Seasonality & retail ecommerce: Don’t miss the mark on peak holiday sales

Learn how your CPG brands can win seasonal sales. From tailored holiday campaigns to rapid inventory and insights, boost ROI with seamless holiday sales.

CPG brands already know that selling through direct-to-consumer (DTC), pure play, and retail ecommerce channels comes with a unique set of challenges and opportunities. But when it comes to seasonal peaks, the stakes are even higher.

For every marketer, planning for seasonal shopping (like Halloween, Thanksgiving, Valentine’s Day, and beyond) means high-pressure strategizing. The reward? Winning over consumers at the most crucial times of the year. With the latest shopping trends and tools at your fingertips, you can position your brand to compete and thrive.

Overall consumer online spending growth

Graph - Holiday season retail ecommerce sales in the U.S. from 2019 to 2021

Source: Statista

“American online spending totaled $1.24 trillion in 2023; projections indicate that online spending will exceed $2.5 trillion in 2030. 266 million Americans (79%) shop online.”

Now that the broader opportunity has taken shape, here’s a breakdown of what’s happening each season—and practical strategies to dominate holiday shopping trends without blowing your marketing budget.

CPG tricks for Halloween treats

Halloween has transformed into a serious revenue driver for CPG brands—especially those in the candy and beauty categories.  

  • 85% of consumers plan to celebrated Halloween in 2023, with most spending focused on festive essentials like candy, costumes, and makeup (according to NRF). 
  • Candy sales remain frighteningly good. The week leading up to Halloween consistently accounts for over 10% of the year’s candy and chocolate sales, with October 28th reigning supreme as the top candy-buying day. 
  • Ecommerce sales for Halloween candy jumped by over 380% in 2022, showing consumers are increasingly shopping online for seasonal favorites. 

It’s not just candy—costume-related products saw massive growth as well. Items like lipstick (+145%) and eyeshadow (+215%) continue to top seasonal ecommerce charts as part of the Halloween shopping frenzy.  

Pear strategy tip: Lean into themed campaigns. Want your products in shoppers’ carts during the Halloween rush? Make your shopping experience as festive as possible. Create themed Landing Pages featuring your seasonal stock, with tools like shoppable media to connect people directly to local retailers carrying your products.

Plus, brands selling through Amazon can also take advantage of their quick shipping times. Check out how Liquid Death pushes sales through both Amazon and retail ecommerce using Pear’s Shoppable PDP on their Severed Lime Sparkling Water product page.

Holiday Highlights: Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday 💻 

Holiday ecommerce spending continues to break records—and for good reason. Gift shopping and seasonal promotions make these months a goldmine for CPG marketers. 

Pear strategy tip: Use urgency to your advantage. Shoppers are primed to spend during these major retail holidays, but time is of the essence. Tools like Pear’s geolocation shopper insights help brands target audiences with last-minute deals, driving impulse buys in areas where shoppers can still receive their orders on time.

Valentine’s Day sweet tooth for retail ecommerce

Love is sweet—and so are the profits from Valentine’s Day shopping. CPG brands in the candy, gifting, and personal care sectors see incredible spikes during this period. 

  • Consumers spent $4.1 billion on candy, mints, and gum in the lead-up to Valentine's Day 2023, a jaw-dropping milestone for the holiday. 
  • Cupid’s arrow strikes again! According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), Valentine’s Day spending was expected to reach an impressive $25.8 billion this year—a strong figure close to last year’s $25.9 billion and continuing to show the holiday’s enduring popularity (via eMarketer).

Notably, shoppers increasingly opted for larger pack sizes, signifying a shift in consumer behavior to maximize value during holiday spending sprees. 

Pear strategy tip 💌 : Target loyal (and last-minute) shoppers. Highlighting gift-ready items in tailored promotional emails or ads is a tried-and-true tactic. Use tools like your Pear-powered Shoppable PDPs to make checkout as seamless as possible for your audience.

How CPG brands can win seasonal peaks 

Every CPG brand is vying for attention during the hustle of seasonal shopping. The key? Offer simple pathways to purchase and utilize tools that provide real-time insights.

Make the shopping experience as straightforward and easy as possible by meeting your consumers wherever and however they like to shop. This means supporting paths to purchase through your website, pure play (e.g. Amazon), and retail ecommerce.

The channel challenge for CPGs

Understanding and balancing your marketing strategies between these three ecommerce channels to make the most of the high-impact seasonal months.

Pear Commerce provides CPG brands with the shoppability and insights needed to achieve seasonal sale growth, particularly through retail ecommerce.

Embrace the season to shine

1. Create holiday-specific shopping experiences 🎁

Stand out this holiday season by tailoring your campaigns to the festivities. With Pear Commerce tools, you can make any campaign seasonally relevant. For instance, American Licorice created a dedicated Halloween shopping page with a festive design and user-friendly layout, providing a one-stop shop for seasonal treats.

2. Leverage daily inventory scanning 📦

Avoid frustrating your potential shoppers with unavailable products. Pear’s inventory tools provide daily updates on stock availability by location, allowing you to geo-target campaigns with precision. Confidently launch campaigns that ensure better ROI and satisfied shoppers.

3. Eliminate barriers at checkout 🛒

The second-largest reason shoppers abandon their carts? Forced account creation during checkout. For retail ecommerce, this is a non-issue. Use Shoppable PDPs or Store Locators as landing pages to provide seamless pathways to purchase through major retailers like Walmart, Target, and Amazon.  

4. Rethink your retail ecommerce performance marketing 📊

Why wait until the end of a campaign to evaluate results? Pear’s performance marketing tools let you track shopper behavior in real-time and adjust strategies instantly. Optimize campaigns on the go based on actual consumer behavior, ensuring every campaign delivers maximum impact.

Your recap for seasonal success

From Halloween’s candy aisles to Cyber Monday’s virtual carts, seasonality remains one of the most lucrative opportunities for CPG brands. With rapid inventory insights, targeted performance marketing, and streamlined purchasing tools, you’ll not only meet your audience where they’re shopping—you’ll outshine competitors doing it.

Implementing these strategies sets the stage for not just one-time wins, but brand loyalty that extends far beyond the holiday season.

Get in touch with our team for your free demo →

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