Costco puts out Christmas decor before Halloween. Target fills shelves with Valentine's Day cards as soon as the last notes of "Auld Lang Syne" are played. It seems as if we can't buy seasonal products when we actually want or need them.
What gives?
The fault, apparently, lies with us. Forty percent of Americans start Christmas shopping around Halloween, said Tina Wilcox, CEO and creative director at Black, a retail branding agency in Minneapolis.
"Retailers put out Christmas stuff around Halloween because people buy it," she said.
But why do Minnesota retailers make space for swimsuits in February at the expense of snow shovels and mittens? People start planning winter vacations to warmer climates in January, Wilcox said. As for snow shovels sometimes being AWOL, no retailer can predict the weather. If retailers stock loads of snow shovels or snowblowers in a February without a snowstorm, they'll lose a fortune.
"They'd be lucky to get 20 cents on the dollar of their investment," said Britt Beemer, CEO of America's Research Group in Charleston, S.C.
Already missing the Christmas decor? Become a retail buyer. Next month, they'll be purchasing ornaments and lawn inflatables for Christmas 2011 -- which starts in October.
