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COSTA RICA |
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"Lay
Away" Is A Way For Many Costa Ricans To Buy
Christmas Gifts
Christmas shopping in Costa Rica is a little
different, the lay-away plan is a favourite
for early shoppers to avoid the long lines
as December approaches, fear of shortage of
stock or lack of funds to pay before
receiving the Aguinaldo.
Whatever the reason, retailers are eager to
comply.
Just about any item is available for
lay-away, computers, cellular phones,
digital cameras, bicycles, etc, can all be
purchased with a small deposit and with
regular payments - plus interest - it can be
available to be put under the tree by
Christmas Day.
Retailers like the Universal have been
offering lay-away plans since September when
the Christmas shopping season began
unofficially.
Many shoppers use the lay-away to lock in
the purchase early and then use the
Aguinaldo - Christmas bonus - to pay and
take it home, while others pay in each pay
period.
The Universal's Byron Fernández, told the
Spanish language daily that they already
have some 9.000 items on lay-away. At the
Universal, Fernández explains, items costing
˘5.000 or more can be laid-away with a
minimum 25% down and have until the December
24 for toys, the end of November of
Christmas decorations and varying periods
for other items.
Other retailers like Cemaco and Gollo, for
example, have similar plans, all in an
attempt to lure early Christmas shoppers.
Some stores like Toys, all it takes is a
˘1.000 colones to lay-away an item if the
value is ˘10.000 colones or less, and 10% if
above that. |
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