I was expecting to spend around $7500 to $8000 on x-mas gifts this year but I seriously came up short and the sole reason was bad retailers. Let me tell you where I think retailers got it all wrong and what I was unable to buy this year:

First, the unpurchased x-mas gifts:

  • I have yet to purchase a stainless steel fridge for my wife because no one seems to have the model we want in stock anywhere. This is $1500 unspent.
  • I have yet to purchase a 52″ LCD TV because the models I liked were not in stock. This is $2500+ of unspent money.
  • I was unable to buy a third Nintendo DS system for someone but luckily got two by ordering online a few weeks earlier.  Another $150 unspent.
  • I didn’t find the 32″ LCD w/built in DVD player that I wanted so I settled for another set. The difference was about $100 unspent on a retailer.

Aside from not having inventory, the real problem however were the retailers stupid “feeding frenzy” games. I don’t know which marketing idiot was the first to decide that the best thing to do for the consumer was to create a stampede and feeding frenzy into their store(s) and try to pack as many people in but this is totally dumb.   I know the logic goes something like this, “If we pack’em in early, they’ll spend all their money here before it runs out” but that assumption is all wrong.  I have plenty of money to spend and was totally turned off by the feeding frenzy at your retail shop so I’m waiting for the frenzy to end so I can get some service!

During several shopping stops, I could over hear people saying things like, “this is why I did most of my shopping online” or “I’m not doing this again next year” at various shops.  Lack of inventory, lack of parking, crowded isles, and long check out lines are ridiculous.

One thing retailers need to fix, in my opinion, is too many choices for budget conscious consumers.   For example, while there was very limited availability of mid-tier and high end LCD TVs there were plenty of low end LCD TVs.  In fact, there were TOO many choices with brands like Emprex, Polaroid, Olevia, Sanyo and a bunch of others I don’t quite remember.  Overstocked on low end TVs and understocked on mid-tier and high-tier products was remains of the day.

Retailers, please pick three models from one or two manufacturers: low budget, mid budget, high budget and stock PLENTY of these models in your store.   There are too many LCD TV players and I can tell you what’s going to happen in a year or two: most of the low tier will close shop and go out of business.  The mid-tiers will consolidate and the high tier will stay high tier.

We’ve seen this over and over again in the consumer electronics. Remember Gateway? Emachines? Hewlett Packard?  All those are gone and/or consolidated and TVs won’t be any different.

Each passing year, I find myself ordering more and more products online and the cost per ticket item is increasing from $50 items to $700 items.  I save the hassle of driving from shop to shop, avoid stressful parking situation, avoid long lines and wasted time.

The one shop that was the exception to most of this fiasco (at least for me) was Costco.   The only retailer that seems to know anything about  great products, excellent service and quality is Costco.  I’m getting to the point where I’ll simply shop at Costco at the store or online without even thinking about it or bothering to do comparison shopping.   Costco may not be the cheapest but they do offer the greatest value in my opinion.  This seems to be something that Wal-mart with their “low prices” mentality can’t seem to fathom.

Unfortunately, the lack of a new LCD TV has kept me from buying that Mac-mini I’ve been wanting to hook up to my new TV and I haven’t bothered to go to the store to pick up the 24″ iMac until I go to the store to buy the mini.