Shopping holiday for gift card holders returns

The second annual ‘National Use Your Gift Card Day’ takes place Saturday, Jan. 16.

Introduced in 2020, this shopping day follows the holidays when many consumers receive gift cards as presents. According to the data analytics company InMarket, the average shopper spent 17.6% more on gift cards in 2020 compared with 2019. 

Retailers and restaurants participating in the 2021 edition of Use Your Gift Card Day, with some offering special deals, include:

•    Applebee’s;
•    Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's;
•    Bolay;
•    Bonefish Grill;
•    Carrabba's Italian Grill;
•    Chico's;
•    Chipotle;
•    Express;
•    Macy's;
•    Outback Steakhouse;
•    PetSmart;
•    rue21;
•    Saks Fifth Avenue;
•    Smashburger;
•    Soma;
•    Topgolf; and,
•    White House Black Market.

"More than ever before, gift cards can help retailers, restaurants and consumers, and National Use Your Gift Card Day reminds gift card recipients to use them," said Tracy Tilson, founder of National Use Your Gift Card Day and UseYourGiftCard.com, an online hub offering consumers special shopping deals, incentives, and tips on how to use and maximize savings when shopping with gift cards. "We are also encouraging Americans to use their unused gift cards for good."

As part of the event, UseYourGiftCard.com is partnering with GiftCardBank.org, a nonprofit organization that aggregates gift cards for essentials and distributes them to low-income families in need. The registrar at National Day Calendar has previously proclaimed National Use Your Gift Card Day to be observed on the third Saturday in January, annually.