Gift cards are actually getting to be a problem for retailers. They don't get to count the sale, so sales look bad and shareholders don't like that. Instead of pulling sales forward it pushes them back. They have merchandize still sitting on the shelfs. What do they do with it. Do they panic and try dumping it, or hold on to it till after Christmas? After Chirstmas do they than have to dump it. Either way it looks to hurt profits. And I don't know the fine print on gift cards, but can they be returned for cash? I know some now are "expiring" to try and make people use them.
Seeing all the sale prices to get people in the stores, I'm starting to wonder how much of a money maker Christmas is any more. And because of the way retail is changing and throw in the internet, I don't ever see it returning to the big bonaza that it use to be. How do you make money selling stuff at 50% off?
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