Stores hope for an extra helping

[TexasStooge]

Gift cards, returns expected to bring more sales to the table Monday

By MARIA HALKIAS / The Dallas Morning News

If the pre-Christmas surveys were correct, almost everyone has a gift card now and plans to spend it sooner rather than later. And other gift recipients are heading for the return lines.

Couple that with after-Christmas sales and the fact that Monday is a holiday, and this should be another huge day at malls and retail centers.

Retailers love it, even though many people are just cashing in gift cards and making exchanges. That's because even those shoppers tend to drop more cash on their visits.

A survey by Harris Interactive said 50 percent of adults who make a return end up buying more merchandise in that store.

Similarly, retailers say that shoppers armed with gift cards end up spending more than the face value of the loaded plastic.

The National Retail Federation estimated that shoppers purchased $18.48 billion worth of gift cards this holiday season, up 6.6 percent from last year.

Other surveys show that shoppers often spend that money within several weeks of receiving it.

About 44 percent of consumers reported they redeemed their gift cards within two months of Christmas, according to a survey conducted by Opinion Research Corp. for the International Council of Shopping Centers. About 12 percent said they used their cards the week after Christmas, 28 percent said January, and 4 percent said February.

Consumer groups warn that it's probably not wise to let them sit too long because cards get lost, and some bank- and credit card-issued cards come with service fees and expiration dates.

Even before gift cards became so popular, the week after Christmas was a strong contributor to retailers' season, fueled by shoppers receiving cash gifts and motivated by markdowns.

Last year, the week after Christmas accounted for 10.3 percent of sales tallied between Thanksgiving and the end of the year. In 2003, the week represented 14.1 percent of the season, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers.

Marshal Cohen, chief retail industry analyst at the NPD Group, said he expects Monday's numbers to be quite strong.

"The 26th and the following Saturday, the 31st, are going to be really big," he said. "This season retailers waited longer to discount, because they realize that December doesn't end until the 31st, as opposed to trying to get all their sales in before Christmas."

Extended hours are continuing Monday.

Many department stores, including Macy's, are opening early, and Target is opening an hour early at 7 a.m. Wal-Mart stores open for business at 6 a.m.