Have you started your holiday shopping yet?
Fourth of July fireworks haven’t even lit the night sky. But it’s not too early to start shopping — or at least saving — for the Christmas holiday, especially if you’re on a tight budget.
Last year, roughly 40 percent of Americans began their holiday shopping before Halloween, according to a National Federation of Retailers survey. And more than 13 percent of consumers started their Christmas shopping before September.
Tips for starting your Christmas shopping early:
Make a list, which includes your holiday spending budget. Update it often. And keep receipts for any purchases you make.
Coupons, coupons, coupons: Certainly, you don’t want to turn Christmas into an episode of Extreme Couponing and give away crates of hot sauce and laundry detergent. Instead, concentrate your couponing at retailers you (or the people you’re shopping for) frequent.
For example, you want to give your niece a copy of one of your favorite children’s books (or the entire collectors’ edition of Harry Potter). Make sure you’ve signed up for weekly offers from book retailers. The large retailers, like Barnes and Noble, often offer 30 percent or 40 percent off coupons. If you’re going to give a lot of books for gifts, it pays to start early and take advantage of the discounts.
Christmas in July sales: Some retailers offer sales in July to get shoppers thinking about the holidays. Last year, Toys ‘R’ Us had in-store sales as well as a Cyber Monday, similar to the deals stores offer the Monday after Thanksgiving. The retailer also used the July event to kick off its Christmas Savers program, which offered shoppers a cash incentive to put money on a savings card to use later.
Consider layaway programs: Kmart likely will start advertising its layaway program soon. Many retailers resurrected or created layaway programs when the economy took a dive in 2008. It’s another way to start paying in advance for items you know you’ll want during the holidays. Be sure to read the layaway policies before signing up.
Homemade gifts: Even if you plan to make most of your holiday gifts, you’ll still likely accumulate some expenses. Sign up for e-mail updates or “like” your favorite crafts’ retailer on Facebook. Many regularly offer 30 to 50 percent off one item coupons.
Summer clearance sales: Local and national retailers will start discounting goods by the end of July to make room for back-to-school and fall items. For example, REI’s summer sale ends July 4. The sporting goods retailer and others tend to have another sale near the end of the season. Start paying attention to what the hiker, biker or camper on your holiday list says he needs this summer and pick it up during the sales.
Look for ways to make your money stretch further: Sign up for the region’s Groupon list, The Herald’s Daily Deal, or Amazon’s local daily sale. You might not want to buy your teenage daughter clothes for her Christmas present from The Gap just yet. But if the retailer offers a pay $20, spend $40 deal, do it.
Be careful of expiration dates for daily deals and return policies for purchases.
Finally, don’t buy anything just because it’s a deal. That won’t necessarily make it a good gift.
Michelle Dunlop: 425-339-3453 or mdunlop@heraldnet.com
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