Has the Christmas shopping season been shortened?

sunnyside

Just wondering about this because there is almost no Christmas stock around compared with other years. Argos don't have a Christmas catalogue yet and Tesco and Dunnes have only the smallest amount of Christmas confectionery. Other years they would be stocking up for Christmas as soon as back to school is over. Have retailers shortened the Christmas shopping season because of the recession?

ProjectColossus

Is this a consumer issue*? Sounds like a good thing to be honest. Christmas stuff for sale, and decorations anywhere should be ILLEGAL until around December 10th or something if you ask me.

HUMBUG.




*originally posted in consumer issues

Elessar

On the contrary, I am seeing places like Penneys that have their Christmas sections up already!

Don't think this is really suited to this forum though.

1966

You havn't been to Lidl lately?

Shelves full of Advent Calanders / Chocolate Santas etc !!

steph1

Yes indeed. In Lidl in Ballina today and they have chocolate santa's and christmas cakes and puddings on the shelves.
Was in penneys in Ballina last week and they have christmas decorations out plus wrapping paper.
Its really too early for this stuff. Halloween hasn't been and gone yet and Christmas stuff is out.

krudler

sunnyside wrote: »

Just wondering about this because there is almost no Christmas stock around compared with other years. Argos don't have a Christmas catalogue yet and Tesco and Dunnes have only the smallest amount of Christmas confectionery. Other years they would be stocking up for Christmas as soon as back to school is over. Have retailers shortened the Christmas shopping season because of the recession?

Its September...

I dont even think about Christmas until December 1st, this whole Christmas shopping taking up 4 months of the year thing between the run up and Jan sales is insane, people need to calm down, load of fuss over one day

WesternNight

This is the first year I've ever noticed Christmas stock in September. So I'm utterly confused as to how anyone thinks it's late for Christmas stuff to be out. I usually don't see it until about the middle of October.

Was shocked when I saw Christmas puddings and mince pies in M&S the other day. Flabbergasted!

dudara

TBH, while this topic is not quite a CI, I don't know where else to put it. So here it stays for now, unless someone has another suggestion

dudara

Sabre0001

A traditional Christmas song would indicate that the Christmas season lasts 12 days. 3-4 months is not a shortened season. Winter, an actual season, is three months long. While I like Christmas, I have gotten burned out in the past because it starts far too early!

calex71

Bah I just bought my first brack of the season and now theres all this talk of xmas ?????

/Goes to munch halloween brack in peace

Soundman

Bought a pile of DVDs in XtraVision a few weeks back and the bag he put them in was advertising for Xmas already.

starbelgrade

ProjectColossus wrote: »

Is this a consumer issue? Christmas stuff for sale, .

I think you've answered your own question there.

GerardKeating

dudara wrote: »

TBH, while this topic is not quite a CI, I don't know where else to put it. So here it stays for now, unless someone has another suggestion

dudara

"After Hours" ???

dudara

Agreed - I'm leaning towards After Hours as well. Moved accordingly

dudara

Ginny

Penneys in dundrum have had a Christmas section since the 11th of Sept at least, Tescos in Clarehall have a whole aisle of Christmas sweets and biscuits, tbh i thought it had started slightly earlier this year.

Hells Belle

There are Christmas trees in Woodies already, right next to the Halloween decorations, ffs its still September, should be illegal until at least the end of November.

SEPT 23 1989

Its going to be a very lean Christmas in many households this year

Rabies

dudara wrote: »

Agreed - I'm leaning towards After Hours as well. Moved accordingly

dudara

yeah....

Woohoo....

messrs

tesco in dolphins barn full of selection boxes, Aldi full of all the tins of biscuits you see out at christmas, they have christmas cakes and puddings ect for sale

Notorious

I used to work in a big retail store as a part-time job when I started college. Christmas songs started up mid-October and decorations would be up about a week before halloween. The place was the biggest Christmas buzz-kill...

RangeR

calex71 wrote: »

Bah I just bought my first brack of the season and now theres all this talk of xmas ?????

/Goes to munch halloween brack in peace

Soundman wrote: »

Bought a pile of DVDs in XtraVision a few weeks back and the bag he put them in was advertising for Xmas already.

What is this xmas thing you are talking about?

Regardless, how many days, weeks, months do you need to do some Christmas shopping?

Love2love

I love it!!!!

I went around the decorations in Penney's and pick up all my Xmas Cards & Wrapping paper. Got a lot of funny looks I have to say!

