With Christmas right around the corner, the mad dash to the mall is on. In fact, according to a recent survey by PriceGrabber.com, an online shopping site, 41 percent of consumers plan to shop between Dec. 21 and Dec. 24 for holiday gifts. 
Of those last minute shoppers, 43 percent believe the best discounts can be found during this time period. Some consumers are planning to wait even longer to complete their gift list in order to take advantage of after Christmas sales.
With prices expected to be reduced by as much as 75 percent after the 25th, it might be worth the wait. Waiting until after Christmas may be harder for parents with small children, but with the average household expected to spend nearly $650 on gifts alone, some parents have found ways to break the news to older children and other family members; according to a recent Associated Press article.
For many, waiting until after Christmas may not be an option, but waiting until the last few days might be a smart strategy. Retailers will continue to drop prices until well into the New Year.
A study conducted by the American Research Group, found that early shoppers will end up spending 14 percent more than those who wait. Either way, retailers are expected to do very well this holiday season — $469 billion in sales well — which is a 3.8 percent increase over last year.