By Nancy Trejos
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Yesterday, as Americans were rushing to pay their taxes, Sears was thinking about next month's promised rebates -- and, like other retailers, hoping for a share.

From May 14 to July 19, Sears Holdings will give a 10 percent bonus to anyone who shows up at a Sears or Kmart cash register to buy a gift card with a stimulus check.

Last month, Pizza Hut promised to make "a little bit of dough" go "a long way" by offering a one-topping Pizza Mia for $5 with the purchase of three or more pies.

In January, Wal-Mart launched an "economic stimulus plan," cutting prices 10 to 30 percent on certain items.

"I think you'll see every retailer try everything they can to reach into consumers' pocketbooks," said C. Britt Beemer, chairman and founder of America's Research Group, a consumer behavior marketing firm in Charleston, S.C.

That was the point, after all. The $168 billion stimulus package was initiated by President Bush and approved by Congress to get Americans spending. But recent surveys have shown that most people would rather use their rebates to pay down debt.

"The consumer is feeling a lot of pressure from credit card companies to get their credit bills under control," Beemer said.

Retailers have their own message: Spend it.

"We understand the situation they're in given the state of the economy," said Kevin Brown, vice president of marketing services for Sears Holdings. "We have them covered, and that check is going to go a lot of further with us."