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1.2 MILLION MEN ARE EXPECTED TO DO THEIR CHRISTMAS SHOPPING ON CHRISTMAS EVE

23 December 2005

Despite being bombarded with tinsel, flashing lights and mail slots full of Christmas catalogues since the start of November, 1,2 million men* are expected to be doing their Christmas shopping on Christmas Eve.

Research from National Savings and Investments (NS&I) shows that men are six times as likely to leave their shopping until Christmas Eve, with just 1% of women admitting to the same eleventh-hour madness.  And some of these last minute lads may have their work cut out for them as nearly one quarter of all men (24%) say they normally buy gifts for more than 15 people.

Nearly two fifths (38%) of men will shell out between £21 and £50 on each person they buy for.  Just under half (48%) say they normally spend more on Christmas presents than they budgeted for, and one quarter (25%) confess that they mainly tend to pay for their presents with a credit card. 

The last minute rush will come as a welcome reprise for many retailers who have reported delays in pre-Christmas sales on previous years**.

John Prout, sales director at NS&I comments: “Christmas tends to be a pricey time of year for most, and people can get especially carried away trying to find the perfect gift at the last minute.

“However by planning ahead and sticking to a reasonable budget you can avoid dipping into savings or overloading your credit card, leaving no cause to stress about your financial fitness come the New Year”.

Ends

Notes to Editors:

* approximately 1.2 million men say they usually do their Christmas shopping on Christmas Eve.  There are 47.1 million people in GB aged 16+, of whom 48% are men (c. 22.6 million).  Of these, c. 20.6 million say they celebrate Christmas (91%) and c. 1.2 million (6%) say they usually start Christmas present shopping on Christmas Eve.

** See:

http://www.cbi.org.uk/ndbs/press.nsf > Economics > Festive Fear For Retailers As Sales Hit New Low (01/12/05)

http://www.kpmg.co.uk/news/detail.cfm?pr=2384  - Retailers still waiting for Christmas trading to accelerate (08/12/05)

Research carried out by Ipsos MORI Telephone Omnibus between 25-27th November 2005 among a nationally representative GB sample of 1,020 adults aged 16+.

1         Do you celebrate Christmas?

	Men	Women
Yes	91%	95%
No (close)	9%	5%

 

Q2 – Q5 based on thos who do celebrate Christmas (sample size: 947)

1. When do you usually tend to start your Christmas present shopping?

	Men	Women
Before October	7%	12%
From October to November	28%	47%
At the start of December	28%	23%
Two weeks before Christmas	12%	8%
A few days before Christmas	10%	3%
Christmas Eve	6%	1%
Straight after Christmas (for the next year)	4%	5%
Don’t know	4%	2%

 

2. Approximately how many people, if any, do you usually buy presents for?

	Men	Women
0	3%	*
1-2	3%	1%
3-5	17%	5%
6-10	35%	28%
11-15	19%	25%
Over 15	24%	41%

NOTE: * means less than 0.5%

3. On average, how much money do you spend on each person?

	Men	Women
Nothing	2%	0%
Less than £5	*	2%
£5 – £10	7%	14%
£11 – £20	27%	32%
£21 - £50	38%	35%
£51 - £100	11%	6%
£101 - £250	5%	2%
£251 - £500	1%	*
Over £500	1%	*
Don’t know	8%	7%

NOTE: * means less than 0.5%

4.  Thinking about a typical Christmas, do you normally spend more on Christmas presents than you budgeted for?

	Men	Women
Yes	48%	50%
No	44%	44%
Don’t normally budget	7%	5%
Don’t know	1%	*

NOTE: * means less than 0.5%

5.  How do you mainly tend to pay for your Christmas presents?

	Men	Women
General savings	19%	19%
Separate Christmas savings	7%	10%
Salary/ current account	43%	51%
Credit card	25%	16%
Bank overdraft	*	*
Loan	1%	*
Borrow from a friend, family member or partner	1%	1%
None of the above	3%	2%
Don’t know	1%	*

NOTE: * means less than 0.5%

Media team
NS&I has a number of spokespeople available for interviews and our experienced radio team is available via our ISDN line: 020 7602 4522.

The numbers below are for media use only. Customers wishing to contact NS&I can find details here.

Gareth Headon		020 7348 9494
		gareth.headon@nsandi.com
Gill Stephens		020 7348 9449
		gill.stephens@nsandi.com
Iman Asante		020 7348 9301
		iman.asante@nsandi.com
Monica Del-Villar		020 7348 9654
		monica.del-villar@nsandi.com
ISDN for interviews		020 7602 4522
Out of hours		All numbers above diverted to staffed mobile phones

 

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