20 Days Until Christmas Eve - When will You Close your Shop?

[katzrul15]

20 days until Christmas Eve.

Unless using Express or overnight with Fedex or UPS, most Sellers have about 15 days to insure delivery or less!

When will you close up Shop?  We typically close with 10 days to go.....thinking earlier this year?? 

But sales haved waned....lots of last minute shoppers to be had??

Worth the headache or no, close up soon??

What are other Sellers doing this year??

[krazzykats]

I don't think I will close.  Christmas is on a Sunday.  

[paulhua3]

Not closing at all.  Most of my items are bought by collectors, not by others as gifts.  Sales on Christmas day are usually pretty good, for this and my much larger collectibles store.

[katzrul15]

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@paulhua3 wrote:

Not closing at all.  Most of my items are bought by collectors, not by others as gifts.  Sales on Christmas day are usually pretty good, for this and my much larger collectibles store.

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Interesting insight!

Thanks for the reminder not all sales are about the Holidays!!

[katzrul15]

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@krazzykats wrote:

I don't think I will close.  Christmas is on a Sunday.  

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@krazzykats 

Do you put a disclaimer in your listings?  (i.e.  Shop by this date to arrive on or before 12/24?)

Do you email buyees to let them know it might not arrive before Santa does??

[simba6]

No need to close. You can say items ordered after a date might not make it in time for Christmas.  People will also be shopping for themselves and not care about when it arrives.   Why lose any sales?

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

@katzrul15  I don't expect to close. People shift from buying gifts to buying more for themselves, and some people even start shopping for next Christmas.  I only ship USPS, and don't offer Express, so I will probably put an updated version of this as the marketing banner on my store home page, or perhaps adapt it to the store billboard. I think ebay also usually mentions the cut off in their estimates. (if anyone would like, I'll post the new graphic(s) on the Board, and you are free to use them in your store)

[ed8108]

You should already be experiencing some of the holiday buying frenzy at this time

Dismalbay, this year ?

[domin-tomas]

Never had closed on any holiday. Never gave a warning with a delivery date. It's in a disclosure seller ships within a certain days and buyer could receive it within a certain days. Case closed.

[richard1rst]

I NEVER close.  I sell internationally. Only about 20% of the world's population are Christians.  The other 80% (some of whom are U S residents) generally don't care one way or the other.

Some cultures do not even consider Jan 1st to be New Years Day. Well over half of the world celebrate it at other times of our year.

Not having a world view can cost you sales.

[slippinjimmy]

I'm currently projecting on closing in April of 2031 (that will make it 30 years as a full time eBay seller).

[714ricki]

We have always stayed open to support Santa & all the last-minute gift shoppers. Knock on wood, the weather has also been pretty good so far across the country to kickoff the Christmas rush to support all of those shipments. 😎

[krazzykats]

No and no.  I am just continuing business as usual.   Ornament selling season, you know... 🎅

And I sell more ornaments at this time of the year than the rest of the year. 

[richard1rst]

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@714ricki wrote:

We have always stayed open to support Santa & all the last-minute gift shoppers. Knock on wood, the weather has also been pretty good so far across the country to kickoff the Christmas rush to support all of those shipments. 😎

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While weather is always a factor I would be more concerned about a rail strike. We think of UPS and FedEx having trucks and planes all over the country. But according to a railroading article if a trailer has to move more than 400 miles it is typically piggybacked on a freight train.

https://www.progressiverailroading.com/intermodal/article/UPS-relies-heavily-on-railroads-to-keep-th...

(There are many other similar articles online)

There have been rail strikes in the past which previous Presidents have brought sufficient and forceful pressure to end and/or avoid. But this time around .....

[inhawaii]

I usually stay open.

I ship all my items First Class or Priority.

I figure Friday/Saturday the 16th/17th will be the last shipping day for a customer to get something before xmas.

Since Thanksgiving been using my "holiday" thank you cards with every order.

Happy Holidays everyone!