Sears Starts Christmas Sales In July

How early is too early for Christmas marketing? Apparently it's not July for Sears Holdings Company.

The company owns Sears and Kmart. It has opened an online holiday store and Christmas boutiques at hundreds of stores.

The company hopes to nudge consumers into starting their holiday shopping early and use the retailer's lay-a-way plan. Lay-a-way plans allow shoppers to pay for items over an extended period before they actually take the merchandise home. Sears reintroduced the program year-round in January.

The Christmas Lane section of the Web site is linked off of the homepage and features holiday decor, gifts and an offer for free shipping on purchases over $75.

A quick browse through the gift suggestions show some items more geared to summer than Santa, like a propane grill, retro coolers and recreational folding chairs.

The holiday decor section does feature a selection of artificial trees and wreaths.

Sears, like most major retailers, has seen a plunge in retail sales over the past several months but the company's stock is up almost 40% for the year.