According to NHO’s chief economist, Norwegians will spend NOK 25,000 each on Christmas presents, food, decorations, drink and other things that belong to the holiday season. When did Christmas become so incredibly expensive? And why is consumption described as a “party”, when for many it is experienced as a pressure on the economy? Before we lived well with oranges and cloves, then the advent calendars and American trade days came to Norway. I still remember when my mother made a packing calendar, and I managed to complain (as a teenager does) about a “bad hatch”. She got upset. I got an acute guilty conscience, and learned how blind and selfish materialism can make us. Then I learned how blind and selfish materialism can make us. It peaked on exchange in the USA in 2011. Then I experienced my first real Black Friday. The sight of people in mile-long queues looking for bargains in the middle of the night has stuck in my memory. It was complete chaos. Today, shops are overflowing with advent calendars with sweets, toys, food, make-up and skin care. Already in September, Dagbladet was able to report that the Caia Cosmetics calendar sold out in a few hours. Price: NOK 2,695. But there are more money traps than advent calendars in the run-up to Christmas. For many stores, this is the most important season of the year. They want Christmas shopping to be experienced as fun and frugal, with exciting campaigns and attractive offers. Last year Prisjakt reported that “Black Week” was the biggest shopping week ever measured in volume – but that 59 percent of the 6.1 million items they monitored had the highest price of the year during “offer week”. Now Prisjakt has revealed that 2.3 million items increased in price in October this year, to create the illusion of greater discounts during Black Friday. The fact that something is on offer does not necessarily mean that you save large sums. It worries me that we do so much shopping before Christmas in Norway. It creates buying pressure and is not sustainable. Figures from the Debt Register show that the total consumer debt in Norway has exceeded NOK 171 billion. At the same time, NHO predicts that the total amount Norwegians will spend on Christmas shopping from 1 November until the end of the year is NOK 138.5 billion, a growth of 3 per cent from last year. There is a kind of cognitive dissonance between the economy and our consumption in this country. Many people need to save and pay off debt, but still end up shopping – often with borrowed money, deferred invoices and credit cards. We have to help each other pull on the brakes. We will spend most of our money on online shopping and groceries during Christmas shopping. It is difficult to do anything about the fact that food prices have increased by 33 per cent in the last three years, so to save money here we should plan well and avoid food waste. What we can control to a greater extent is our online traffic, which is particularly high during trading days such as Black Week and Christmas sales. If we stop and consider whether we actually need all the products on offer, NHO’s prediction will probably turn out to be wrong this year. Most likely, we already have what we need. When I talk to friends and family about what they remember best from Christmas in recent years, it’s time together, good meals and experiences. It is rare that I hear people reminiscing about socks, scarves, nail polish, soaps and creams they received as gifts. Nevertheless, many feel the pressure of Christmas presents, which can lead to financial stress and a bad conscience for the environment. It’s time we talked together about consumption and expectations, and which gifts actually matter, so that we can collectively help reduce the pressure to buy before Christmas. Here are some tips on how to limit the impact of shopping in the future. Go through your things at home and get to know everything you already have. Get an overview of your spending in the mobile bank, set savings targets and plan debt repayments. It can provide motivation to cut extra costs. Avoid online stores. They will surely have tempting offers. Take a break from social media influencers, block advertising you don’t want to see and unsubscribe from customer clubs. According to the Norwegian Consumer Council, 1 in 2 buys more than planned when they receive attractive offers from customer clubs via SMS and e-mail. Try to limit influences that create new needs. It becomes even easier when we talk together, lower expectations and avoid feeling pressure to buy from those around us. Send us your opinion Want to write? Feel free to contact us at news Ytring with your post. The guidelines can be found here. Published 17.11.2024, at 13.15
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Tracks soaring Christmas spending – Statement
