Kirkland's Holiday Survey Shows Shoppers Ready for Early Start

NASHVILLE, TN--(Marketwired - November 03, 2016) - The presidential election wasn't the only thing that divided opinions across America this fall. Add to the list the debate over colored lights or white ones for your Christmas tree, "It's a Wonderful Life" versus "Christmas Vacation," and "Silent Night" or "Jingle Bells."

A national survey commissioned by home décor retailer Kirkland's peeked into the holiday opinions and preferences of 801 U.S. women who celebrate Christmas on topics ranging from shopping and decorating to entertainment.

"Understanding consumer insights around holiday shopping is critical to our overall understanding of home décor," said Leigh O'Donnell, Director of Insights & Analytics at Kirkland's. "Our shoppers want everything to be 'just so' at the holidays, so we work hard to make things 'just so' at Kirkland's 'Christmasland.' Since 70% of shoppers say they are making changes to their Christmas décor collections this year, and 20% claim to go 'all out' on decorating, Kirkland's is ready with products that are trend-right and priced right, too."

Among the findings:

• LOVE SHOPPING: About half of U.S. women (51%) say they love to go shopping and the holiday rush, and another 33% say they don't mind going, but don't love it. Millennials between 26 and 35 years old are the most enthusiastic about holiday shopping, with 74% giving it a big thumbs-up compared to only about a third of women over 50.

• BLACK FRIDAY FRENZY: When it comes to Black Friday, 43% will take part; but only 27% of women say they love the deals and chaos, with another 16% saying they will shop that day but don't enjoy it that much. For 32%, it's just too much for them to take and they will stay home. About half of shoppers (52%) will be browsing for deals online on Cyber Monday.

• WOMAN ON A MISSION: 43% prefer to go holiday shopping alone, and 39% like going with one other person. Only 11% say they enjoy group shopping excursions.

• EARLY BIRDS: About half say they shop for holiday gifts early (28% buy gifts throughout the year, and 23% start in October).

• THE ENVELOPE, PLEASE: 41% would rather receive a gift card than an actual gift, but only 16% say they prefer to give gift cards instead of actual gifts.

• IT'S A WRAP: Holiday gift bags are ubiquitous, but most women still prefer to wrap presents -- 27% always wrap, and another 38% wrap most gifts but also use bags.

• LESS IS MORE: 23% will spend more on Christmas gifts this year than last, while 56% plan on spending about the same; 16% will spend less.

• MORE IS MORE: Most women (60%) will add between a few and several pieces to their holiday décor this year, while 10% will add "a lot" of new pieces or do a complete makeover; 30% will not change their décor at all. Minimalist home decorators slightly outnumber those who say they go "all-out," 24% to 20%, while 51% say their decorating will be moderate this year.

• LIGHT UP THE NIGHT: American women are pretty evenly divided when it comes to their preference of Christmas tree lights: 33% favor colored lights, 30% prefer white or clear, and 32% will be putting up both this year. But they will overwhelmingly be putting them on artificial trees (61% versus 25% who will use traditional real trees).

• FROSTY LAWN: When it comes to those inflatable outdoor Christmas decorations, lovers outnumber haters 2-to-1 (31% love them, and 15% hate them), while 39% think they are just OK, and 15% don't have an opinion.

• AND FOR THE REINDEER: Of the 70% of respondents who have a pet, 47% will be buying two or more gifts for each pet, while 31% will buy one; 14% think it is "kind of stupid" and won't buy any.

• GIFTS GALORE: When it comes to humans, those most likely to get gifts from outside the family are child's teachers, mail carriers, bosses and hairdressers. However, most people (57%) say they just buy for family and friends.

• HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS: 38% will be hosting Christmas Day celebrations, 29% will be traveling, and 33% are not sure.

• OPEN DOOR POLICY: 26- to 35-year-olds and Hispanics will be the most prolific party hosts this year; 55% of 26-35 will host one or more parties, compared to 31%, 27% and 20% for the next three age groups (36 and up). 40% of Hispanics will be hosting parties, compared to 34% of whites, 30% of Asian/Pacific Islanders and 24% of African-Americans.

• CAROLING, CAROLING: Favorite Christmas carol or song was spread widely across a number of songs, but "Silent Night" (10%) and "O Holy Night" (9%) edged "Jingle Bells" and "White Christmas" (7% each) as most loved.

• ANGELS GET THEIR WINGS: On the holiday movie front, "It's a Wonderful Life" nabbed the top spot with 12%, just ahead of "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" (9%) and "Miracle on 34^th Street" (8%).

For a look at Kirkland's complete survey, click here.

About the survey: Shelton, Conn.-based SSI surveyed 801 adult American women from Oct. 7 through Oct. 13, 2016, who celebrate Christmas, randomly selecting them from among SSI's national database of online panelists and controlling for demographic factors. The age, race/ethnicity, and regions of residence of respondents were proportionate to the overall adult U.S. population. The survey's margin of error for the total sample is plus or minus 3.46% at a 95% confidence level.

About Kirkland's
Kirkland's, Inc., was founded in 1966 and is a specialty retailer of home décor in the United States. The Company's stores present a broad selection of distinctive merchandise, including framed art, mirrors, candles, lamps, picture frames, accent rugs, garden accessories and artificial floral products. The Company's stores also offer an extensive assortment of gifts, as well as seasonal merchandise. More information can be found at www.kirklands.com, https://instagram.com/kirklands/, www.facebook.com/kirklands, www.twitter.com/kirklands and http://www.pinterest.com/kirklandshome/.

Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/11/3/11G120820/Images/StyledRoom_Christmas-a56105deba65a588b09893a31c126360.jpg
Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/11/3/11G120820/Images/156010_ChristmasTree-34f99d9c16b9bd4d9b3adcaeff72bfc2.jpg
Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/11/3/11G120820/Images/155150_1_MooseGlass-651bfbad805a90d8b8c9429d9eade9ac.jpg
Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/11/3/11G120820/Images/154737_1_MoscowMule-49d9c7d4e724a6158671f45704fae6a8.jpg
Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/11/3/11G120820/Images/153966_1_PetStocking-385e7df0585ba26c86e958e5a078b627.jpg
Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/11/3/11G120820/Images/138804_1_Tumbler-fe4023abb7829aee812f95f5f39471b8.jpg