A couple of other things to think about regarding giving store gift cards as presents for the holidays - first, what do you do when you have store gift cards and have a specific item in mind, only to find out that they stores don't have the item they are seeking?
Carrie Lee's son asked for and received gift cards from Wal-Mart because he had his eye on a particular game system for his birthday. The family was thrilled when they saw this particular game system on sale at Wal-Mart, with a bundle pack, which included the game he wanted. Carrie Lee called around to 9... yes 9.... different stores and NONE of them had the item in stock. And they weren't just sold out of the pack, they have just never received them to sell in any of the stores.
Now how in the world is Carrie Lee's son supposed to be able to purchase this product if no one has it? Especially when he has store-specific gift cards. Sure, he could wait until there are tons in store (and probably not on sale) but isn't it better (certainly in this economy) to save a few bucks where you can? Sounds like good economics to us. Sheesh...
Wal-Mart really dropped the ball on this one ~ what they should have done is ensure a guaranteed minimum number items is on hand in each store. That's what they do with those huge Black Friday door buster sales, so we know it can be done. We have to say, however, that Carrie Lee made a good call in asking for Wal-Mart gift cards rather than, say, Circuit City gift cards.
A word to the wise, always err on the side of caution when purchasing (or holding onto) store gift cards. We're seeing a number of companies who have gone (or are in the process of going) belly up and filing for bankruptcy protection. If you have a store gift card and the company files for bankruptcy (even if it's a reorganization bankruptcy) your store gift card becomes an unsecured debt and the money on that card goes down to the bottom of the repayment list and your card may become worthless. $20 million of Sharper Image gift cards early this year vanished with the company's bankruptcy. Poof. Just like that. Gone.
And we expect the same will happen to Circuit City gift cards.
All in all, we think if you have a loved one who has everything, gift cards are a great idea. Just be careful when you're picking out one to give as a gift. And if you receive a gift card, we recommend not holding on to it too long... just in case.
--Contributed by Deb
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