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NRF: 41 million yet to shop for holidays

December 16, 2008

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According to the National Retail Federation's latest study, practical gifts such as clothing, books, CDs, DVDs, videos or video games, toys and electronics, reign this holiday season.

Washington--The average person had completed 47.1 percent of their holiday shopping by the second week of December, which is about 10 percent less than the 52.6 percent average completed by this time last year, according to the latest study by the National Retail Federation (NRF).

The NRF's 2008 Holiday Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by Big Research, also found that more than 41 million people have not yet started their holiday shopping, with the biggest procrastinators being men (20.7 percent haven't started) and 35-44 year olds (20.9 percent).

Only 8 percent of shoppers say they have completely finished their shopping, according to the study.

"Procrastinators are in good company this year because a shorter window between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year means that the holidays have snuck up on many of us," NRF President and Chief Executive Officer Tracy Mullin said in a media release. "Retailers will try to manage the rush of last-minute shoppers with expanded hours, extra employees to stock shelves and a lot of sales and promotions."

While shoppers will be visiting a variety of retailers over the next 10 days, some categories will be busier than others. According to the survey, discount stores (43 percent) and department stores (42.5 percent) will be the top spots for shopping, with about one-third (31.8 percent) planning to visit specialty stores. In addition, a large majority of last-minute shoppers (40.2 percent) are planning to skip the crowds and shop online, up substantially from 34.9 percent a year ago.

To stick to a budget this holiday season, consumers continue to set aside credit cards. According to the survey, two-thirds of shoppers (66.2 percent) have primarily used cash, debit cards or checks to pay for holiday purchases, up from 64.5 percent last year.

"Most Americans have put themselves on a budget this holiday season and are sticking to it," Big Research Executive Vice President of Strategic Initiatives Phil Rist said in a media release. "Retailers are finding that consumers who pay with cash or a debit card may be less likely to make impulse purchases, but recognize that these shoppers are also trying to put themselves in a better financial situation to spend in the future."

Practical gifts continue to reign this holiday season, with clothing being the most popular gift purchased (44.8 percent). In addition, shoppers have been buying books, CDs, DVDs, videos or video games (40.8 percent), toys (33.1 percent) and electronics (24.5 percent).

As expected, fewer people have purchased gift cards this year, compared with a year ago. Though gift cards are the most requested gift for the holidays, 24.3 percent of shoppers have purchased gift cards this holiday season, compared with 30.2 percent who had done so by this time last year.

The NRF 2008 Holiday Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey was designed to gauge consumer behavior and shopping trends related to the winter holidays. The survey polled 8,860 consumers from Dec. 2-9, 2008, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1 percent.

The NRF is the largest retail trade association in the world, with members including department, discount, drug, grocery, independent and specialty stores, catalog merchants, chain restaurants and e-tailers, as well as the industry's key trading partners of retail goods and services.

For more information about the NRF, visit its Web site, NRF.com.
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Culture and Lifestyle | Holidays | Shopping

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