Why You're Self-Gifting This Season
Filed under: Buyer Beware, Family Finances, Shopping, Weird & Wonderful, Holidays
So I went out to buy gifts for family members and friends
the other day and ended up buying something for myself.
And it felt good. Really good.
Turns out, I'm not alone in feeling this gravitational pull to buy things for myself over the holidays. Self-gifting is on the rise and apparently has been for several years. According to the National Retail Federation, self-gifting has reached an all-time high this year: in a holiday consumer spending survey, almost 60 per cent of participants admitted, on average, they're likely to spend $237 dollars on themselves this season. So why are more consumers shopping for themselves this time of year when the focus is on giving to others? Let's look at the possibilities. You may just decide it's time you treated yourself too.
1. Recession fatigue.
Some experts say people are self-gifting more now, having suffered from recession fatigue. Since the beginning of the financial crisis, everyone has been watching their wallets, practicing a strictness with their spending amidst constant reports of a gloomy global economy. But the arrival of the holidays seems to have prompted a willingness and freedom to spend in many shoppers. Hallelujah!
By Matt Brownell
It's true that it's better to give than to receive but with the holiday season fast approaching, the notion of giving has us wishing our chequing accounts could hibernate through until 2013. With so many of us looking to ensure the Season of Goodwill doesn't leave our finances less fortunate in the New Year, here are some tips to stay on course and in the black during the run-up to eggnog and gifts under the tree.
Stop for a minute and think hard about the post-holiday debt hangover you always hear about in January. Rather than sticking your head in the sand about it, or thinking that paying off those additional balances well into the new year is just something that needs to be done, start now and you may well avoid that fate altogether.
The 
RSS Feed
Contact Us
