Why it matters:
- Black Friday marks the official kickoff to the holiday selling season, when retailers generate a disproportionate amount of their annual sales.
- This year retailers and brands are wooing Black Friday shoppers who are navigating inflationary concerns and seeking out ‘small indulgences’ with gifting experiences that tap into nostalgia, fandom, and ‘offer an emotional anchor,’ analysts said.
- Marketers are tying holiday campaigns to limited-edition collections and brand activations from the NFL to Netflix show “Stranger Things” that foster community and lean into cultural trends.
Retailers and brands are courting holiday consumers craving “small indulgences” with emotion-fueled gifting strategies that tap culture, nostalgia, and novel limited-time-only products and experiences to delight shoppers in-store, where, despite the dominance of digital culture, most U.S. retail sales still happen, analysts told CO—.
Indeed, 71% of consumers are turning to small indulgences to help them cope with financial pressure, according to a Capgemini study, and marketers are responding in kind.
Amid a tenuous macroeconomic environment where, according to Gallup, more than half of U.S. workers report burnout, marketers are tying their holiday merchandising to retailtainment, ritual, and connection— from crafting events at Michaels Stores to “Stranger Things” and NFL-themed activations designed to rally around the joy of communal fandom.
Holiday marketers become ‘consumers’ emotional regulation kits’
Capgemini found that 72% of consumers link tariffs to price increases, and “people feel less well-off and secure about their jobs,” said Dreen Yang, Global Industry Lead of Consumer Products and Retail for Capgemini, citing the “job hugging” trend.
So it behooves businesses this holiday season to look beyond “capturing more wallet share and instead think about how to be essential to consumers’ emotional regulation kits,” he told CO—.
Elevating in-store shopping from transactional experiences to moments that make shoppers feel has become table stakes for businesses today to compete in a saturated, omnichannel shopping landscape, analysts said.
As the pandemic moved candid conversations on mental health and well-being from the margins to the mainstream, particularly among younger consumers who’ve come of age in an era of multiple macro crises, dubbed “permanxiety” by travel intelligence platform Skift, some retailers this holiday season are directly speaking the language of self-care.
Craft retailer Michaels, for example, which unveiled its first-ever trend report this year, naming “emotional support crafts” among 2025’s defining trends, will host in-store crafting events every Saturday in December in its stated bid to “help families stay stress-free and build connection during the busy holiday season.”
Ritual is becoming a key lever for retailers and brands, Piers Fawkes, Founder of retail trends consultancy PSFK and author of Waldo's “To Be in 2026” report, told CO—. “Shoppers are overwhelmed by choice and burnout, so they’re gravitating toward companies that help them build small moments of meaning: the everyday habits and micro-traditions that make life feel grounded.”
When retailers tap into these cultural cues, 'they’re not just selling a product. They’re offering an emotional anchor. And in a noisy market, those repeatable, feel-good moments are what actually give shoppers a reason to buy right now.'Piers Fawkes, Founder, PSFK
And that can be done in bite-sized ways, too, via what Capgemini’s Yang calls “micro indulgences.”
For one, consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands are looking to strike an emotional chord this season via sweets.
The CPG industry has been ahead of the curve in occasion-based marketing, be it Halloween, Back to School, or Valentine’s Day, noted Yang, a former CPG executive.
Now, during the holiday season — the Super Bowl of occasion-based marketing when retailers generate a disproportionate amount of their annual sales — candy company Mars is tying limited-edition fare like Winter Blend and Holiday Blend M&Ms to “winter-themed baking and gifting,” and “the perfect pairing with holiday movies and popcorn” in its messaging.
Success today calls for “selling products as experiences,” Yang said. That means painting a mental picture for consumers “to sell the emotional experience,” which should be a year-round strategy for businesses, he said. “For example, I saw a display of champagne next to orange juice in a grocery store recently. It wasn't selling products anymore. It was selling a Sunday brunch experience.”
The strategy dovetails with "treatonomics," or the “treat economy." Consumers today, navigating uncertain times, are treating themselves to purchases at affordable-luxury price points that satisfy a craving for a decadent treat, from Christmas-y M&Ms to premium fragrances.
[Read: 5 Must-Know Retail Trends for the 2025 Holiday Season]
Leaning into community and fandom this holiday season
Marketers are also linking holiday campaigns to limited-edition collections and brand activations that foster community and tap into the cultural zeitgeist.
“In recent years—and especially this year—brands and retailers in the U.S. have gotten much better at listening to consumer interests and leaning into the trends people are actually shopping,” Jessica Ramírez, Co-Founder and Managing Director of The Consumer Collective, told CO—. “It works in the retailers’ favor, since they’re tapping into moments and messages that already have the consumer’s attention.”
She cited “Stranger Things” brand collaborations and exclusive retail drops to fete the hit Netflix series’ final season at companies such as Gap, Target, Crocs, and Wrangler as a key example.
“The show has been a massive hit, and with a new season landing around the holidays, it makes sense for brands and retailers to lean into what’s culturally front and center,” she said.
While football has always been a social event, the NFL is amping up its presence this holiday season, as the sports industry increasingly links community-geared fandom to branding moments. “The league has had a bit of a glow up, similar to what we’ve seen with other sports lately. Across the NFL and sports more broadly, consumers are building real community around them. We’re seeing people gather at bars to watch games or host watch parties at home where they’re fully leaning in with merch on game days.”
When brands create experiences that deftly mirror consumers’ values and tastes, they become “badges of belonging,” a social currency beyond the product itself, according to a report from retail consultancy WD.
“Today’s consumers seek more than transactions; they want self-expression and a sense of connection. Cultural capital has become the new currency of desire,” the report said.
“We see this play out across different industries, where multipurpose spaces and unexpected collaborations inspire shoppers by tapping into culture and fandom.”
[Read: Stress-Reducing Wellness Trends Fuel Growth in the Crafts Market]
The joy-via-nostalgia factor
Nostalgia meets culture and commerce this holiday season at apparel retailer Anthropologievia an exclusive 61-SKU home line inspired by “The Nutcracker,” George Balanchine’s iconic holiday ballet.
Launched in partnership with the New York City Ballet, the collection includes items like Sugarplum Fairy-inspired throw pillows and barware designed to evoke the elegance of dance, inviting consumers “to bring the theater into your own holiday rituals,” Anthropologie said in a press release.
“The Nutcracker” collection mines the nostalgia trend we’ve seen all year, said The Consumer Collective’s Ramirez. “Consumers have been leaning into holiday décor, including festive tableware. A lot of this is the consumer looking for ways to bring joy into their home and everyday life, especially since overall sentiment remains shaky given the tough macro backdrop.”
When retailers tap into these cultural cues, “they’re not just selling a product,” said PSFK’s Fawkes. “They’re offering an emotional anchor. And in a noisy market, those repeatable, feel-good moments are what actually give shoppers a reason to buy right now.”
CO— aims to bring you inspiration from leading respected experts. However, before making any business decision, you should consult a professional who can advise you based on your individual situation.
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