IBJ Podcast: Buy your gifts now (and other tips for the 2021 holiday shopping season)

Experts expect shoppers to drop a record amount of money this holiday season. The National Retail Federation forecasts sales for November and December to grow between 8.5% and 10.5% over the same months in 2020. In total dollars, that would be between $843.4 billion and $859 billion.

At the same time, the supply-chain issues that have plagued commerce since the start of the pandemic are expected to complicate gift buying and limit stock for some products.

The answer is to get your shopping done right now, because you might not get a second chance, says John Talbott, the director of the Center for Education and Research in Retailing at the Indiana University Kelley School of Business. In the latest edition of the IBJ Podcast, Talbott explores other big questions with host Mason King. Does Indy’s status as a leading U.S. logistics hub give Hoosiers a leg up on gift availability? What role might inflation play in this year’s shopping season? Why are gift cards even more valuable than usual this year? How can we avoid cybercrime? And are there any blockbuster, must-have gifts for this season?

Click here to find the IBJ Podcast each Monday. You can also subscribe at iTunes, Google Play, Tune In, Spotify and anyplace you find podcasts. Here are some of our recent episodes:

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IBJ Podcast: Patachou’s Martha Hoover on surviving the pandemic, prepping to expand (part 1 of 2)

IBJ Podcast: ‘Old-school’ agent Matt McLaughlin hits $1 billion in career home sales for Tucker

IBJ Podcast: Indiana’s workforce leader talks unemployment, labor markets and minimum wage

IBJ Podcast: Can you afford to quit your job and be part of the Great Resignation?

Looking for another podcast to try? Check out IBJ’s The Freedom Forum with Angela B. Freeman, a monthly discussion about diversity and inclusion in central Indiana’s business community.