By Jenna Barbone
Tips on Last Minute Shopping
We are currently in December, the most stressful month for holiday shopping. When fall arrived, you may have started to think about holiday gift ideas. But with plenty of time on the calendar you might have decided to hold off purchasing gifts until Black Friday or Cyber Monday hoping for the best deals. When Black Friday rolled around, you may have been frustrated by the crowds and sold-out items. When December arrived you still had a whole month left to shop, but in the blink of an eye it was allmost Christmas and you still haven’t finished shopping. Now what?
According to the National Retail Federation the two biggest holiday shopping days are Black Friday and Super Saturday (the Saturday before Christmas). It is predicted that this year, the Friday before Christmas (December 23) will be bigger then Super Saturday and Black Friday. Historically up to 40 percent of the season’s sales happen in the 10 days before Christmas. This means if you wait until the last days before Christmas, crowds will be bigger and lines will be longer.
When it comes to getting the best deals, there is still hope. Outlets offer deals everyday. The Deer Park and Riverhead outlets are great places to find deals on almost anything. Stores often have the same items being sold at the mall for less.
If you don’t have time to go out to shop or you don’t want to be bothered waiting on long lines, online shopping is a great alternative; however, express shipping may be pricey. The plus side of online shopping is that it is done in the comfort of your own home. Online promotions are often better than in-store sales which could make-up for the cost of express shipping.
The last option is to give money, checks, or gift cards. This may be viewed as the “lazy gift” but it’s better than purchasing an item that is likely to be returned. Also, sales after the holidays are way better so the recipient can buy what they like for a cheaper price allowing them to buy more.
If you are going to shop this week, expect crowds, limited parking and lots of holiday music. I recommend getting organized, shop with a list, wake up extra early and drink lots of coffee. One more thing you can do is put a smile on and hope for the best, after all it is the holiday season.
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Jenna Barbone is a Smithtown HS graduate who is currently majoring in Journalism at SUNY Old Westbury.