Have you started your holiday shopping?
It used to be unusual to get such a head start, but now it’s become more common, and retailers are responding.
Samantha Schopper, of West View, already has all her Christmas shopping done.
“Throughout the year I can keep an eye on their favorite princesses or just things I know they’ve had their eye on. And when it goes on sale I can snag it,” she said.
She’s part of a growing group of people shopping early. According to a new Bankrate study, almost half of holiday shoppers — 48% — plan to begin shopping before Halloween.
“Now to be fair, that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re done. but it means they’ve at least gotten started,” said Ted Rossman, a Bankrate Analyst.
Rossman says, this year, holiday shoppers are in a frugal mood. Bankrate found that 33% of people plan to spend less this year, 43% expect to spend the same and only 24% plan to spend more.
“Inflation is still weighing on people,” Rossman said.
Rossman says unlike years past, there’s no longer any need to wait until Black Friday or Cyber Monday to start shopping.
“Once we see Amazon Prime Day and Circle Week and all that, a lot of these retailers are going to have this rolling season of deals because they’re going to have to bend on price,” Rossman said.
He says a good way to get the best deal is to stack discounts, finding multiple ways to save.
“Take advantage of the store promo, but don’t stop there. Use your rewards credit card. As long as you pay in full and avoid interest, that’s free money. You could go through an online shopping portal, something like Rakuten or Shop Through Chase, they give you bonus points for doing that,” he said.
Another growing trend is buy now pay later, but Rossman urges caution.
“It could be good or it could be bad. Sometimes, this is affordable financing, like four interest-free payments over six weeks. Other times, it’s a crutch to overspend,” he said.
For Schopper, her process is much simpler — only buying when the deal is right, no matter the time of year. She estimates the savings have been well worth the effort.
“It’s got to be in the thousands, it’s got to be a high number. With the way that I budget and watch for sales,” she said.
With credit card rates near record hights, Bankrate analysts suggest people start setting money aside early. You could save a small portion from every paycheck between now and the end of the year to create a holiday shopping fund that keeps you out of credit card debt.
Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW