Welcome mat for procrastinators

Maybe next year, Matt Hollenbach will finish his holiday shopping well before Christmas.

And maybe pigs will fly.

Like millions of other Americans, Hollenbach has delayed buying Christmas presents until the final three days before the holiday -- just like he did last year, and the year before that.

"I can't explain it, really, but I just can't seem to get into the spirit until the very last moment," said Hollenbach, 26, of St. Paul, who emerged from a Target store in Bloomington with a purse he bought for his wife.

However, procrastinating shoppers such as Hollenbach have never had it so good. Stung by unseasonably warm weather that has dampened the holiday mood and made it difficult to spend weekends in stores, retailers are making shopping more affordable and convenient for those last-minute outings.

Some stores are resorting to Black Friday tactics such as early-bird specials, longer hours and giveaways. Sears, which will open at 5 a.m. today, will give $10 reward cards to the first 50 customers in line. Creative Kidstuff, a chain of toy stores based in Minneapolis, is allowing phone-in requests and is pulling items ahead of time so shoppers can just pick them up and go.

"Retailers are looking at Friday, Saturday and Sunday as a real shopping bonanza," said Scott Erickson, a partner with the consumer business practice at the Minneapolis law office of Deloitte & Touche. "They are trying to do everything they can to extend what is normally a final, two-day end of a season push."

Retailers not so jolly yet

Retailers need the holiday cheer. After a strong start in November that was fueled by large discounts and promotions, they have been unable to generate the same excitement this month. Unseasonably warm weather hasn't helped, not only dampening the holiday mood but also sales of winter clothing. Consumers also seem to be waiting, knowing that desperate retailers will resort to big sales to get rid of excess merchandise before Christmas.

Consumers have evolved

"It's gotten to the point that the shoppers are outsmarting the stores," said Burt Flickinger III, managing director of Strategic Resource Group in New York. "Shoppers who wait will be well rewarded as stores go to deeper discounts."

Fortunately for retailers, Christmas falls on a Monday, which means consumers will have all weekend to finish their shopping. Best Buy will have a one-day only Christmas Eve sale, including 50 percent off all HBO DVDs and boxed sets. Macy's shoppers will receive a free cookbook if they make at least $50 in purchases.

But will consumers take the bait? According to a survey conducted Dec. 5-13 by the National Retail Federation, 33 million shoppers hadn't even started their Christmas shopping. The International Council of Shopping Centers estimates that four out of five households are shopping later this year than last.

Barbara Myers, 46, of Brooklyn Park looked stressed as she hurried into a Target store. As of Friday, she had yet to buy presents for her 24-year-old daughter, Amy, as well as her parents and her son's fiancée.

Her mission Friday afternoon was to find a picture frame that would hold a photo she took of Minnesota Wild center Pierre-Marc Bouchard scoring a goal. She planned to give the photo and the frame to her boyfriend before he left town that evening.

"It's terrible," she said. "I've never put off my holiday shopping this long."

Like many procrastinators, Myers has her reasons. She works two jobs -- as a payroll clerk and an Xcel Center usher -- and this year she began taking night classes in business management at Metropolitan State University.

But Myers also blames the unusually warm weather for her procrastination. It wasn't until Thursday's snowfall that she really felt like Christmas was around the corner and that she needed to buy gifts.

"Without snow on the ground, it's tough to get in the spirit," she said.

Some experts say that even a sizable last-minute push will not be enough to save Christmas for retailers. This weekend, shoppers may only be looking for the best deals and not spending as much.

Also, a cooling housing market and declining home values have made people feel much less wealthy, said Kurt Barnard, president of Barnard's Retail and Consulting Group in New Jersey.

Flickinger of Strategic Resource Group says lower-income consumers, especially those stung by foreclosures and credit card delinquencies, will not be spending much this year, which spells bad news for dollar stores and discounters.

The National Retail Federation survey says that only 39 percent of consumers will do their last-minute shopping at a discounter, compared with 70.3 percent of consumers earlier in the holiday shopping season.

For Hollenbach, procrastinating had no real drawbacks. Every item he bought Friday was on sale, and some items were marked down by as much as 50 percent. "It works out much better this way," he said.

To help, Hollenbach's wife gave him extensive written instructions, including printouts from websites of her favorite stores. "I want this bad!" she wrote, with a line pointing to a makeup set sold at Ulta.

Hollenbach appreciates the tips, but he knows he'd best get his wife a few items not on the list. "I'm supposed to go above and beyond the expectations," he said. "Otherwise, I'm in trouble."

Thomas Lee • 612-673-7744 • tlee@startribune.com Chris Serres • 612-673-4308 • cserres@startribune.com