Posted
12/19/2006 05:44:00 PM
by Douglas
Spend your gift cards, people. Retailers are counting on you
losing them."It can be fun to get them, but then I forget about them," said Deborah Cabaret, 46, who has hundreds of dollars worth of unused cards. "Or I walk into the store, I look around, I don't know what I want, and I leave."
Last winter, Best Buy Co. reported a $43 million gain in fiscal 2006 from cards that hadn't been used in two or more years. Limited Brands Inc. recorded $30 million in 2005 revenue because of unredeemed cards.
It's bad enough that they expire, but $40 million in unclaimed cards? That's a license to print money.