Selling The Seasons: Winter
With the autumn leaves freezing over, the clocks turning back and the holiday season approaching, the new season of Winter is upon us and with it comes a whole new dynamic of economic activity and opportunity for small business and entrepreneurs.
One of the principle economic movers during the winter months is the Holiday Season, where the American consumer traditionally spends their most disposable income on a variety of different goods and services. That said, every year is different, economic conditions, inflation, weather and supply chain are just a few factors which have affected consumer behavior over the holidays each year, so how does this year stack up.
The Wall Street Journal recently published a rather informative article diving into the numbers retailers are seeing this holiday season and their projections through Christmas and New Year holidays.
So far this year’s holiday season so far, the consumer has proven, once again, to be extraordinarily resilient and active with purchasing at higher-than-expected levels, outpacing those of last year in total. The National Retail Federation expects retail sales in November and December to grow 3.7% to 4.2% compared with the same period a year ago, from $1.01 trillion to $1.02 trillion. That growth would be comparable to last year, when sales in the period rose 4.3% to $976 billion.
The talk and fears from retailers, consumers and businesses on the effects of tariffs at the beginning of the year, prospects of increased costs of goods and services have since not fully materialized and consumers although having lower sentiment, continuing to spend in normal patterns and business continue to maintain sustainable supply.
Stock market records, Government re-opening and the most recent jobs report exceeding expectations have boosted optimism on the overall economy for the rest of this year and into Q1 of 2026.
So how can your small business thrive in such an environment this holiday season? First part is to get the word out there, this time of year people are actively looking to buy and have budgeted cash, pooled up over the whole year, to intentionally spend on your goods and services. Like Salmon migrating back to fresh water in Alaska to spawn, the rivers of the commerce world are teeming with customers, it’s your turn cast the line out and reel them in. The bait: advertising. Just as consumers are willing to spend on goods, your brand should do so as well on ads and promotion, get the word out there and attract buyers, they are wading in shallow streams, hungry and biting.
Another way to profit this season is through holiday promos. Now is your brand or service offering them? Gift cards, referral bonuses, discounts etc. Holiday-themed incentives are attractive and create an aspect of time sensitivity for consumers, urgency to an already apt buyer to partake in your offering. It may seem common sense to do something of this nature over the holidays; however, the majority of the businesses I work with completely miss the mark here or don’t see the value.
Pro tip: if you ever want a clue on what to do regarding marketing or promotion, take a look at what your industry peers are doing and replicate it best you can, they have gotten where they are and are dominating your industry for a reason.
Something else to do to help capitalize this holiday season is to shore up your inventory and supply chains. Even if they may be small, ensure you have all the equipment, staff, logistics and finance to accommodate orders, and delays in shipping and receiving during this time of year as transportation is at its most expensive and volatile.
In conclusion, the consumer is spending this time of year and will continue to do so until the end of the year and willingly. With over a $Trillion in cash to be distributed this holiday season, do your part to cast out your net and haul in your share of the catch.
To gain personalized guidance for your business on this topic and others contact us.
- Vince Calace
Founder - Venture Business Development