Sears might be selling off brands, taking loans from its CEO, and ending relationships with long-standing partners, but that doesn’t mean it’s giving up just yet. In an apparent effort to strike a nostalgic chord with customers who remember flipping through the Sears catalog and flagging the things they wanted as gifts, the struggling department store chain is resurrecting its once-popular holiday Wish Book. [More]
holiday shopping
UPS, FedEx Already Struggling Under Avalanche Of Holiday Deliveries
By 12.13.16
One might think that after years of online shopping growing in popularity that major shipping carriers would finally be prepared for the Big Show, also known as the holiday season. And yet here we are again, heading into crunch time, and UPS and FedEx are having trouble keeping up with all those packages. [More]
3 Tips To Avoid Buying Counterfeit Goods While Holiday Shopping
By 12.9.16
It’s hard enough to buy perfect, thoughtful gifts for everyone on your holiday shopping list without having to worry that your hard-earned money is going toward a counterfeit product. But with more and more consumers looking for a good deal online, the likelihood that you’ll eventually come across a bogus-brand coat, tablet, or other gift increases.
[More]
In Time For Black Friday, Judge Issues Restraining Order Against Striking Pilots At Amazon-Backed Cargo Line
By 11.23.16
About 40 hours after pilots at Amazon-backed cargo airline ABX went on strike, threatening to throw a wrench in the holiday shipping plans of the country’s largest online retailer (and others), a federal judge has granted a temporary restraining order against the striking pilots. [More]
Three Return Scams Retailers Will Be Looking For This Holiday Season
By 11.23.16
We’ve barely waded into the hectic holiday shopping season, but retailers are already preparing for a rush of returns after the big day — and the scams that inevitably go along with them. [More]
Which Stores Are Open On Thanksgiving & When Do They Open On Black Friday?
By 11.19.16 — Updated: 11.21.16
Thanksgiving is usually the big day on the calendar in November, but this year the holiday took a backseat to Election Day — so much so that many people say they delayed the start of their holiday shopping until after the votes had been counted. Now here we are, with only a few days to go before Thanksgiving (and, more importantly to some folks, Black Friday); you’ll need to know which stores are opening when in order to maximize your shopping efficiency. [More]
Sears Will Open On Thanksgiving Then Close For Five Hours
By 11.8.16
For every retailer like REI, hhgregg, and TJMaxx that proudly announces they are bucking the trend of opening their doors on Thanksgiving Day, there’s a counterpart sticking to its guns and opening to holiday shoppers on an actual holiday. To that end: Sears will open at 6 p.m. on Thanksgiving. [More]
Toys ‘R’ Us Will Once Again Open At 5 PM On Thanksgiving, Stay Open For 30 Hours Straight
By 11.7.16
Toys ‘R’ Us apparently subscribes to “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” logic when it comes to shopping hours for Thanksgiving: the toy store is once again opening its doors at 5 p.m. local time on Thanksgiving, and will keep those doors open for 30 hours in a row. [More]
Target Confirms Holiday Plans: Gift Guides, Free Shipping, Rotating Promotions
By 10.25.16
Yes, we’re going to have to accept that the holiday shopping season has begun. Today, Target announced its holiday promotional plans, which include discounts that rotate through departments, free shipping for online orders, and app-based toy coupons. [More]
Nordstrom Rack, hhgregg, TJMaxx Also Want You To Know They’re Closed On Thanksgiving Day
By 10.12.16 — Updated: 10.13.16
For the last half-decade or so, the beginning of Black Friday has gradually crept back, with mainstream American retailers giving the shopping holiday precedence over the actual holiday, opening on Thanksgiving Day. Then the trend reversed, as retailers came to realize that they could harvest good publicity by staying closed on the holiday and making sure that the public knows it. We’re guessing that they didn’t earn enough money to make opening on the holiday worth their while. [More]
Report: 34M People Have Already Started Holiday Shopping
By 9.29.16
While some of us haven’t yet gotten all the beach sand out of shoes or pulled out the fall blankets, there are 34 million people out there who are already in the holiday spirit and have started shopping. [More]
Samsung Trying To Pay To Get Its Stuff Off Stranded Hanjin Ships
By 9.9.16
For more than a week, dozens of container ships operated by Hanjin Shipping have been stranded at sea after the company’s sudden bankruptcy filing, delaying deliveries for goods just as retailers are stocking up for the holiday shopping season. Now Samsung is asking a judge for help to get its stuff out of Hanjin’s hands. [More]
Report: Holiday Shoppers Saved So Much On Gas, They Spent 8% More This Year
By 12.28.15
If you felt like you reached into your wallet a few more times this holiday season than last year, or that you were forking over bigger chunks of change, you’re not alone: a new report says retail sales were up 7.9% over 2014’s numbers. [More]
Calling All Last-Minute Shoppers: Today Is “Free Shipping Day”
By 12.18.15
It sounds pretty simple — it’s Free Shipping Day today (now you know), so one might think a bunch of retailers are offering up complimentary shipping, for delivery by Christmas Eve. One would be right, because there are a lot of stores dangling that bait, though not all of them will just hand it over without a little song and dance first. [More]
More “Layaway Angels” Pay For $306K In Gifts At Four Walmart Stores
By 12.16.15
Just hours after “Santa B.,” a so-called layaway angel, shelled out $79,000 to pay for toys and other gifts at a Pennsylvania Walmart, another generous person was paying off $106,000 in balances on layaway orders at two Walmart stores just a state away in Ohio. [More]
‘Tis The Season: Secret ‘Santa B’ Pays For $79K In Layaway Gifts At Pennsylvania Walmart
By 12.15.15
Each year, so-called “layaway angels” visit retailers covering the remaining balances of orders that strangers had planned to pay for over time. This year is no different, as one generous person shelled out $79,000 to pay for toys and other gifts on layaway at a Pennsylvania Walmart. [More]
Kohl’s To Stay Open 170 Hours Straight For Last-Minute Holiday Shoppers
By 12.15.15
Kohl’s once again wants to make sure you’re able to mark every last item off your holiday shopping list by keeping most of its stores open for more than seven straight days leading up to Christmas. [More]
UPS Having Trouble Handling Holiday Avalanche Of Online Orders
By 12.11.15
We already know UPS is renting additional vehicles to help with the onslaught of holiday deliveries, but it seems that’s not enough to help the company stay ahead of the avalanche of online orders this time of year. [More]
