Christmastime is here again and with it comes my lifelong obsession with retail. This truly is the greatest time of the year and I live for the commerce that flows around it.

People say, “Christmas has become too commercialized”. It’s true. We are all driven to find the perfect gift for that special person, sometimes at whatever cost. I spent a few hours Saturday at the BMO Centre wandering the aisles of staving Calgarians who were desperately dropping money for unique and sometimes ingenious goods for that loved one. I couldn’t get enough of it. The craft fair is commerce at it’s roots. Make something, likely with your heart and hands, and sell it for profit. The world of retail used to always be this simple. Go to your favourite store, shoppe, bazaar, fair etc and buy, whatever you have to to make the season right. That is until the internet ripped the heart out of Santa.

 

Now I would be a hypocritical Grinch if I didn’t tell you that I have bought presents on the web. The sheer selection of items that you can reach via the web make this a retail phenomenon. Every year that goes by, I find myself buying new and novel items that I haven’t seen in stores. But every time I hit “click to buy” I feel the knife in my heart. I live and breathe retail daily and know the challenges that stores continue to have in finding the right mix of product and value to provide unique offerings to its patrons. If we just look at the art of online shopping for the selection, value and convenience it is, retail is doomed. But what about the experience?

I realize that the experience of hitting the malls is no picnic this month but we should embrace it. Is it really a special gift if I search it on eBay/Google/Amazon and have it shipped to my home while I sit on my couch drinking eggnog? Hell no! The real art is the experience in securing the gift within the marketplace we live in. That’s what makes it a special gift and what gives you the stories to tell for years to come. Everyone loves to hear “that” story about “that” tremendous find for “that” amazing person in their life. The only place this story can be formed is within the madness of the retail that Christmas brings.

 

So let’s all head out there this next 12 days and revel in the moment. There could be a day in our lifetime where we don’t have these gigantic commerce superstructures to visit. Enjoy the parking issues at Chinook Centre. Embrace the jostling and barging that goes on in Walmart. Bang carts with the people rushing to the checkouts at Costco. Cheer for yourself when you figure out your personal jigsaw puzzle of gifts that you have to solve before Jesus’ birthday. Most of all, buy some stuff because it’s good for your soul more than it’s good for the economy. Don’t go crazy and live within your means but come on buy some shit you don’t really need or likely want.

It continues after Christmas too. Boxing Day is like retail porn for people like me but admit it, you love it too. I know we can all buy electronics online much easier but get out and smell the money trading hands that morning. I will be the guy standing in Best Buy with a big smile on my face.

Happy hunting!

Marco