Then I went into Argos and started my Santa shop for my son. Got lots!

My cousin normally has everything in by Sept 1st! :eek:

genericguy

Love2love wrote: »

My cousin normally has everything in by Sept 1st! :eek:

that's cnutish behaviour right there.

my aunt has presents for her children since april or may i think, two bart simpson televisions. she's a bigger cnut.

ejmaztec

Christmas starts when The Pogues and Kirsty McColl are heard spreading Christmas cheer up the high street.

Christmas finishes when The Pogues and Kirsty McColl stop spreading Christmas cheer up the high street.

TheZohanS

ejmaztec wrote: »

Christmas starts when The Pogues and Kirsty McColl are heard spreading Christmas cheer up the high street.

Christmas finishes when The Pogues and Kirsty McColl stop spreading Christmas cheer up the high street.

You're right.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mK9tkqs0Obg

Captain Havoc

TheZohan wrote: »

You're right.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mK9tkqs0Obg

I hate you!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Novella

It's only ok for it to be Christmas once Hallowe'en is over! That's how I thought it usually went!

genericguy

ejmaztec wrote: »

Christmas starts when The Pogues and Kirsty McColl are heard spreading Christmas cheer up the high street.

Christmas finishes when The Pogues and Kirsty McColl stop spreading Christmas cheer up the high street.

stop i once had a part time job where that was played all fcuking year round.

i wish someone would cut kirsty mccoll's head off with a speedboat propeller.

starflake

Can't wait for Christmas! I love having the shopping done early so I can enjoy the run up to Christmas stress free. Watching Christmassy movies and going for a walk somewhere when it's cold and the Christmas lights are up.. without having to cart around bags of shopping

Lollipops23

the dept store i work in is opening the Xmas dept next sat- while i'm horrified every year by the early opening, they wouldn't bother their holes doing it (it costs to staff it etc) unless there was a demand for it. One staff member told me a women was giving out shíte to him about it with her arms full of baubles!!

I did ask a girl in Penneys about their dept (it was open in the swords branch like 3 weeks ago) and she said it's cos they ignore Halloween and skip straight to Xmas.

I'm not all that bothered by it tbh, I don't start seriously thinking about Xmas til mid-late November.

foxy06

Was in TGI Fridays in Dundrum on Sunday....Let it Snow came on the speakers!! WTF??!!

This was after seeing all the Christmas stuff in House of Fraser M&S and Penneys. 1st of Dec for me this year. Everytime I try to be organised and start early I spend a fortune:(

oneweb

I absolutely LOVE Christmas, but I think anyone who buys Christmas decorations before Halloween should be taken aside and have them superglued to their body parts.

During my stint in Argos I had a customer who wanted a certain Christmas decoration from the new catalogue which was released the week before - IN JULY.
Me: F*ck off, idiot.

...well, that's what I wanted to say. Unfortunately I was not permitted to do so.

Me: Eh, I'm sorry we don't have those in stock yet.
Her: Why not? It's in the catalogue.
Me: Yes, I know but they won't be in stock until September.
Her: Well that's ridiculous, why are they in the catalogue if they're not available?
Me: Because the catalogue lasts for 6 months and it's only July.

OK, so sometimes you need to get pressies early, fair enough. But decorations?

The bit that REALLY gets my goat up is when the banks etc start putting up their decorations so early. FFS, they don't sell the damn things, why the hell do they need to put them up???

It's very very simple: If you don't want to see Christmas starting in summer, DON'T BUY THE STUFF BEFORE HALLOWEEN!!! If you know someone who has done, make them feel like the scum of the earth, hopefully that'll teach them! It's because of those twats that there's nothing left on the shelves the first week of December :rolleyes:.

Same goes for winter clothes. Ever tried to find a scarf in January? It's all but impossible, because they're out of season :eek:!

/rant :pac:

SLUSK

Christmas, bah humbug! Who needs presents anyway? Not me.

kingtut

Christmas is in December, therefore nothing related to Christmas should be sold or seen until December the 1st at the very earliest.

tallaght01

Does anyone know if they're broadcasting Christmas FM this year again?

Feckin loved it last year. Was working in a poxy emergency department for xmas last year, where we didn't have a radio. So, I hooked all the computers up to the christmas FM website, and turned the sound up.

Lollipops23

kingtut wrote: »

Christmas is in December, therefore nothing related to Christmas should be sold or seen until December the 1st at the very earliest.

