Last Minute Shopping Guide
 As much as one prepares their holiday gift buying, there always seems to be one or two that slip through the cracks and get left until the last minute. On the other hand, there are shoppers who leave literally everything until the last minute and are forced to nail down their shopping list in the 45 minutes before the mall closes on Christmas Eve.
A personal holiday tradition of mine is a frenetic visit to every market that will let me through the front door. The keeper, eyeing the clock, will watch me slip up and down aisles at a hurried pace before he finally turns off the open sign and begs me to leave.
In fact, friends have taken to leaving one or two purchases until the last minute, just so they have something to keep them occupied as they spend the day leading up to Christmas with me at the mall.
It’s a tough feat to accomplish, but every year the shopping gets done. If you find yourself short on time this shopping season, follow this advice to get through the panicked shopping day.
Prepare
Ironically, if you had prepared better you wouldn’t be in this jam in the first place. Still, no reason to turn your back on making lists now. Take a moment, perhaps at a food court pit stop, to list the people you need to buy for and a general idea about what to buy.
Do not get specific. Now is the time to keep your mind open to any possibility. If you say you want to buy your aunt a blue cashmere sweater, you’re going to spend too much time finding just that. If you’re looking for something warm, let’s say, it leaves your eyes open for more possibilities.
Consolidate time use
Once you know the types of gifts you need to find, go to the places where you can find them together. Never be shopping for one person at a time. Anywhere you go to shop, there should be a handful of targets to hit. Places like WalMart and The Bay are good, but large enough to make searching for gifts a time zapping chore. So be sure not to backtrack.
If you’re in the sporting goods section, get the job done and move on. There’s no going back when you’re racing against the clock.
Know the closing time
Stores close, it’s inevitable. In the lead-up to Christmas some stay open longer. Some close earlier, too. Be sure to know every store’s hours and visit them in the right order. Making a couple of calls before you leave home can save you driving out of your way to visit a closed specialty store. Malls usually close early, box stores tend to have later hours around the holidays, but every one varies.
Most importantly, know where a late-night drug store is. Shoppers Drug Marts are open late, sometimes all night, and are not just for buying aspirin and newspapers anymore. Many have electronic sections and, in anticipation of last-minute shoppers, sell gift baskets. Most importantly, they have a rack of gift cards for other stores, restaurants and even websites.
- Matthew Coutts
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