Consumers Already Planning for Christmas Financially

Sept. 7, 2011 - PRLog -- A study by the UK’s leading discount and voucher code website has revealed that some Britons are more organised that others in the run up to Christmas. Despite the festive season being a good four months away, two fifths are already planning ahead by putting some money aside.

www.MyVoucherCodes.co.uk carried out the poll in a bid to find out more about the spending and saving habits of people around the UK. 1,402 UK adults were polled in the study and respondents were required to answer questions about their planning for Christmas.

When asked, ‘Have you put any money aside yet to spend on Christmas, in terms of gifts or supplies for the festive season?’ 42% said that they had. These respondents were then asked why they had done so, to which 56% said they needed to ‘spread the cost’ over a number of wage packets, as one would not cover the cost.

The people taking part in the poll were asked to estimate how much they expected to spend on Christmas, including the cost of gifts for others, food, decorations and anything else that would be included. According to the poll, the average respondent expects to spend £1,507 on Christmas 2011.

Those who had already put money aside for Christmas 2011 were asked how much they had managed to save so far and the average amount stated was ‘£100 or less’; demonstrating that many still had a long way to go before reaching their spending target.

When asked, ‘Do you expect Christmas 2011 to leave you in debt?’ the majority, 51%, said ‘definitely’. A third, 33%, said ‘maybe’, whilst the remaining 16% said ‘no’.

MyVoucherCodes also asked the people taking part whether they had actually bought anything for Christmas just yet, to which just less than a quarter, 23%, answered ‘yes’. When asked what they had bought, the most common answer was ‘greetings cards’.

Mark Pearson, chairman of MyVoucherCodes.co.uk, commented on the findings;

“It may seem a bit mad that people are already saving and buying for Christmas, but I’d call it good organisational skills! Spreading the cost of Christmas over a few months is often the best thing to do and is a way to make sure that you don’t end up out of pocket.

“Many consumers end up in debt because of Christmas, so starting early is a good way to avoid this. Also, taking advantage of discounts and money saving voucher codes is a great way to bring the costs down.”

LINK http://www.MyVoucherCodes.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, contact Charlotte Horsfall of 10 Yetis Public Relations Agency on Charlotte@10yetis.co.uk or 01452 348211.

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Editor’s Notes

Mark Pearson, chairman of MyVoucherCodes is a regular media contributor regarding online shopping and the credit crunch. At 30, his personal worth is more than £30 million. Mark was previously a trainee chef working for Gordon Ramsay at Claridges, London.

Mark appeared as a ‘Secret Millionaire’ in the series on Channel 4, in which he donated £115,000 of his own money to worthy causes.

MyVoucherCodes has had sales exceeding £481m in the last year