The trees are up, the adverts are out – but how much of Britain is really ready for Christmas?
With only a couple of weeks until the big day, who in the UK has their presents prepped, wrapped and ready – and which of us have yet to begin? Which cities are the most confident gift givers – and who among us will be donating our wares to the nearest charity shop come Boxing Day?
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The Art of Gift Giving
When it comes to getting organised with our gift buying, ahead of the holiday season, we Brits start off with good intentions – but get stressed at the final hour. 29% of Britons say their approach to gift buying is disorganised**Figure 1, with over a fifth (23%) admitting their approach is somewhat hecticTable 1.
Good news if you’re due to receive a gift from someone in the North though – as it seems that Newcastle & Glasgow are the most organised cities in Britain when it comes to gift buyingFigure 2, so rest assured your Christmas present is probably bought, wrapped and under the tree. However, if you’re expecting a gift from Belfast or Sheffield – it’s more than likely that the present buying has yet to commence – so you may have a couple of weeks to get some last minute requests in!
If youth is on your side, you’re statistically one of the most disorganised** people in the countryTable 2 when it comes to gift buying – a third of Brits aged 16-24 admitted to leaving their Christmas shopping to the last minute (33%), whilst 65% of those of us aged 55+ are more than likely feeling smug and sorted – time to enjoy a celebratory Christmas tipple!
That said, many amongst us admit to finding it hard to buy good gifts, with over 38% of those surveyed admitting to struggles in the gift buying departmentTable 3. In fact, as a nation, more of us admitted to finding it difficult to source the perfect gift than not – with Belfast leading the way; over 50% of the city admitted they struggle to find a present that they’re happy to giveFigure 3, whilst comparatively Bristol appeared to be the most confident gift buyers, with 28% of Bristolians feeling confident in their purchasing skillsFigure 4.
The Unknown Recipient
Ever been in a situation where you’ve had to buy a present for someone you haven’t even met yet? You’re not alone – 42% of us Brits have had to buy a present for someone they don’t know in the past, with 18% of people revealing they’ll be purchasing a gift for an unknown recipient again this year,Table 4.
If you’re between the ages of 16-24, live in Greater London these numbers are even higher, with 55% of 16-24’s having gifted to people they don’t know in the past and 50% of those in Greater London . So what do you buy the person you know nothing about – without getting it wrong?
The Unwanted Gift
It appears that that is still a puzzle waiting to be solved, because in a nation of last minute gift buyers, lacking in confidence, and forced to buy presents for strangers, it’s no surprise that mistakes occur. So what happens when Christmas is over, the presents are unwrapped and we’re eyeing up our gifts?
Well, it turns out that as a nation – our gift giving nervousness is well placed. … over half of us (53%) admitted to buying someone the wrong gift at least once in our livesTable 5, whilst a whopping 71% of us claim to have been the recipient of a gift which was completely wrong,Table 6.
Bad luck for 16-24 year olds, and those living in Birmingham – it seems you’re the hardest to buy for. 82% of 16-24 year olds have received the wrong gift at least once, with 18% getting a terrible gift every year vs a national average of 71% and 10% respectively. Birmingham is the unluckiest city with 75% having received the wrong gift at least on one occasion. Those living in the North East are a brave bunch though – ranking as the most likely in the country to ask their gift giver to return their present back to the shop with 20% admitting to this vs a national average of 10% .
The most common response to an unwanted gift though? Charity of course! In a nation of keen thrifters it makes sense that 31% of those who receive unwanted gifts donate them to charityTable 7,
We’re also a nation of confident re-gifters, with 21% of us putting our unwanted gifts to good use by re-wrapping and giving it to someone elseTable 7. But this Christmas, try not to be like the 14% of Britons who have accidentally re-gifted their unwanted item to the person who bought it for themTable 8… yikes!
