Let’s stop with the Christmas decorations in October
There are 55 days between Halloween and Christmas. Some people would say that’s more than enough time to fulfill all their Christmas shopping needs, but there is clearly another demographic that needs more time.
Stores and malls are pushing the boundary a little bit every year, and it’s gotten to the point that Christmas-oriented marketing starts at the beginning of October.
When I worked at a local pharmacy, clerks would work an overnight shift on Halloween to completely redecorate. Shoppers would literally enter a completely redesigned and unrecognizable store on the first day of November. Many would ask me how this could have happened so quickly, and are usually surprised that a store would allow its employees to work all through the night. I used to agree with them. Those were the good old days.
Nowadays, Christmas stock is usually phased in in early October, and before Halloween is even over, there are enough fruitcakes, ornaments, and sparkly lights to stock every household.
When did 55 days not become enough? Why can’t businesses focus on one holiday at a time? Will Valentine’s Day items start getting sold in November?
I’m not a religious person, but I seriously don’t think the point of Christmas is to start spending money in October. It’s irritating when companies try to cash in as early as possible and push that limit year after year.
On the surface, it’s easier to shop when it’s less crowded or if you have more time to budget. The point, however, is that Christmas shopping can be done at any point of the year. What irks me is the whole marketing ploy.
In some places, fake Christmas trees are on sale between July and September, over 14 weeks before the actual holiday!
Perhaps this isn’t a big deal for some—that it’s easy to simply walk past the unnecessarily early Christmas stock towards the things one really needs. But I can’t help but feel that this is another example of us thinking we have more control on our actions than we really do. We forget the power of suggestion and the subconscious brainwashing we experience throughout our lives. And while year after year people casually complain, nothing changes.
Christmas should be a time of reflection, of giving, and of spending time with the ones we love. Our capitalist society needs to relax on the idea of squeezing consumers dry as early as possible to fulfill their shareholders’ interests. We, as shoppers, also need to take a stance and make our complaints heard where they can really be heard, with our wallets.
