Great gifts under $50

Who really wants to fight crowds and visit multiple stores to find the deals this holiday?  Marvelous Man has just taken the stress out of shopping by finding gifts that are sure to please but won’t burn a hole in your wallet:

 BUTTON DOWN in Black, from Company 81 ($42.00) – The highest quality in fabric, style and wash gives this shirt a vintage feel at a price you can afford.  Clothing from Company 81’s collection have been seen on dozens of celebrities, including Sex in the City’s Blair Underwood, The Hills’ Brody Jenner, E! News’ Jason Kennedy, to just name a few.

TITAN 6 for men by ShaveMate ($9.99) –  Who doesn’t love shaving products, right?  With six precisely lined blades, this razor will gives the closest shave possible.   One of the greatest features of this product is that it has shaving cream right in the handle, making traveling easier and eliminating the rust ring in the shower. 

GRAND RESERVE – Robusto Natural 5 pk of cigars, from Gurkha Cigars ($48.50) – Nothing puts a smile on a man’s face like cigars.  That’s why  these flagship cigars from Gurkha Cigars make the perfect holiday gift.  Infused with Louis XIII cognac and handmade from the finest tobaccos, these cigars have a creamy flavor with a hint of spice and a pleasantly light finish.

CLASSIC TAG-FREE CREW NECK – 6 pack, from Jockey ($40) – You can never have too many undershirts and at this price how can you pass them up?  The tag-free, relaxed fit crew neck wears well under dress shirts or stands alone for a laid-back style.  Recession or not, this is a gift that will forever be on both the “needs” and “wants” lists.

LAPTOP ESSENTIALS KIT from BrookStone ($49.95) – Most people blow a gasket for this gift because it’s so useful.  This item is one of BrookStone’s best sellers because it has six tools that make out-of-office laptop use much more convenient.

Used, fake and DIY Christmas trees

Even Christmas tree sales are struggling this year, according to industry research firm IBISWorld. Real and fake tree sales are expected to decline 2.5 and 5.1 percent, respectively, as fewer people have multiple trees in their home (i.e. dining room and living room) this holiday.

“People are looking at every which way to save a buck but also continue with the Christmas spirit,” says Toon van Beeck, a senior industry analyst for IBISWorld. “That’s why we’re seeing an increase in do-it-yourself and used trees.”

One tree category expected to fare particularly well this season is used, fake trees. IBISWorld expects these tree sales to grow 4.0 percent this holiday.

Top 6 Men’s Watches Priced Around $500

1. TX ‘730’ Classic Chronograph Watch

This sporty looking  high quality German engineered watch is loaded with cool features. The extra large dial is striking and the overall styling makes me think of a race car. In all black this is a watch you could wear with a dressier outfit too. So it can be worn all the time.

2. TX ‘Airport Lounge’ World Time Watch

The simplicity of this watch makes for an elegant statement with the large silver face (with a globe as the backdrop) and black leather strap. A great choice for a guy who wants something a little out of the ordinary.

3. Victorinox Swiss Army ‘Maverick II’ Two Time Zone Watch

If you want a watch that looks like an Omega Seamaster (the James Bond watch) but don’t want the price tag that accompanies it, then this would be a great substitute. And it’s not like it’s an unreliable knock-off either. Swiss Army has a great reputation and is Swiss made.

4. Morpier Firenze ‘Stratos’ Stainless Steel Bracelet Chrono Watch

This is another great watch that has the styling of a watch 10 times its price (think Tag Heuer). It has a polished stainless steel bracelet, a big black face with separate dials to keep track of hours, minutes, and seconds and a date calendar. Swiss quartz movement and water resistant.

5. Victorinox Swiss Army ‘Alliance’ Watch

This watch has a croc-embossed leather strap and brown dial with date. The silver case around the crown face makes this a sharp looking watch.

6. Emporio Armani Stainless Steel Bracelet Watch

This is a modern looking watch with a stainless steel bracelet band and skeleton transparent dial face. What I like about this watch is that it doesn’t look like your typical steel bracelet watch.

It’s beginning to look a lot like gadget Christmas

While gadgets and electronics continue to be hot items year-on-year, there will be fewer large purchases this holiday, such as TVs and computers.  This is partly due to the fact that retailers will look to reduce the number of deep discounts – which severely damaged margins this time last year – along with the fact that customers will move towards needs over wants.

“This season there won’t be a “wow” factor in terms of sales,” said Toon van Beeck, senior analyst with IBISWorld.  “Consumers have been so inundated with discounts for more than a year that it will be difficult for retailers to get shoppers excited about holiday promotions.”

However, one of the biggest gadget winners this holiday will be e-book readers, partly because the prices are being driven lower by competitors entering the market (e.g. iRex and Nook).  About 30 percent of all e-reader sales in 2009 are estimated to derive from the holiday period alone.

“Consumers will reduce spending on big ticket items,” said van Beeck.  “Instead, they’ll trade down towards trendy and cheaper gadgets like e-readers; iPod Nanos; Nintendo Wiis and other game consoles; Flip Video and small point-and-shoot digital cameras. This is where the real value will be for consumers this Christmas.”