The holiday season has swiftly crept up on us once again. Even so, before the season even started, stores across the country began selling Christmas decorations as early as August. While only a few stores started selling in the summer, a majority of the others put out decorations as soon as Halloween ended. During October, November and December, Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas all take place. Most would argue that these are the largest holidays of the year, bringing in all kinds of profit for big companies. Additionally, according to the National Retail Federation, “Overall, holiday sales in November and December have averaged about 19% of total retail sales over the last five years.”
Years ago, thousands of people would line up outside stores the day after Thanksgiving, pushing their way to get the best possible discounts on all holiday essentials. Black Friday remains the most popular day for both in-store and online shopping, but within the last 10 years, the infamous holiday of Black Friday has begun to fade and make way for another large consumer opportunity with Cyber Monday. Cyber Monday is a major online shopping event that takes place on the first Monday after Thanksgiving in the United States and was created as more shoppers switched to online shopping for the holiday season instead of in-store. These two-day-long sales continue to be the biggest contributor to consumerism and commercialization for the holiday season.
Social media has had a great influence over the holiday season, as the pressure to keep up with trends has skyrocketed. This fear of missing out (FOMO) on trends has led to excessive amounts of consumerism, which has only been amplified by influencer culture. While not all influencers being sponsored by brands during the holiday season only care about making a profit, many do, meaning that they will give their viewers a sense of urgency to buy. According to the Q4 2024 Sprout Pulse Survey, “a staggering 89% of consumers say social media impacts their holiday shopping decisions.” This is an insane level of influence considering that social media has opened the public to a wide range of deals, gift ideas, decorating trends and more. This ties back to the fact that Cyber Monday has become more popular than Black Friday due to online shopping becoming more popular.
Modern Christmas decorating trends, such as the “Sad beige aesthetic,” have also taken over the holiday season, showing just how powerful social media trends can be. The nostalgia of the Christmas season with its bright colorful lights, warm cozy scenery and happy decorative elements are what make Christmas unique. The oversimplified decorations of the beige aesthetic shift the holiday from a meaningful and cheerful time to one that prioritizes appearances and style. While this aesthetic isn’t bad, it certainly doesn’t embody the true Christmas spirit, featuring the traditional bright sparkly shades of green and red.
Even Christmas movies nowadays seem filled with brand partnerships, sappy endings, and unrealistic scenarios. Many Christmas movies, such as “Home Alone” or “Elf”, display party or decorating scenes that are filled with the most extravagant decorations. This creates pressure on the viewer and sets high expectations of what Christmas should look like. Some may even begin to idealize this standard and believe that they cannot have a happy holiday without the excessive effort put into decorating and planning. This further elevates the element of consumerism, as these movies prompt the viewer to spend more.
With the increase in fast-moving trends and limited-time sales, most people don’t think twice about making purchases around the holidays. The increase in the world of commercialization has allowed most people to feel the “need to buy” or, in other terms, impulse buying. Businesses strive to make it as easy as possible for a person’s attention to be caught by the bright colors or aesthetic appeal of an item, thus resulting in an impulsive purchase fueled by emotions. This convenience has created the illusion that for a perfect holiday, there must be as many material things as possible.
As consumerism has overtaken the winter season, most people overlook the impact of an alternative: a handmade gift. These gifts do not just show hard work and effort; they show love and care for the person receiving the gift. This season is like no other, as prices jump from low to high, social media takes holiday trends to new levels and expectations are higher than ever. This season, no matter what holiday you’re celebrating, the consumerist aspect should not be the priority. Instead, what should matter is the time spent with loved ones and those you care about. The holiday season is the perfect opportunity to show your appreciation for the people in your life and to make memories that will last a lifetime.
