Post-Christmas shopping outlook a mixed bag
The day after Christmas marks the beginning of retailers’ week-long last hurrah before this year’s shopping season ends. Aside from scouring the post-Christmas sales, shoppers are headed to stores for three types of transactions: gift returns, gift exchanges and gift card redemptions.
Apparel and electronics are the categories expected to do well, according to analysts.
“From what I’ve seen, retailers will be offering some great shopping deals post-Christmas, which, combined with Christmas falling on a Friday, means a great weekend of shopping for consumers,” said Brian Palme, retail specialist in Deloitte’s Orange County practice.
Here’s what shoppers are likely to find:
Yes, there will be good mark-downs in many categories, but shoppers hoping for blockbuster deals and a wide and/or deep selection of merchandise as those from last year should scale back their expectations, analysts said.
“I expect to see broad clearance sales and deep discounts on select merchandise, just not at the same level as last year,” Palme said. “Overall, most retailers seem to be pretty pleased that holiday sales results are generally in line with their expectations.”
The industry buzz about limited inventory from pre-Christmas shopping is continuing into post-Christmas period.
“I believe the selection will be slimmer pickings than in past years,” said Scott Krugman, spokesman for the National Retail Federation (NRF). “The amount of inventory is going to be less because retailers did a much better job of planning and anticipating the demand. They went in with their eyes wide open.”
Shoppers are also going to find that return policies vary widely from store to store, though some retailers have shortened the grace period for returns. Barnes and Noble, for example, allows most unused and unopened items to be returned within a 14-day period and with a receipt. Target, on the other hand, allows returns on most unused items for 90 days with a receipt. Lost the receipt? If you purchased the item with a credit card, Target allows you unlimited returns for up to $70 over a 12-month period, according to Consumerreports.org. And if you’ve exceeded your $70 limit, you can make an even exchange, which may include a change in size or style in the same department.
It all boils down to reducing losses from return fraud, Krugman said. “Return fraud drives up the price of merchandise and the one percent of shoppers who are dishonest make it honest returns difficult for the remaining 99 percent of shoppers,” he said.
