What’s trending for the holidays
From new and novel to the traditional, holiday décor is a hot category for retailers. Read on to see what holiday décor suppliers predict to be top sellers this Christmas.
L&GR: What are your best-selling Christmas holiday product categories?
Neal Applefeld, president and CEO, Old World Christmas: The pickle ornament is always one of our top ornaments. Food ornaments, as well as pets, are also very popular.
Maura Godat, creative team director, Studio M: So many of our categories are popular around the holidays, as we create coordinated collections that add holiday cheer, charm and color to a gray winter garden. Flags remain the favorite, as do our Art Poles in various sizes. They all look great in a garden or decorating a front porch. Other fan favorites are our mini poles and 6-inch Art Pots — we think of them as dimensional greetings. They make gift-giving fun, and are great for family, friends or hostess gifts.
Beth Lorentz, marketing and product director, Glenhaven Home & Holiday: Our best-selling holiday categories are Christmas ornaments, faux botanicals, pine and berries, as well as LED pre-lit Christmas trees, light strings and outdoor décor.
Marjorie Reed, senior director, product development/licensing, Roman Inc.: For Roman, lighted items continue to be sought after — and the more animation the better. Currently, our Confetti Lites in lanterns, gazebos, houses and many other casings are one of the best categories for us. Glitterdome (water balls) are at the top of the list as well. Both these brands have the magical wonder of Christmas.
L&GR: What categories do you see increasing in popularity for 2023 and beyond?
Applefeld: Food continues to be popular. We also see our pop culture ornaments continue to pick up momentum. Our licensed lines have a lot of momentum. This year, we’re introducing our new Gumdrops line, with smaller ornaments for those who may not have room for a full-sized tree.
Godat: Because they make unique and memorable gifts, our mini poles (10-, 13- and 16-inch) and 6-inch Art Pots continue to grow in popularity. We’ve added great new styles and sayings and think they’ll be even more successful this year. Art Poles in general continue to grow as a category — they’re a unique product that no other vendor offers. We’re also very excited about our Art Planters now being 100% made in the USA and we think this, along with beautiful new designs for every season, will contribute to some great growth for the category.
Lorentz: LED lighted products continue to be extremely popular. Glenhaven Home & Holiday offers a broad range of formats including lighted ornaments, hurricanes and candleholders, tree toppers, figures, lanterns, large outdoor decorations, specialized light string sets, and life-like pre-lit artificial Christmas trees, wreaths, and garlands.
Reed: Definitely the Confetti Lites, along with licenses, Peanuts and Rudolph. These two legendary icons are a constant in sales year after year. Peanuts following is growing with many message groups all over social media.
L&GR: How do you see sustainability/eco-friendly playing into Christmas décor this year?
Applefeld: Our ornaments are something that are passed down from generation to generation. We hear stories of grandparents who started Old World Christmas collections for their grandchildren. Our ornaments help people tell a story through their Christmas tree.
Godat: Sustainability comes in many forms. We’d encourage retail consumers to buy high-quality holiday décor that can be enjoyed year after year rather than tossing cheap décor into a landfill after one season and having to buy new. Consumers don’t always have to buy replacement décor; instead, they could add just a piece or two to their current mix of décor.
Another way to practice sustainability around the holidays is encouraging customers to incorporate lots of natural elements into holiday decorating. Just as an example, trimmings from the Christmas tree that would otherwise be thrown out could be used in so many ways — added to window boxes or on the mantle with a mini pole or two tucked in; 15-inch Art Planters could be filled with extra evergreen to dress up the porch, or greenery added to our standard flag pole.
Lorentz: A trend that we’re seeing is natural, real materials being used in Christmas décor. Natural materials include glass, wood, metal, paper and fabric. We also see the “natural and organic” theme trending up. This design style is strongly inspired by nature, and it is defined by modest and raw atmospheres. In this look, natural colors in the range of browns and greens, together with soft neutrals, are matched with wood, bark, paper, pinecones, raw metals, and woodland and forest motifs.
Reed: We changed a large portion of our battery-operated mechanisms to be USB powered, and included the cord with the item. This change saves consumers from throwing away dead batteries, which we know mostly end up in the trash and are not properly disposed of.
L&GR: Red and green are the standard for Christmas décor — any other color palettes that you see being on trend for Christmas 2023?
Applefeld: Themed trees have become very popular, which expands the color palettes. We’ve seen food, alcohol, hobby and animal trees. We also see trees for other holidays — such as Halloween and Easter — using white, black or orange trees.
Godat: Red and green holiday charm can always be counted on at the holidays. Different tones of green such as sage and white (as in our Snow Village collection) bring a fresh look, as do pops of pale blue and even pink. It’s OK (and recommended) to mix it up a bit! We have both traditional colors and modern and festive combinations in our offerings. ‘Tis the season to be jolly with a range of vibrant, whimsical and nostalgic shades guaranteed to brighten the garden and gift-giving.
Lorentz: Trend and fashion colors, including pastel tones such as lavender and pink, are popular. Plus we’re seeing bright, bold and fun colors like pink, purple and orange being mixed together. These colors appeal to a younger demographic and bring a fun, joyful spirit to holiday décor.
Another element to note is a focus on flocking and icing. This snow- and ice-covered appearance has a vintage feel. Both flocking and icing not only appear on trees, pine and botanicals but also on holiday ornaments and figures.
Reed: Natural elements that include realistic animals (deer, birds, pets) in a shimmering snow scene with pine and holly — traditional and peaceful in nature. Silver and gold also top the list, since both of these metallics have the luster for sophistication and the glittery sparkle for elegant fun.
L&GR: What do you think will be the top consumer trend for the 2023 holiday season?
Applefeld: It’s all about telling a story using your tree. We see people purchasing ornaments that remind them of their vacations, pets, hobbies, etc. They’re using them on their own traditional trees, on themed trees and even using their ornaments year-round for décor.
Godat: We love the trend of creating a festive and colorful holiday porch with real greens. Focus on the front porch by gathering pine cones, branches, logs and stems, and put them together with our colorful holiday product to create a fresh and festive look.
Lorentz: The use of LED lighting and motion have added much newness to traditional holiday formats, and I think this will continue to be popular for the 2023 holiday season.
Reed: Lighted items, which span from outdoor yard and house decoration to indoor tree lighting to room décor, and giftables.
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