This story was originally published in the second edition of The Lion’s Tale (December 13th, 2021).

With the holiday season coming around the corner, stores are starting to fill up with busy customers looking for last minute gifts. This influx of seasonal customers is causing products to fly off the shelves. 

Everyone knows that people go crazy during the holiday season, stocking up on decorations, presents, and festive foods. Stores fill up to the brim with strained customers just hoping to get everything done before the holidays. Many people’s stress levels rise during this season due to the pressures of gift giving and family gatherings, along with the time and money to accommodate it all. 

Since the holidays are rapidly approaching, ordering gifts online might not be the best bet. Shipping is being heavily delayed, meaning packages may not be delivered until after the holiday season is over. The high demand for products coupled with the lack of workers due to covid, are the leading factors. 

Due to the holidays, many stores have big sales on seasonal decorations and gifts for loved ones. Although this is a benefit, it also causes more people to shop and buy the products while they are on sale and cheaper than it normally would be. 

A lot of products are going out of stock and not being replenished, so it would be best to start buying gifts for friends and family sooner than later. This lack of product isn’t only a problem for in-store shopping, but also online shopping. 

Although there are many stressors that pair with Christmas shopping, it doesn’t always have to be that way. Planning out budgets, gift ideas, and using time management can all be helpful ways to de-stress the holiday season. 

Keeping an eye out for the best sales can help with sticking to a smaller budget. Another way to keep the budget small is to make homemade gifts. This can honestly be more fun and personal to whoever is receiving the gift, while maintaining a cheap price and overall less expensive than purchasing a gift.

The holiday season is the craziest time of the year for shopping and gift giving. So to avoid the big crowds and long checkout lines, purchasing presents early is going to be the most beneficial. 

Finding ways to de-stress the Christmas season will make it so much easier and more enjoyable, than waiting for the stress to kick in and doing everything at the last minute.