According to Roy Morgan’s annual Christmas retail sales forecasts conducted in conjunction with the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) indicate Aussie’s will spend up to $51.5 billion across retail stores during the Christmas trading period – that would be from November 9th to December 24th (46 days).
This is an increase of 2.9% from the $50 billion of retail expenditure during the 2017 Christmas trading period.

Interestingly, apparently, South Australians spend the least on Christmas festivities than all other major states.
I was particularly interested in my area of retail and was not surprised to find the following…apparel and household goods will also record a significant increase in trade, with Roy Morgan and the ARA predicting $4 billion to be spent on apparel including clothing, footwear & accessories, a 3.1% increase from 2017, while over $8.9 billion is forecast to be spent on Household Goods, a 2% increase from a year ago.

We all love the pre-Christmas and boxing day sales, and what about the big ones in January that entice us back to the stores! So when is a sale, a good sale? Any clothing item bought, regardless of price should serve your wardrobe needs in many ways to qualify as a ‘bargain’!

Before you purchase more clothes/accessories in January, reflect on these important questions about 2018 first.

Did you feel confident and joy when you wore your clothes in 2018?

Did you actually wear most of your wardrobe items in 2018?

How many clothing regrets do you think you made in 2018?

And what clothing/accessories from last year do you feel you should let go of before you buy more?

Here’s my clothing ‘checklist’ for tackling the stores during January sales…

The colour aspect…

If the colour of the garment is not allowing you to look radiant and feel great, best to leave it and look for something better.

Personality style…

It’s a good indicator when you put a new item on that you feel completely yourself and ooze confidence! You may not ever wear it otherwise.

The perfect fit…

A cheap dress, jumper or shirt that fits you correctly will look more expensive and even tailor-made – that’s the power well-fitting clothes can have on you.

Versatility…

A great purchase, even a bargain should bring some worthwhile value to your wardrobe. Try to imagine 3-4 items already in your wardrobe that will blend and work well with the new purchase.

Classic, trend or fad…

Question whether your potential purchase is likely to date quickly. If so, then definitely buy cheap. Buying something that is classic or a trend will give you more mileage and investment rather than a fad piece.

As seen in http://www.weekenderherald.com.au/

Show Buttons
Hide Buttons