UNITED STATES—As plenty have already noted, summer is over and fall is fast approaching, but perhaps the retailers are moving a bit too fast. How so? Have you been to Costco, Sam’s Club or some other retail establishments? They already have the Halloween merchandise on massive display, plenty of candy, costumes and decorations. Look, I know plenty of people don’t know this, but Halloween is kind of like a big day.
My mom, when we were kids would go all out decorating the inside and outside of our home. You would think it was a haunted house, and I’m not going to lie, at night, it was spooky as a kid to go downstairs if you had to. Hell, you weren’t quite sure what might pop out in an attempt to scare you. I would expect to see the Halloween merchandise make its presence known during the early weeks of September, not at the start of August. Hell, kids haven’t even gone back to school yet and there are loads of Halloween candy, costumes, decorations and all things Halloween on the shelves.
Some would argue it’s too early, but I beg to differ. If you are one of those people who decorates their home for Halloween this might be the time to purchase those decorations while they are on sale. I might hold off on the candy because you’ll be tempted to eat it more than reserve it for the big day. Now, Christmas, it’s a bit early, but I have indeed seen Christmas trees and decorations at some retailers. C’mon, please give us at least another two months before we start ushering in those items.
Look, I love Christmas more than anyone. The idea of purchasing gifts for family makes me so happy. However, I don’t want to be reminded that the most stressful and chaotic time of year that puts so many of us in debt is coming. I think seeing the things in stores though is an important sign. Why? You can start to prepare. When you wait to do things last minute it only makes things worse because you find yourself trying to overdo it and your finances are tightening up in a way that is not always helpful.
That hint that those holidays are coming can help you prepare now. So, if you have kids, you know you’ll need to purchase Halloween costumes sooner than later. So, purchase a costume for each kid every week or every other week as the budget allows. If you plan to pass out candy, start purchasing candy in small batches as your funds allow it. The same applies for decorations, because buying in small doses prevents you from having to spend hundreds of dollars in a single outing.
As for Christmas, you initially have four months and I will admit the last two years I didn’t start my Christmas shopping early, I kind of waited until the last minute just because there was such turmoil and chaos in my life I wasn’t really focused on Christmas at the time. However, for 2024, I plan to prepare a bit earlier because I want to relax, I want to have more fun and I don’t want that stress that tend comes with holidays. Yeah, so many Americans might not want to see those things in the stores already, but it’s a reminder that if you blink, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas will be here before you know it.
