Revealed: Britain's Worst Shoppers

Kelkoo reveals Britain's worst shoppers and provides tips on how to be a canny consumer this Christmas & into 2009

November 2008 - Shoppers could end up squandering their hard-earned cash as they fail to plan ahead this Christmas and New Year. A survey of nearly 5,000 shoppers carried out by Kelkoo, the UK's leading shopping comparison site, (Hitwise UK) has today revealed that nearly a quarter (23%) of shoppers leave their Christmas present-buying to the very last moment to try to haul all their gifts in one go - a surefire way to blow the budget.

Bruce Fair, Managing Director of Kelkoo UK, explains: "Although it's true that more people are getting online to save themselves money this year, it looks like there's still a high number who will miss out by leaving it too late and missing the best deals."

Whilst scouring the country to uncover the nation's Christmas shopping habits, Kelkoo identified Britain's worst shoppers along the way. Ben Wilson, 23, from Hertford is a classic shop-a-phobic who uses delay tactics to avoid the inevitable slog around the shops, spending countless hours hesitating over what to buy.

"The idea of heading to a packed-out high street or shopping centre in the weeks before Christmas brings me out in a cold sweat. I can never decide what to get people, and I can't think of a worse way to spend my weekends. Of course, this tends to result in a last minute panic on Christmas Eve when I race around grabbing anything tha's left. I have to admit it has lead to some embarrassment come Christmas Day when I hand my loved ones some fairly rubbish presents â?? on top of that, it does tend to cost me a lot more."

Ollie Stewart is the world's worst sales shopper. He often has the best laid plans to make his investment purchases in January when prices are slashed, but ends up leaving it too late and paying full whack instead.

"Last year I had every intention to replace my tired old washing machine in the post-Christmas sales. But when I saw the queues gathering on Boxing Day, I just turned right back round and went home to my turkey sandwiches. Of course, the washing machine broke down for good at the start of February and I had to replace it when shop prices were back to normal and I was feeling my poorest."

There are doubtless many who can identify with these hapless shoppers, who get claustrophobic just thinking about Christmas and sales crowds and worry that they won't be able to balance their shopping list with their budget. Help is at hand, with Kelkoo's Christmas picker http://www.kelkoo.co.uk/c-100318623-christmas.html. Here you can sort gift ideas by interest, age range, budget or popularity. To make the most of the sales without the stress of the high street, there's also a selection of the latest deals and discount vouchers, on top of the normal price comparison tool to help you hunt down the best bargains on the net.

"It's been a tough year and January is set to see even tougher times. By getting online and getting in early, you can take the stress out of shopping and make sure you're getting the best deal on everything you buy â?? both at Christmas and beyond," said Fair.