Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, but it can also be one of the most stressful - especially if you’ve got a family to cater for. The extra expense of gifts and festive activities can be difficult for families to navigate, but if you start preparing now, you can make sure next Christmas is stress-free.
Park Christmas Savings allows you to put away money little and often throughout the year and get it all back in gift cards - with plenty of time for Christmas shopping. Presents, food and other festive essentials can all be sorted before December rolls around, leaving you free to enjoy all the festive family fun the season brings.
Keep reading to find out some Christmas saving tips from Park agents and the Goodto team, to help you turn small steps into big successes and enjoy your dream family Christmas next year.
1. Commit to change
The first step to planning your perfect Christmas is deciding to change your ways. That means no more waiting until November to organise your budget and saying goodbye to writing your shopping list last minute. Once you change your mindset, Christmas will already feel a little more manageable.
Special occasion cake-baker and mum-of-two Diane Bird is a Park Agent, and she explains how joining Park Christmas Savings had a positive impact on family Christmas. “About five years ago, I decided I had to get organised and pay in advance to take the stress out of it,” she says. “Christmas that year was amazing – my gift cards and vouchers arrived in early November and I had all my shopping done by the second week. It was an amazing feeling knowing that I could hang on to my earnings because Christmas was covered.”
2. Start putting thoughts into action now
Once you’ve decided to commit to your dream family Christmas for next year, it’s time to make it happen. You’ve got a whole year to prepare, so take it one step at a time. Park Christmas Savings allows you to put away small amounts of money ready to spend in time for next Christmas.
Diane says: “Having all the presents and food sorted in advance is one less thing to worry about. My advice to anyone is to start Park as soon as possible - the sooner you start, the lower your payments and the easier it is.”
3. Leaning into small wins = big Christmas success
Putting a bit of money aside each week might not feel like a lot at the time, but when you’ve been doing it all year, it really mounts up.
Park agent Natasha Vincent, who is a carer and mum-of-two, says that saving with Park has taken the stress out of family Christmas. She explains: “I can get all my presents sorted in good time with no money worries. That means the festive season is about relaxing and enjoying being with family. With a 4-year-old and a 7-year-old, there is still all the excitement of Santa coming and no one’s too old for a stocking, including my mum!”
4. Ditch unnecessary presents
Consider who you would usually buy gifts for and sort them into two categories - need and want. The people you need to buy presents for might include your children, partner or close family members, while your wants might include friends, colleagues or your child’s teacher.
Goodto Money Editor Sarah Handley, advises, “When it comes to the want category - you could suggest a Secret Santa or spending limit to keep costs under control. If you’re worried you’ve set a precedent by buying gifts previously, then you might need to have a bit of a chat to suggest you skip them this year. With the cost of living still high for everyone, others will probably be appreciative that they can save a bit of money too!”
5. Plan for a Christmas within your means
Before you start planning your perfect Christmas, it’s important to work out what you can afford. If you’ve set yourself a savings target, do some budget planning and take a look at what you’ll realistically be able to set aside. That way, you won’t risk setting your heart on gifts and treats that won’t be an option.
This is another area where Park Christmas comes in handy, offering great flexibility as you can adjust your savings target throughout the year. If what you can afford changes, so can your target.
Natasha explains that while Christmas used to be stressful, she’s now able to treat everyone by saving throughout the year. And as a Park Agent, she sees the way saving for Christmas benefits other people, too.“They choose the gift cards or vouchers they’d like - there’s so much choice from Argos to JD Sports, Sainsbury’s and M&S,” she explains. “You can dine out on the vouchers and get your supermarket shop, too.”
To enjoy a stress-free Christmas 2024, go to getpark.co.uk/budgeting to find out more.
