"Holiday gifts have been wrapped and delivered, but the shopping is far from over," says Trae Bodge, senior editor for The Real Deal by RetailMeNot. "The days following Christmas are some of the busiest for retailers as shoppers take to the stores to use their gift cards and, in many cases, make exchanges or returns."

Post-Holiday Letdown

When it comes to gifting, you can't win them all. Nearly half of consumers (42%) report that they typically end up returning at least some gifts they receive for the holidays.

• Parents are more likely than those without kids (54% vs. 37%) to end up returning at least some winter holiday gifts.
• 18-34 year olds are nearly three times more likely than those ages 35+ (11% vs. 4%) to return 25 percent or more of the gifts they receive for the winter holidays.

Determined to get what they want, consumers report that they are more likely to return an unwanted holiday gift (35%) than to keep it (27%), regift it (21%) or donate it (13%). Compared to last year, consumers report that they are more likely to return (35% vs. 31%) or regift (21% vs. 17%) unwanted presents this year.

If you didn't get everything on your holiday wish list, you're not alone. More than 1 in 3 (35%) consumers surveyed have purchased a gift for themselves because no one got it for them for the holidays.

End-of-Year Selfish Shopping

A majority of consumers (79%) surveyed plan to shop the end-of-year sales that occur after the holidays, and of these shoppers, 64% plan to buy items for themselves during this time. According to the survey, it is a less popular time to shop for others, such as significant others (42%) or relatives (29%).

• It is more common for respondents that make more than $50,000 a year than those who make less than that (83% vs. 76%) to plan to shop end-of-year sales.
• Females are more likely than males (54% vs. 47%) to plan to shop for themselves during end-of-year sales.

Fortunately for selfish shoppers, nearly 9 in 10 (89%) respondents indicated that they have received a gift card as a winter holiday present and they plan to put it to good use. Just over 2 in 3 (67%) consumers say they are most likely to use a gift card they were given for the holidays less than a month after receiving it.

Delayed Gifting and Regifting

In addition to shopping for themselves, some consumers even wait until post-holiday sales to purchase gifts for others! Three in 10 (30%) holiday gift-givers report having purchased a present after the holidays were over for someone they knew they wouldn't see until afterwards.

• Perhaps strapped for cash after buying presents for their kids, parents are more likely than those without kids (41% vs. 26%) to have bought a gift after the holidays were over for someone they knew they wouldn't see until later.

Additionally, more than 1 in 3 (34%) consumers surveyed have used a gift card they were given to buy a present for someone else and nearly 1 in 4 (24%) have "regifted" a gift card to someone else.

•  It is more common for those who are employed than those who are not currently working (31% vs. 18%) to have "regifted" a gift card to someone else.

To take advantage of post-holiday sales, visit RetailMeNot.com or download theRetailMeNot Coupons app for in-store savings.

Report Methodology
The survey was conducted between November 21 and November 26, 2013, among 1,022 U.S. residents ages 18 and over, using an email invitation and an online report. Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results. In this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a report result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 3.1 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample. The margin of error for any subgroups will be slightly higher.

About RetailMeNot.com


RetailMeNot.com (www.retailmenot.com) is the largest digital coupon destination in the United States. Our mission is to help consumers save money and enjoy a hassle-free discount shopping experience. Since November 2006, our users have shared hundreds of thousands of digital coupons from retailers. Digital coupons are rated and ranked by users, ensuring that quality deals rise to the top and expired coupons drop down the list. RetailMeNot.com is operated by RetailMeNot, Inc., the world's largest marketplace for digital coupons.

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RetailMeNot, Inc. (www.retailmenot.com/corp/) operates the world's largest digital coupon marketplace. The company enables consumers across the globe seeking to save money to find hundreds of thousands of digital coupons from retailers. RetailMeNot, Inc. experienced more than 500 million visits to its websites in the last 12 months. The RetailMeNot, Inc. portfolio includes www.RetailMeNot.com, the largest digital coupon marketplace in the United States; www.RetailMeNot.ca in Canada; www.VoucherCodes.co.uk, the largest digital coupon marketplace in the United Kingdom; www.Deals.com in Germany;www.Actiepagina.nl, a leading digital coupon site in the Netherlands; Bons-de-Reduction.com and www.Ma-Reduc.com, leading digital coupon sites in France;www.Poulpeo.com, a leading digital coupon site with cash back in France; andwww.Deals2Buy.com, a leading discount offer site in North America. RetailMeNot, Inc. went public in July 2013 and is listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange under the ticker symbol "SALE." Investors interested in learning more about the company can visit:http://investor.retailmenot.com/.

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SOURCE RetailMeNot.com