Black Friday is so called because it kicks off the holiday shopping season that retailers hope will bring the $4.7 trillion industry into the black. But last year, continuing a growing trend, more shoppers chose to purchase gift cards rather than merchandise, skewing some sales reports. This article examines the varying accounting treatments for gift card sales and their subsequent redemption patterns.

The National Retail Federation said 2006 holiday sales (those occurring in November and December) of gift cards were $27.8 billion. Overall holiday sales were $663 billion, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. Independent financial services research firms have estimated holiday gift card sales were as much as $75 billion. In fact, no one really knows the aggregate effect of gift card transactions because retailers rarely provide separate information on gift card sales and redemptions.

The accounting for gift card sales presents an emerging reporting dilemma for retailers. Unresolved issues stemming from the reporting treatment of gift card sales and “breakage” (gift cards that consumers fail to redeem) potentially encroach upon several accounting regulations, including standards for revenue recognition and the recognition of special items. In practice, the reporting of gift card sales and breakage among retailers varies significantly and it is unclear what future action, if any, standard-setters and regulators will take toward unifying the range of practices.

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