Shoppers Back in Force After Halt for Holiday

The gifts have been unwrapped and thank you notes are forthcoming. Stockings have been removed from fireplace mantels and tucked back into the attic. Santa has come and gone and left for a vacation in Bermuda.

But we are still at the mall.

After hunting for last-minute Christmas presents over the weekend, consumers returned to their favorite retailers yesterday, re-energized and ready to spend. According to the International Council of Shopping Centers, nearly one in five consumers planned to shop yesterday. Gift cards were among the primary drivers. Others were drawn by discounts. Some came to return and exchange.

Clearly, the holiday season doesn't end on Christmas.

"We're all measuring something on a year-to-year basis that this year almost isn't fair," said Marshal Cohen, senior analyst with consumer behavior research firm NPD Group. "To really assess how the holiday has fared, we're going to have to wait until January numbers start coming in."

Typically, retailers count November and December when calculating holiday results. Those two months traditionally account for about 20 percent of total retail sales. But over the years, their proportion has eroded.

In 1994, November and December made up 20.69 percent of annual retail sales, according to the National Retail Federation, an industry advocacy group. Last year, they amounted to 19.59 percent -- not a huge decline, but one that seems likely to continue as gift cards become increasingly popular.

A survey by the group ranked gift cards the most-coveted present of the season, and sales are expected to reach $26.3 billion this holiday. Retailers love them because they provide incentive for consumers to spend more than they would if they were paying with their own money -- or even with someone else's cash, according to a consumer psychology study by Rebecca White at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada.

Stores cannot count the sale of a gift card as revenue until it is redeemed, often in the week after Christmas or into January. With sales this holiday season on shaky ground, many retailers are hoping shoppers use them sooner rather than later.

"Gift cards have transformed the holiday shopping landscape, and they have extended holiday shopping well past Christmas day," said Michael P. Niemira, chief economist and research director of the ICSC. "December 26th begins that new phase of the holiday shopping season."

Madison Horner, 13, of Ashburn arrived at Tysons Corner Center with her family at about 10:30 a.m. with a long day of shopping ahead yesterday. Three gift cards from Hollister -- for $75, $40 and $30 -- were among her prized presents, and she planned to waste no time putting them to use.

"I know what I'm looking for at any store," Madison said.