DESPERATE TIMES CALL FOR DESPERATE SHOPPING

Study Reveals Parents – Men Especially – Are Willing to Take Drastic Measures to Check off Holiday List

Chicago - December 13, 2006 – With only 10 shopping days left until Christmas, a newly released survey reveals that Americans – and overwhelmingly parents and men – are willing to resort to drastic measures to complete their holiday shopping. The survey, conducted by ShopLocal, found that 67 percent of Americans are willing to take at least one “desperate measure,” from parking illegally to calling in sick to work, to fulfill gift-giving obligations. Other findings include:

• One quarter of men surveyed will “buy anything just to buy something,” compared to 14 percent of women. Men also are more likely to park illegally, with 10 percent of respondents saying they do compared to 5 percent of women..
  
• Parents with children under age 12 living at home are on average more likely than anyone else to resort to “desperate measures,” with 77 percent saying that they do everything from park illegally to pay exorbitant, last-minute shipping costs.
  
• Age affects shopping desperation as well, with 16 percent of 18-24-year-olds saying they will call in sick from work to complete holiday shopping compared to only 7 percent overall and 3 percent of 55-64-year-olds.
  
• Respondents with higher incomes are more likely to “shop weird hours,” with 58 percent of those earning $75,000+ annually doing so compared to 43 percent in the $25,000 - $35,000 salary range.

Eva Yusa, ShopLocal’s shopping expert known as “Eva the Shopping Diva™,” can discuss these findings and offer tips on how better to attack last-minute shopping. Sites like ShopLocal.com, which offers local content, can help shoppers locate the best deals at stores near them on the items they desperately need to get.

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ShopLocal offers consumers and retailers a comprehensive marketplace for multi-channel shopping and advertising. With ShopLocal.com (www.shoplocal.com) and The ShopLocal Network – made up of more than 200 affiliate media, search and shopping sites – consumers have access to the only Web site with information on products from local stores side-by-side with e-commerce options. With ShopLocal’s SmartCircular™, SmartCatalog™, SmartMedia™ services and MyStore™ by ShopLocal, retailers can distribute sales and promotional content on the ShopLocal site as well as through their own Web sites, integrating e-commerce and local in-store promotions.