Christmas Creep

Christmas Creep M. Woodward

The day after Halloween I entered into a local store that sells things like dishwashing liquid, vegetable oil, fingernail polish, colas, paper, pens and scissors.

As I walked through the store, I could not help but notice that the isles, shelves and walls were loaded with Christmas decorations and lights. It was not that the store had a few holiday decorations sitting in the corners waiting to be used, but the entire place was aglow with 100% Christmas finery.

I momentarily went into shock. It’s November first. Where did Thanksgiving go? What about autumn leaves falling gently to the ground? As I shopped, a loud argument between myself and the store began in my mind.

The Store: It’s Christmas.

Me: It’s November first.

The Store: It’s Christmas.

Me: It’s November first.

The Store: It’s Christmas.

Me: It’s November first.

Apparently I am not the only person who feels this way as more and more people are speaking out against the early bombardment of Christmas regalia. The idea that retailers are pushing back the date for the official beginning of the Christmas shopping season from the first Friday after Thanksgiving, also known as Black Friday, has been defined as Christmas Creep. (From Wikipedia: Christmas creep is defined as a merchandising phenomenon in which merchants and retailers exploit the commercialized status of Christmas by moving up the start of the holiday shopping season. The term was first used in the mid-1980s. The Christmas season begins with Advent between November 27 and December 3 and lasts through Christmastide, which officially starts December 25 and lasts 12 days.)

Did you know that this idea began with Sam’s Club and Wal-mart? Target and J.C. Penney soon followed turning what is supposed to be a religious celebration into a few more days for corporate greed to run amuck

Frankly, I am against Christmas Creep. I do not and will not support it. I suggest that more and more families do what our family does. Once my children became adults, we agreed to celebrate the holidays by getting together for a nice meal and a fun activity like a day trip or going to a movie. We exchange small gifts and have set a limit for spending. We pass around a list of our needs and wants a few days before Christmas and everyone gets something they can use. I have one daughter who enjoys decorating her house and my house, so she does. My son might hang lights outside, but just as well might not. My other daughter enjoys traveling so she is generally out of town on Christmas Day. We have found that our plan has eliminated the seasonal stress factor. We also save money while enjoying ourselves as a family. Isn’t that the best gift you can give on Christmas?

As far as Christmas Creep, stores need to beware because the creep that is coming is digital. The one thing they will need to do is to be sure they have spiced up their websites. According to SOASTA, a leader in on-line testing, the results for 2013’s Holiday Retails Readiness Survey shows that 86% of Americans plan to shop online for the holidays this year, with the Northeast ranking first (89%) followed by the Western states (86%), South (85%) and the Midwest (83%). Will we see a day when the retail store is a thing of the past? Possibly.