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Shopping season in full swing

The Christmas shopping season is in full swing, and we have some interesting statistics, courtesy Blackfriday.com’s 2018 Holiday Shopping and Gifting Survey.

The website polled more than 1,000 Americans to learn about their shopping plans for the holiday season.

1. Most shoppers shop sober. Few shoppers will be making drunk purchases online after imbibing in hot toddies, eggnog and other holiday beverages. Still, 18 percent do say they’re likely or very likely to shop while under the influence.

The number of respondents who said they were “very likely” to shop after drinking was 12 percent, while 6 percent said they were “likely” to shop after drinking. Ten percent said they were “somewhat likely,” but 72 percent said they were “not at all likely” to shop while drinking.

2. Most of those responding said they aren’t stressed out by holiday shopping. Perhaps it’s the ability to shop conveniently online for most purchases, but most Americans aren’t sweating the shopping aspect of preparing for the holidays.

Among the respondents, 10 percent said that holiday shopping “to a great extent” is stressful, while 23 percent said it was “somewhat” stressful. A total of 26 percent said they find holiday shopping stressful “very little,” and 40 percent said it was “not at all” stressful.

3. Americans say that, by far, the gift they’re most likely to return this year is clothing. Meanwhile, other items like tech and toys are far less likely to get returned. This makes sense, as clothing must not only fit the recipients, but match their tastes.

Of those responding to the survey, 46 percent said they were most likely to return clothing; 17 percent said they were most likely to return toys; 13 percent said they were most likely to return shoes; 13 percent said they would likely return recreational items (hoverboard, bike, etc.); 13 percent would also be most likely to return housewares; 10 percent said they would be most likely to return tech items; and 2 percent said they were most likely to return “other.”

4. Speaking of unwanted gifts, those are most likely to come from the in-laws. Nearly one-fourth of respondents say that in-laws are the worst gift-givers in their families. They are also the family members Americans most dread shopping for.

According to the survey, 24 percent said in-laws gave the worst gifts, while 19 percent said siblings gave the worst gifts. Grandparents didn’t fare much better, with 14 percent saying they give the worst gifts. The same percentage applied to friends. Twelve percent of respondents said their significant other gives the worst gifts, tied with their parents. Five percent said “other” gave the worst gifts.

5. Along the same lines, 24 percent said they dislike shopping for their in-laws. Seventeen percent dislike shopping for their significant other, and 17 percent dislike shopping for their parents. Fourteen percent dislike shopping for friends, and only 7 percent dislike shopping for their grandparents. Again, only 5 percent dislike shopping for “other.”

6. For most, the holidays are a time for giving, rather than receiving. Despite the many opportunities to treat yourself this time of year, Americans overwhelmingly spend more on others than they do on themselves.

According to the survey, 17 percent will be spending more money on themselves rather than on others, but 83 percent will spend more on others.

7. And what’s more important to most Americans than Christmas gifts? Christmas dinner.

The overwhelming majority, 73 percent, care more about the holiday feast than about presents, while 27 percent would sacrifice the Christmas feast and keep the gifts.

According to a survey by Blackfriday.com, most shoppers aren’t stressed out by holiday shopping. That could be because so many shop online. PHOTO COURTESY METROCREATIVE