be perfect to put the Christmas displays up for Black Friday.
There is a point to be made, as someone said, Christmas brings a lot of stress and dread to some people and they do not want it pushed upon them early. It is bad enougo to go thrpugh it at the time, that it comes around, but months early, the pressure gets to them. On the other hand why are they rushing, the bottom line, cash. The green dollar bill.
Christmas comes earlier every year I swear. But I love that because December is my birthday month and I always love spending time with my family.
Baloney. Christmas is only a burden if you make it such. You are under NO obligation to participate in the holiday and if seeing Christmas decorations makes you all weepy because of your financial problems, then you've got far deeper psychological issues. It's like saying you hate seeing Lincoln's Birthday sales because a man in a top hat once beat you up and took your lunch money.
Ok, now I'm curious. Do you mean stores shouldn't sell Christmas stuff until one week before? or There shouldn't be promotions until one week before? Can you image the cazys that would running around town if they waited until then? Makes me laugh to think of it. Desperate people frantically trying to buy gifts.
I personally haven't seen any stores pushing Christmas product yet but I do understand the psychology behind it. Essentially, you are tricking a person into believing that by buying early, they will be able to get some form of a discount, or beat the crowds. This helps stores move product that they otherwise would have left over from the previous year.
It should at least be in November. Thanksgiving here in the USA is not a big shopping holiday, unless you count supermarket shopping for turkey and all the trimmings, so I can understand stores glossing over that one, but Halloween has plenty of retail opportunities for all stores. I don't even think about Christmas until November. Putting holiday trees next to masks of ghouls and goblins is just silly and rather morose.
I used to hate seeing Christmas come the day after Thanksgiving. I always felt like we shouldn't even start discussing Christmas until December 1st. Goodness gracious. Let the ghosts howl and turkeys gobble for goodness sake.
Actually, as a parent, I do feel obligated to participate in the holiday. Otherwise my kid would wonder why I am punishing her when she hasn't done anything wrong. If I was childless, I would just go to church on Christmas Eve or do some volunteer work. I'm not "weepy" , I just empathize with people who don't want Christmas thrown in their face everywhere they go ,because millions of Americans are having a rough time this year. I have a friend who lost his job because he had to have hip surgery and now that he's out of the hospital ,he can't find another job. He has a little boy, so I'm sure he's worried about Christmas too.
An "extravagant" Christmas must be nice for people who can afford that sort of thing. I feel bad for my neighbor who is making a teacher's salary and has 6 adopted kids. She's going to have a rough time just putting together a basic Christmas celebration for 6 kids.
And that is a personal problem that you need to get over. I've been there. I'm a parent myself. I've had Christmas times where I couldn't afford to give my child anything and where I could barely afford to keep the lights on and the house heated. I didn't stress about it. My daughter and I were happy that we had each other and that we could spend the holiday together. Why? Because my daughter and I both know that material things do us no good if we don't have each other. It's a lesson I urge you to learn.
This happened last year but a little later in the year. They skipped over thanksgiving and went from Halloween right to Christmas. At least thats how it was here in Miami. This year I saw Valentine Day items in August!!! They are just throwing things everywhere!
