Shopping Holidays Around the World

In the retail industry, holidays are often a huge source of revenue. Throughout the world, certain holidays have become a time for consumers to spend more money and retailers to make it. These holidays vary from country to country, and the recognition of these differences is an important issue for international retail companies. For retail companies to be successful, they often must take advantage of these holidays, through the use of marketing campaigns and possible discounts or sales. The targeting of these days across world will help international retailers grow sales and increase profits.

The biggest shopping holiday many people think of is Christmas, which has created an entire shopping season, beginning in November. Christmas sales have led to the creation of huge shopping days, such as Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Boxing Day, which have each become their own holidays for retailers. Although the Christmas season dominates retailer headlines in the United States, it is not the only holiday that generates large increases in activity for the retail industry.

In India, the biggest holiday for shopping is Diwali, a five day festival that occurs in late October or early November. E-commerce sales have increased greatly in recent years during the festival, with 75% of Indians reporting they planned to shop online during this time, hoping to take advantage of the huge discounts offered for Diwali. In China, two holidays that have become major shopping times are Singles Day and Chinese New Year. Singles Day, on November 11th, has rapidly become the biggest shopping day in the world and Chinese New Year brings out shoppers for several weeks leading up to the New Year. Another major shopping holiday in many countries is Valentine’s Day, although retailers must realize that the date it is celebrated can be different in certain countries, such as Brazil and Taiwan.

Holiday gift giving is an important tradition to many cultures throughout the world, which has also made the holidays important for retailers. Success during the holiday season can often be the difference between a good and bad year in the retail industry, underscoring the importance of holidays and explaining the large focus retailers pay to specific holidays. Especially in the international setting, retailers need to be cognizant of these cultural holidays and their associated traditions, to make sure that they can take advantage of the increased activity during these holiday times.