The Krampus Kalendar: U is for UNPREPARED

Not matter how hard you try to be prepared, more often than not you’ll find yourself braving the chaos of the Christmas Eve last minute shopping spree, either in order to pick up that essential festive gift for the dog or another jar of gravy powder.

But before you dash off to the local garage to buy that special someone another chocolate orange, bear in mind that if you've already left your Christmas shopping a little late, you risk paying up to 50% more than those people who are – how shall we put it? – a little better organised.

A survey of Christmas shoppers conducted in 2013 revealed that 16-24 year-olds are actually the most organised when it comes to getting the Christmas shopping done, with nearly 44% of them buying their festive gifts in, or even before, November! Those aged 45 or older are the ones who are more likely to leave it to the last minute with almost a third not even starting on the seasonal shop until the week before Christmas.

When you look at the gender of last minute shoppers, rather than their age, one quarter of men do most of their Christmas shopping at the last possible moment, while half of all women have it done before the first week of December.

15% of shoppers cashed in their store loyalty coupons and vouchers to cover the cost of their purchases, while one in ten of those surveyed planned so far ahead that they actually bought their first Christmas present for December 2013 in the January sales! The people surveyed made an average five trips to the shops to get their Christmas shopping done, while one in ten didn’t shop in-store over the Christmas period at all, preferring to do so from the comfort of their laptop, tablet or smartphone!

It might not be too late to order a copy of 'TWAS - The Krampus Night Before Christmas, if you need a last minute stocking filler for something, but time is definitely running out for 'TWAS - The Roleplaying Game Before Christmas, which finishes its run on Kickstarter at 11:59pm tonight!

   

To find out more about the festive season and its many traditions, order your copy of the Chrismologist's Christmas Explained: Robins, Kings and Brussel Sprouts today!

The book is also available in the United States as Christmas Miscellany: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Christmas.