Fairhaven Big Lots Boots Santa to Welcome the Easter Bunny

Santa Claus barely had time to park his sleigh and feed the reindeer before Fairhaven's Big Lots trotted out the Easter Bunny.

Signs that screamed "50% OFF CHRISTMAS TREES" hung on the boxes containing what was left of the plastic evergreens in an aisle to the west of the Fairhaven Big Lots' spacious showroom floor.

Spring had already sprung over in the area usually reserved for seasonal displays and products.

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Christmas is over. It's time to make room for – Easter!

In fairness, if it has been a good Christmas shopping season, many retailers are looking to fill gaps on shelves once brimming with holiday items and potential Christmas presents. So it's not unusual to see short pants and bathing suits emerge from the stockroom this time of year.

Perhaps hoping to lift shoppers' post-holiday spirits and get them to part with a few holiday bucks, Valentine's Day merchandise can pop up right after Christmas. That was certainly the case at Big Lots.

Four days after Christmas Day, Big Lots had begun hawking Valentine's Day merchandise, spring and gardening products, and Easter goodies.

Valentine's Day is February 14. Spring arrives on Monday, March 20, 2023, at 5:24 p.m. EDT. Easter is Sunday, April 9, 2023.

What about St. Patrick's Day? The "wearing o' the green" happens three days before the start of spring and nearly a month before the bunny hops – yet not a shamrock in sight.

Before anyone breaks a wrist slamming this article with pithy or caustic remarks, it's all in fun – and it's not a finger in the eye of Big Lots, but rather an observation about the retail industry as a whole.

So Happy Valentines Day, St. Patrick's Day, first day of spring, and Easter to you all. If you need me, I will be in the Big Lots warehouse hunting down the Uncle Sam hats.

After all, you can never be too early.