TOYOLOGY Toyology-The Action Men of the batteries not included industry
Related Articles
TOP CHRISTMAS PRESENT HIDING AND HUNTING SPOTS REVEALED
- Almost half (42%) of British parents admit hiding decoy presents to outwit their children
- Nearly two thirds (61%) of British parents have forgotten where hidden presents are until after Christmas day
- Over two thirds (63%) of parents are most vulnerable to the annual present hunt when cooking dinner according to new research by Beano
Under the bed, inside parents’ wardrobes and under the stairs have been revealed as hotspot areas for curious children searching for presents in the lead up to Christmas, according to a new study released today from Beano.
The research reveals that over three quarters (79%) of British parents say they have had to become more creative when hiding presents, with almost half (42%) deploying decoy presents in more obvious locations.
The new research of 2,000 British parents and their children aged 6-14 years old reveals British houses are teeming with secretly hidden presents as parents say they have, on average, gifts squirreled away in four different areas around their house.
| Top 10 Christmas present hunting spots according to British children aged 6-14 | Top 10 most inventive Christmas present hiding spots according to British parents | |||||
| 1 | Under their parents’ bed | 42% | 1 | The underwear drawer | 33% | |
| 2 | Bottom of their parents’ wardrobe | 36% | 2 | Inside mislabelled boxes (i.e. tax receipts 2018) | 24% | |
| 3 | Top of their parents’ wardrobe | 30% | 3 | Old Christmas tree / decorations box | 22% | |
| 4 | Under the stairs | 29% | 4 | The laundry basket | 19% | |
| 5 | Under their own bed | 27% | 5 | Inside their children’s bedroom | 14% | |
| 6 | The kitchen cupboards | 22% | 6 | Behind books on the bookcase | 13% | |
| 7 | Under the sofa | 21% | 7 | Inside rolled up socks | 8% | |
| 8 | Parents’ chest of drawers | 18% | 8 | The tumble dryer | 8% | |
| 9 | The airing cupboard | 17% | 9 | Behind the bath panel | 7% | |
| 10 | Their own wardrobe | 17% | 10 | Under the floorboards | 6% | |
According to kids, parents are most vulnerable to the annual hunt whilst cooking dinner (63%), watching their favourite TV show (52%) or during morning lie-ins (49%). 59% of kids claim they now know all of their parents’ usual hiding spots with 65% finding the stash before the 25th December.
Although over two thirds (67%) of British children say they’re tempted to unwrap them early, only one in 10 (12%) would actually peek inside the wrapping, with the majority of kids saying they would employ simple tactics to guess what’s inside, including the classic touch test (43%), shake test (30%) and sniff test (5%).
Two thirds of British parents (66%) admit they’re forced to stash gifts outside the home. Top external hiding spots include: at a relative’s house (54%), at a friend’s (30%) and at the office (24%) whilst 2% said they had gone as far as renting out units specifically for present storage until Christmas.
However, some hiding spots are evidently too good with 61% of parents saying they’ve forgotten concealed gifts only to find them months later and 28% making the ultimate blunder of accidently throwing them away.
Mike Stirling, Editorial Director of Beano Studios, said “The annual hunt for presents is a huge Christmas tradition for kids. Finding them, squishing them and using all of their thinking power to suss out what might be inside before the final reveal on Christmas morning is all part of the fun of the holidays. The old, faithful hiding spots are not as secret as parents might think. It’s time to up your game and get creative!”
The study shows that history repeats itself as eight in 10 British parents (85%) were also guilty of searching for gifts when they were children.
My advidce? Rent a storage unit and sub-let to other parents…You’re welcome.
