Reducing the amount of junk mail coming into your home is a great place to begin downsizing and eliminating stuff.  One of the most beloved forms of junk mail are catalogs and chances are you have a catalog in your home from major retailers like Crate and Barrel, Talbots, Restoration Hardware, The Container Store, or Harry & David.

Why eliminate catalogs as a starting point?

  • Catalogs are large and bulky compared to the other mail in your mailbox.  In short, they take up space.  While many people claim to simply throw them in a recycling bin, they often sit in piles on countertops, coffee tables and side tables until someone, who loves that store, will finally sit down and go through them.  Unfortunately because retailers send about one a month, they accumulate very quickly.
  • Your data is sold or traded every day.  Ever wonder why new catalogs show up at Christmas time?  Companies you purchase from on a regular basis, probably sold your data.  When my father passed away, I was calling catalog companies to stop their mailings.  Some claimed they did not sell the data, but when I pressed for more information they did admit to sharing their mailing lists with partner companies.  Whether your information is sold, traded or given away, the likelihood of more and more catalogs coming into your home over time is high.  In short, your problem is going to get worse if you don’t stop the physical catalogs coming into your home today.
  • Everything in a catalog is on the website and shows stock online in real time.  By the time the catalogs come out now, often stock of an item you want is gone in your size.  Why not save the trees and when you need a new little black dress, you just go to your favorite store websites and shop instead of get 12 to 14 catalogs a year sent to you for just one purchase.
  • While catalog items may be cute and oooh you love the color, do you really need it?  Why not take that $59 you were going to spend on a sweater and spend instead on gas, a picnic and a hike in Pisgah National Forest for the day.  You will get so much more enjoyment from that experience than one more item of clothing in your wardrobe.

Steps for how to eliminate catalogs – 

Every time a catalog arrives in the mail, call the toll free number provided and say the following: 

    1. “I would like to be removed from your catalog distribution.”
    2. “I would also like to ensure that my name and information is not sold to any other companies.”

You must ask for both. In several cases where we have called on behalf of our clients, the companies would admit that they had to not only remove the address on file for the catalog distribution, but also check a box stating the information would not be sold.  Sometimes it’s a one step process; either way it is best to ask for both actions to be taken.
Here are some additional steps you can take to ensure the catalogs stay out of the mailbox and your home:

    1. Create an account with Catalog Choice (https://www.catalogchoice.org/).  They are a non profit devoted to stopping junk mail of all kinds including catalogs.  They will even contact catalog companies on your behalf to stop catalogs from being sent to you.
    2. Want to learn more about how your information is acquired and used?  Go to the Direct Marketing Association’s website https://www.dmachoice.org/index.php to learn more.  You can also pay $2.00 and opt out of select junk mail distributions for 10 years.
    3. Did someone in your family pass away?  Contact the Direct Marketing Association at this link https://www.ims-dm.com/cgi/ddnc.php to register a person on their Deceased Do Not Contact list.

Do you need help eliminating the steady onslaught of catalogs? Are you ready to start the downsize or decluttering process? Reach out to us for a FREE consultation by clicking the Contact Us button at the top of the page or call us at 704.905.3223, we are here to help!