Our lives being governed by the retail

Just because stuff is in the shops doesn't mean you have to buy it. andequally why keep going shopping?

I just shop when I need something. I do my weekly shopping from a prepared list and only go clothes shopping when I perceive a need for a specific item of clothing. I am the same online, only look for items when I know I need them.

As for Christmas, many people on tight budgets do start collecting things months in advance. Presents being sent by sea to reduce postage costs, start needing to be sent by October. I bought my first stocking present for this year in this years New Year sales and I have picking odd things up ever since. I already have half a dozen presents in my sock drawer.

I am amazed that people buy sweets for Christmas - and then eat them well in advance. Christmas sweets are always well wrapped and tucked a way in a drawer are soon forgotten. I will probably buy the Christmas sweets in early November and they will be untouched on Christmas Eve.

Check the ‘best before’ or ‘use by’ dates before actually buying any of these pre-seasonal goodies in order to spread the cost of festive spending plans. You will almost certainly find thAt those dates are well before Christmas. Of course, you may feel it’s a good excuse to eat them all yourself ...

Greytin94. If you come to my house you can have all the purple ones you want and all the Snickers and Bounties out of the Celebrations tin.

Children don't get the same anticipation as we do of it being a special day.
Having hot cross buns all year round seems wrong to me. Why not just have current buns the rest of the year.

Having worked in retail, the other side of the coin is that no matter how long you have stuff on show for, people still come in on the last day, ie red nose day/Christmas eve etc and want particular things, saying we had those months ago does not help though

GreyTin94, how I detest items being sold before the appropriate season. I make a point of boycotting shops, including charity shops, that display Christmas cards etc before the middle of November - and I tell the shop managers why. I was once told that people buy Christmas cards early to post them abroad - what route are they going to take 4-5 months?

Halloween and Christmas stock appearing early means that it is impossible to buy gardening stuff. With milder winters gardens need attention most of the year.

Thank you for reminding me * Greytin* - should have had the sprouts on by now ????

I had my first on-line Christmas advert in June.

Very good point indeed gingergirl

You can stay away from the shops and order in just what you need (then they just can't get to you).

If daft people didn't buy Christmas sweets in August they wouldn't put them out.
Blame the customers! The retailers will only do what works to get them more sales.
I know someone who does all her Christmas shopping in the January sales. Makes me wonder of she ever buys anything her family actually WANT!

As children in the 60’s we all got excited about Easter because hot cross buns and Cadburys Creme Eggs appeared and disappeared! Christmas was about tins of Quality Street, ( stealing triangles) and seeing the tree decorations you hadn’t seen for a year! What do children have to get excited about these days when everything is available 24/7/365 days. Becoming rich at Fortnite, flying to Lapland, or getting a new iPhone for Xmas? We learned to get excited about the small things. I still am.

And with it being oh so easy to (mindlessly) whack the cost onto the plastic then it'll sell too!

The retailers are in a win-win situation - the consumer are the losers, especially when the credit card statement comes whizzing through the letterbox.

"I can't have spent that much......!"

Thinking about it, you could also aad few rashers of rationed or black market bacon to go with the sausages.?

Oh b1zzle - Christmas is only 130 days away and I am not ready!
Now I am in a panic

If Brexit really does interrupt the food supply badly, you could give all your friends and relatives as presents a pound of sausages each.

You could stock up on them now and then by Christmas they could be a really valuable present, much appreciated. ?

Should be-ourselves, not themselves! Whoops, incorrect use of pronoun!!

If everyone refused to buy anything Christmassy till December, the shops wouldn't do this, would they, so we all only have themselves to blame.
I do buy presents throughout the year, if I see any bargains, but refuse to look at real Christmas items until after the dust has settled on my birthday in mid November

I was appalled to learn yesterday that it is only 130+ days away!

Its ridiculous and I think reflects society’s inability to focus on the moment....we’ve always got to be looking ahead to the next thing and I think it breeds anxiety and discontent. Last year I made a concerted effort to ignore, more than I usually do, all the early Xmas hype etc., and it was a whole lot more enjoyable.

Our summer holiday to Lanzarote starts Aug 29th. I can't find shorts in any of the shops.

The supermarkets get all those seasonal items in early as if you buy from one you have taken trade from another. Eg Tesco has sweets in now, you think oh I'll start getting ready for Christmas and look! they are on special offer what a bargain. You buy now therefore taking the trade from another store. The stuff for Christmas was probably ordered last summer and produced last Christmas. We are all subjected to the marketing gurus.

cynical comment coming...

I think the tinned biscuits/chocs etc are left over stock from last year!

However, wish my gks would think earlier for Christmas,,, they never give me their list and links (I have to buy online now) till the last minute.. I do like my Christmas presents well in before the Christmas postal delay.

anyone else noticed how Royal Mail can deliver much quicker other than Christmas time?

Where I live there is a Christmas shop selling all sorts of Christmas things year round, including tree ornaments and lights. When I lived in Vancouver there were 2 Christmas shops and they were always busy.
At least we don't get those ghastly green balls (brussels sprouts) at the wrong time of year.