The Cost of Christmas

As our magazine for the News and Feature writing module was created during the winter months, a Christmas themed article was inevitably highly appropriate. I set out on creating a piece which included both opinions and statistics (because this is conventional of magazines), and this is my completed article.

Is Christmas worth the expense?

Christmas Day. A towering mound of presents has formed underneath the vast, beautifully decorated tree, and an enormous seasonal feast dominates the dining table.
Twinkly coloured lights frame the house and vibrant decorations hang in every available corner, transforming the normally mundane space into a sparkly, festive grotto – encapsulating all aspects of the joyful Christmas spirit. Even your grumpy old Granddad musters a smile as everyone is soaking up the warmth of the magical event, yet this enjoyment comes at a cost. And a rather expensive one at that…

  Christmas is an extremely pricey time of year. What with all of the presents, the decorations and the banquet to consider, splashing out is of incredible importance in December.

  According to a survey conducted by Abbey National, over £1.6 billion is spent each year on Christmas food including turkeys, mince pies, chocolates and nuts. An extortionate £900 million is blown on decorations, Christmas trees, cards and crackers; and almost 40% of people buy new decorations annually. This research illustrates the shocking expense of Christmas – yes, it may be the season to be jolly, but it certainly isn’t the time to be stingy!

  David Bates, 20, a media student says : “My parents insist on getting a real tree every year, but they don’t get it until 2 weeks before Christmas and it always makes a mess.” In terms of expenditure, David spends £10 each on his mom, dad and brother, whilst making sure to buy his grandparents chocolates. To save money, the Bates family reuse the same decorations annually and David suggests buying presents that are on offer as a way of minimising the total cost.

  Tom Harris, 20, is a lifeguard who spends around £15 on each family member and £20 on his girlfriend. “I always aim to have a fair bit of money left over – whether that may be from my wages or my loan - because I don’t want to be skint! I make sure that doesn’t happen by restricting myself – I stick to a budget of £20 a week.” At the Harris household, Christmas is a huge deal to them, regardless of the cost: “We always make the effort to really decorate the house. It may sound cheesy, but Christmas is all about spending time with the ones you love.”

  Daniel Nolan, a 19-year old I.T student, has some useful ideas on how to save money in such a wallet-exhausting time: “Shopping at the wrong time can lead people to spending too much at Christmas. One method I usually stick to is to wait for the January sales because prices drop dramatically, resulting in the purchase of your wanted product at a much lower price. However, if you want the gifts on the day, the best thing to do is use your student discount card in as many shops as you can.” Daniel spends around £80 whilst out shopping for the occasion, and the Nolan’s always invest in new lights and decorations for their tree. “We reuse our Christmas candles and keep the odd decorations to place around the house like the singing Santa toy and the snowman ornament,” he admits.

  Beth Rubens, a 19-year old Speech Language Therapy student finds herself spending a fortune at this festive time of year, despite the unemployment increase affecting many teenagers in this economically challenging time: “I always spend too much, I can’t really help it!” she admits.

And Beth isn’t the only one. Amazingly, 50% of people confessed to splashing out more than they could afford during the festive period, and 33% claimed it would take them approximately six months to pay off their debts. Quite possibly the worst part about all of this is the fact that some people know they will go over their desired limit! A recent study found that four out of ten consumers haven’t set themselves a budget to stick to, and out of those who have, 46% expect to overspend.

  Liam Short, a 20-year old rifleman in the armed forces, spends approximately £150 on presents – a considerable amount compared to other teenagers. However, Liam stresses the essence of Christmas is about the thought involved, not the extravagance of the shopping: “It’s not spending a lot that’s important, it’s about making the effort and buying people what they want and deserve. It just always ends up being expensive!”

  So, Christmas may be expensive, but there’s no denying that for the heart-warming atmosphere and joy that it brings, it is worth every penny. And at least we can reassure ourselves that it’s only one day of the year!