If you usually do your Christmas shopping as late as possible, usually on or around Christmas Eve, then this year you are making the right choice and could potentially pick up the best bargains.
This Christmas, shoppers have been advised not to be enticed into early sales, especially during ‘Black Friday’, as retailers in both commercial properties and online will continue to drop prices in the run up to Christmas, in order to win customers.
Many commercial properties have already started their sales, with Debenhams offering 20 per cent discounts in most of their departments, Tesco offering three for two on gifts, and Marks & Spencer offering 50 per cent on children’s and women’s clothing. But the deals are only set to get better and better as we get nearer to Christmas. So why are shops offering sales longer than usual?
As the high street has been suffering recently, due to people visiting retail commercial properties less and less and the economy still in its current state, many retails have decided to take a leaf out of America’s book. America typically offers concessions after the Thanksgiving holiday, which takes place on the fourth Thursday in November, which will be the 24th of this year.
Amazon is amongst the retailers who will be participating in the longer sales, by offering 50 per cent discounts on over 500 products, for five consecutive days, starting today. Speaking of the promotion, Christopher North, Managing Director at Amazon, expressed: “The high discounts on offer mean that many items may go quickly, so customers are advised to check back regularly in order to snap up a bargain before the end of Black Friday.”
The need for offers both online and in commercial properties, to try and entice people to spend more money, in a hope of kick starting the economy has never been more evident. In October alone, the number of people visiting retail commercial properties fell by 4.7 per cent, whilst the number of vacant commercial properties remains a high 11 per cent. The only way to help reduce these numbers is to get people spending.
Speaking of the situation, Sarah Cordey, a British Retail Consortium (BRC) spokesperson, stated: “Because of the decreased footfall, retailers have already stepped up their promotional activity and competition is especially fierce. There is no doubt that the sales will continue right through to the end of the year. Consumers are increasingly savvy about promotions and price checking and getting the best deal.”
“Equally, retailers value the business more than ever and so cannot afford to pull a fast one. It is about trying to maintain business in the longer term,” Ms Cordey added.
So, it seems that consumers should be more reserved about spending all their hard earned money in the early sales, as according to experts, the sales are only set to get better.
