Selfless Giving Shifts to Selfish Shopping Post-Holidays: More Than Half of Consumers Plan to Shop for Themselves During After-Christmas Sales

Even after the holiday craziness is over, the shopping continues! According to two recent surveys by digital offers destination RetailMeNot, the majority of consumers surveyed (81%) plan to shop end-of-year sales, and of these shoppers taking advantage of post-holiday savings, more than half (63%) plan to shop for themselves! Millennials are especially interested in after-Christmas sales, as 92% of respondents 18 to 34 years old said they plan to shop during this time. 

While lower prices (66%) and deals (59%) are top motivators for end-of-year shopping, nearly a quarter (23%) of survey respondents indicate they shop post-holiday sales because they are ready to indulge on themselves after completing their shopping for others. And selfish shoppers are not sparing any expense – these consumers are willing to spend an average of $160 on themselves and $179 on gifts for others. Men plan to spend substantially more on themselves during end-of-year sales than women ($197 vs. $131).

What is your return policy?

Returning holiday gifts is on the decline! According to the survey, only 32% of shoppers indicated they typically return gifts that they receive from family and friends for the holidays. In 2013, close to half (45%) of shoppers admitted to typically returning gifts.*

When it comes to returns, respondents prefer to get money back from the store (40%). Less favored were getting gift cards/certificates (16%), exchanges for other items at the store (13%) and store credit (11%).

Gift cards reign supreme

Although once considered an impersonal gift choice, almost half (46%) of survey respondents say their favorite holiday present to receive is a gift card. Proving their popularity, more than 9 in 10 (91%) November survey respondents have received a gift card at least once as a holiday present. These recipients don't waste time cashing them in either! More than 4 in 5 (84%) would not let their holiday gift cards go unused past January.

However, more than half of those who received a gift card don't actually use it on themselves. Nearly 2 in 5 (38%) surveyed in November have used a gift card they received to purchase a present for someone else and more than 1 in 4 (27%) have gifted a card they received to another person. Women are more likely to use gift cards to buy someone else a present, with 44% of women admitting to doing this versus 32% of men. Other respondents have either sold the gift card for the cash equivalent (11%) or used a gift card exchange site (9%).

To make the most of after-Christmas sales, consumers can visit RetailMeNot.com or download the RetailMeNot Coupons app for iPhone, Android and iPad, to access thousands of offers that can be used online or in-store to save money. Additionally, The Real Deal by RetailMeNot posts a roundup of Can't Miss Coupons every week here: http://www.retailmenot.com/blog/best-coupons-of-the-week.html

References to survey results are to the December survey, unless otherwise noted.