Layaway has been popular for the past decades and was put into hold and was erased by the rise of credit cards.  However, this program which lets the customer put a purchase aside without having to pay it in full upfront has come to a minor come back.  Thanks to the credit crunch, layaway has been resurrected just in time for the holidays.

I have started purchasing Christmas gifts for my siblings.  I didn’t get to buy much as the prices of gift items have gone up which is not surprising with our ailing economy.  Luckily, I didn’t buy all the stuff that I need because Kmart Layaway will come to the rescue of being able to put aside (or reserve) your purchase without spending a lump sum of money.  You can pay it every two weeks and when you paid it in full, you can take it home with you.  Now, I can continue shopping for the holiday especially that it is coming right up so soon.  A 1080p LCD HDTV will be just right for me and Travis to have a nice start of the year with a new Home Theatre system.

The Kmart Layaway program is a better alternative to the credit card to avoid the sky-rocketing interest rates.  This is very ideal for those who are in pinch. I say this come back of the Layaway was definitely right on time!

Layaway became popular by allowing shoppers to make incremental payments for larger purchases and gift items. “This holiday we know that savvy consumers want to hold onto their ready cash and don’t want to tie up their credit or incur interest charges on the cost of a purchase. Yet, they still want to make Christmas happen for their families,” said Susan Ehrlich, head of Financial Services, Kmart.