Written by Erica Edman (W’25); Edited by Basma Enany (W’26)
As someone who does not celebrate Christmas, I have always been fascinated by the holiday. While I love to partake in the elaborate decorations and loops of the same five Christmas songs, I have never quite understood the gift-giving. I see pictures of people receiving piles of presents stacked as high as the person themselves and can’t help but wonder: what is all of that presents? Items?, and how much does it all cost? I decided to do some research to figure out just how much money people spend over the holiday season, what they are spending it on, and why.
In 2021, US holiday shopping generated 886.7 billion dollars in sales, a 14% increase from the previous year. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), the average American plans to spend $826 in 2022 on Christmas gifts, food, and decorations. Of that $826 dollars, around 500 are spent on gifts for family members. The most popular of these gifts are clothing, toys, and gift cards. Around 76% of consumers buy each of these items every year.
One surprising area of Christmas spending is on pet presents. The average American pet receives around 50 dollars in gifts. According to PR Newswire, 34% of Americans purchase gifts for their dogs, while 22% purchase gifts for cats. Meanwhile, only 19% of Americans purchase gifts for their inlaws.
Unsurprisingly, Americans spend more money on Christmas than any other nation. Furthermore, Americans put themselves in debt for the holiday more than any other country. In a survey asking Americans to respond to the prompt, “Last year I went into debt to pay for Christmas,” 22% of respondents answered agree or strongly agree, compared to 17% of British consumers and 10% of European consumers.
So why do people spend so much money over Christmas? As Sam Greenspan, the head of content for the ecommerce-focused tech company Demand.io, told Yahoo Finance, it is not about consumers falling victim to clever marketing ploys, but about a desire to recreate a nostalgic holiday experience that many adults had as children.
Greenspan states, “There’s a force more powerful than advertising or generosity that drives our holiday spending and willingness to run up a year’s worth of debt in the holidays. That force is nostalgia. Holidays were a special time for us as kids. They are now a special time for us as adults. Presents, as well as other holiday expenditures like decorations, parties, food, and travel, are crucial elements of our memories… There’s no financial ceiling on what we’ll spend for those nostalgic feelings.”
Could it be ended with a rhetorical question like. What do you think? Maybe to spark some thought. I love thé article it’s so interesting really gave me something to think about!
