Why is Christmas coming so early this year?
We noticed more consumer chatter about Christmas In July than usual this year, leaving us wondering: Why?
From seeking joy and predictability to cope with a pandemic to safeguarding against future out-of-stocks, read on to see what we learned.
Many people, especially parents of young children, are celebrating Christmas early as a way of bringing joy into their lives during a heavy time. As a family, this gives them all something to look forward to.
“Merry Christmas in July! Yesterday, we surprised the boys and they woke up to Christmas! We had so much fun staying in pjs all day and doing all the Christmas things we love!” - Instagram
“Let’s be honest - we could all do with a little cheering up right now! Its been rough, its been tough and a covid emotional roller coaster and getting no easier as we are in the midst of this storm. We’ve been angry, sad and scared all at the same time - its like the teenage years all over again and those were rough! So I wanted to give you something to look forward to and get excited about this week - like kids at Christmas really and hopefully, even if just for a moment, life will be just a little brighter and better.” - Instagram
“AND A HAPPY MID YEAR! Are you celebrating Christmas In July? We celebrate on the 25th, just like December! Actually, we celebrate anything and everything because we don’t believe in not celebrating anything that makes us happy! So I’ll be doing a Christmas dinner this evening with my family and we’ll 100% be blasting some Christmas carols because as it turns out carols are my sons favorite tunes.” - Instagram
While ‘Christmas in July’ is already a familiar tradition to many, it now carries even stronger expectations: to bring a pocket of happiness into a strange and particularly unhappy time.
“Holly Jolly July! Christmas in July is here 🎅🏻⛄️🎄 ! I know it’s early to think about the holidays but I think we could all use some cheer.” - Instagram
“Who else is confused about time still? Are we really in August? And am I the only one who feels like we should be back in March still?! The other day I slept in my Christmas pjs... Christmas in July, maybe? Growing up, the youngest of four siblings, I was always trying to keep up with my sisters and brother and was great at keeping track of who was where. Now I am having a hard time keeping track of the months let alone the day.” - Instagram
“MERRY CHRISTMAS IN JULY 🎄 I am Christmas obsessed and I cannot wait for the holiday season, even though I have ZERO idea what that will look like this year. I love the JOY, the GENEROSITY, and the TRADITION that the holidays bring.” - Instagram
Consumers are leveraging the multi-sensorial experiences of Christmas to bring the feeling of joy that comes with the holiday earlier in the year.
“Merry Christmas in July! We are celebrating the big day with Christmas music, Christmas decorations, and Christmas cookies! Plus a whole bunch of other goodies, like mint brownies, Santa hat cupcakes, snowballs, snickerdoodles, eggnog macarons, biscotti, Viennese butter cookies, and chocolate chunk-cherry chocolate bread!” - Instagram
“Of course I’m buying Christmas biscuits; always happens in August.” - Twitter
“I JUST WOKE UP FROM A DREAM ABOUT CHRISTMAS WITH AIZAWA AND NOW IM SAD BC IM AWAKE NOW AND I CAN STILL SMELL CHRISTMAS brb buying Christmas candles to make myself even more sad.” - Twitter
“Am i weird for loving christmas time over halloween time. christmas time is my fave time of year ))): all lights and the cold make me so happy. i love christmas music, cookies, buying presents, ginger bread houses, hot chocolate and stockings LOL maybe it’s just because i’m a christmas baby.” - Twitter
People are kicking off their Christmas decor shopping early due to the fear that shelves will be empty when the actual holiday season rolls around. Many believe this year has been unpredictable enough already, therefore they want to make sure Christmas is the one thing they can still count on.
“No you’re not imagining it, I did just post a Christmas tree pic in July 😮. But for good reason I promise! Hopping on that #christmasinjuly train because I realized it’s actually not too early to start thinking about your holiday decor. I mean, Hobby Lobby’s already way ahead of you.But seriously for a minute, we don’t know what the next 5 months holds and if you love to decorate for the holidays you might want to get a head start on the shopping, because from what I’ve already seen in the summer season, stuff went reallll fast, like before summer even hit 🤷 .” - Instagram
“Just a little Christmas shopping done early. Big screen TV's literally flying off the shelves.” - Twitter
“Good day today, worked on my newest model and found some parts for my next AR build. I did realize Christmas shopping is going to be interesting this year with many shelves lacking product.” - Twitter
“I've been ordering Halloween and Christmas decorations now! Things are getting sold out already.. everyone is on the same page!” - Twitter
Because this year has “made up its own rules,” many people are making up their own rules, too, and doing their Christmas shopping whenever they feel like it.
“I’m buying my Christmas tree in October bc 2020 going by it’s own rules anyway.” - Twitter
“I'm going to do my Christmas shopping in October and I couldnt be more excited, as much as I suck with ideas for presents I LOVE buying for other people.” - Twitter
“Have y’all already started buying Christmas presents or is it just me…” - Twitter
“It’s still August and I’ve already talked to Zack how much Christmas decorations I’m buying for this apartment.” - Twitter
For the planners, early Christmas shopping is something extra (and exciting) to plan for.
“We love the holidays especially Christmas! Here in our home we have been making sure we stay positive and excited no matter what is happening. We continue to show our children that having the right attitude is everything. To keep with our traditions, we love celebrating and getting ready for the holidays in July. We are planners and we like to start getting our Christmas list tackled early, Therefore we are celebrating the start of Christmas shopping with Christmas in July.” - Instagram
“A very productive afternoon of searching for and ordering Christmas presents. Buying a few each month so that by the time December comes I will be done and ready. That’s the plan!” - Twitter
“Nothing says 'prepared' more than buying Christmas presents in August.” - Twitter
Want more information on how we collect these insights?
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