That would put people under faaar more pressure to get Xmas sorted- I know I need to stagger buying gifts and stuff to spread out the cost. And my mam starts buying the tins or biccies and other Xmas foods well in advance (the stuff that won't go off).

I'm all for keeping the Xmas consumerism as close to Xmas as possible, but having 3 weeks to shop is too little (espescially if you have stockings to fill!)

chin_grin

Why doesn't anyone realise that Fairytale of New York is a sh!te song? I really will go postal if I hear it more than twice leading up to Christmas.

But I'm getting old, cynical and poorer. So that means a load of 3 for 2's in Boots. Ah now THAT's when the lead up starts.

Nevyn

**** off with your xmas ****e we havent' had hollow'een yet.

VinnyTGM

This can only be good, seeing Christmas stuff around for week's before the actual holiday takes away the Christmas feeling, everyone become's used to it.

Jesus Wept

Merry Christmas to all of you.

krudler

My girlfriend suggested this year that instead of going through the hassle of trying to get each other presents, we have a budget of 10 quid and get something stupid and funny, then just spend a night over the Christmas period getting hammered and having sex, I think I've found my future wife

Jesus Wept

krudler wrote: »

My girlfriend suggested this year that instead of going through the hassle of trying to get each other presents, we have a budget of 10 quid and get something stupid and funny, then just spend a night over the Christmas period getting hammered and having sex, I think I've found my future wife

Nice one, best not to mention it to your girlfriend.

Fighting Irish

ProjectColossus wrote: »

Is this a consumer issue*? Sounds like a good thing to be honest. Christmas stuff for sale, and decorations anywhere should be ILLEGAL until around December 10th or something if you ask me.

HUMBUG.

:rolleyes:

I don't really shop for xmas but wanting to make it illegal is worse than wanting to xmas shop in Oct

glossy

krudler wrote: »

My girlfriend suggested this year that instead of going through the hassle of trying to get each other presents, we have a budget of 10 quid and get something stupid and funny, then just spend a night over the Christmas period getting hammered and having sex, I think I've found my future wife

*coughs* nine months later .........

Mayoegian

I feel uncool looking forward and planning for Christmas this early..........nah must be ye:cool:

asdasd

I see Christmas as a very human response against the dark days of winter. Those of you who hate it should imagine a world where the new year is April, and all you have to look forward to in October is 3 months of darkening days, no lights, no christmas buzz, no anticipation of time off or year's end. Just working - like everybody else - on Dec. 25th, Dec. 26th etc.

theres a reason most people hate January. And November doesnt rate too highly either, but late November is rescued by the Christmas buzz.

We would have three months of Early Jan/ Decemember without our beloved mid-winter festival. ignoring the religious part we should light up our cities - if not the Christmas tree malarky the town lights at least - On november 1st. and stop on Feb. 1st.

Take that winter, we would be saying.

Abi

"Greetings to you and your disillusioned family this season, and wishing you and yours a prosperous New year"


Best wishes,

Abigail.

/sticky-tapes card on top of 2 for 1 box of Celebrations

Run_to_da_hills

Say santa sweets on sale today. FFS.

P.C.

Lollipops23 wrote: »

That would put people under faaar more pressure to get Xmas sorted- I know I need to stagger buying gifts and stuff to spread out the cost. And my mam starts buying the tins or biccies and other Xmas foods well in advance (the stuff that won't go off).

I'm all for keeping the Xmas consumerism as close to Xmas as possible, but having 3 weeks to shop is too little (espescially if you have stockings to fill!)

How much do you have to buy, and how much do you just buy because it is in the shops?

I normally get Christmas shopping sorted in one afternoon. Leave work at lunchtime, get bus to town, buy pressies, home by 7pm.

And as for the food - I buy food as I need it. Just because the shops are closed for one day does not mean that I have to stock up. I won't starve, and I am sure that if I need some more to drink, there is a bottle of wine or whiskey in the back off the cupboard.

For me the Christmas season only starts on the 10th December. Noone can convince me otherwise.
Sorted.

kingtut

krudler wrote: »

My girlfriend suggested this year that instead of going through the hassle of trying to get each other presents, we have a budget of 10 quid and get something stupid and funny, then just spend a night over the Christmas period getting hammered and having sex, I think I've found my future wife

Only one night of sex a year.....take the engagement ring back right now!

Good that you found that out before it it too late.