Features

The National Retail Federation (NRF) numbers for winter holiday 2024 were surprisingly positive! Core retail sales grew an unexpected 4% over 2023 to a record $994.1 billion, surpassing the NRF’s forecast of 2.5% to 3.5%. While there were increased online sales, brick-and-mortars benefited too, noted Jack Kleinhenz, NRF chief economist. “There was a return to in-person shopping experiences and a focus on early buying.”

I interviewed seven spectacular stationery shops across the U.S. to see how they crafted healthy 2024 winter holiday seasons. Their numbers were doubtless buoyed by Chanukah beginning Dec. 25, only the fifth occurrence since 1900 — although be ready for it again in 2035!

1. Stay present. Having run Annie’s Blue Ribbon General Store in Brooklyn for 18 years, Ann Cantrell knows an open mind remains essential. “I always say, every year is different. With the late Thanksgiving and Chanukah starting on Christmas — many of our families celebrate both — things took a while to heat up, but once they did, we saw old favorites and new goodies sell quickly. (So) we stayed open late Tuesday through Thursday and even opened early the occasional Saturday.”

2. Write by hand. Jennifer Luna, founder and CEO of Paper Luxe Stationery & Gifts with locations in Fircrest and Gig Harbor, Washington, described her 2024 season as solid. “We sent out handwritten invitations to our 11th Annual Holiday Open House. The response was incredible. It added such a personal, thoughtful touch that really resonated with customers — with many mentioning how special it felt to receive something handwritten in the mail with a hand-illustrated envelope. The turnout was one of our best yet, and we fully credit that extra effort.”

3. Get famous. Vanessa West, proprietress of Avenue Wrapping in Memphis, Tennessee, dubbed 2024 as a “normal” year — that is, until she won The Ultimate Gift Wrapping Challenge, presented by QVC+ and HSN+. “That victory was a game-changer for my confidence and helped me market my shop and wrapping services. We ended the year up 6% when the national average growth was around 3%.”

4. Sets make the season. Kandice Matsler, creative-in-charge at Barque Gifts in Lubbock, Texas, characterized the 2024 season, while “fast and furious,” as her most successful yet. “Our curated gift sets were very popular. These grab-and- go items, tied with ribbon and gift tags, were sprinkled around the store to make it easy for customers to buy multiples at once. Selling out fastest were sets with consumable items — candles and matches, hot cocoa and marshmallows — so we’ll focus on more of those for holiday 2025.”

5. Deck the halls — early. Sara Villari, owner and creative director at Occasionette, with locations in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, recalls holiday 2024 as “a nail biter — overall it was a good season, but the day to day felt unlike any other.” While Villari pushed her holiday reset in the shops back by a week to give fall and autumn merchandise a longer selling period, “We’ll be going back to setting out holiday in early- to mid-October vs. the end of October again this year.”

6. Love your customers. For Audrey Woolen, founder and creative director of Urbanic & Urbanic Goods, holiday 2024 found her stretched thin. She was immersed in developing Urbanic Goods’ Holiday Collection for wholesale, so it took a few all-nighters to craft a memorable closing chapter for her Los Angeles brick-and-mortar. The result was “a joy-filled success — and so much better than I expected!” One new activation was Holiday Love Notes. “We printed heartfelt notes of thanks and tucked one into every store bag. These felt like a meaningful way to show gratitude to our customers and invite our community to stay connected with us.”

7. Trust your gut, but pivot too. Jade Urash, owner and lead designer, and Cara Knipe, manager and human Swiss army knife, are the driving forces behind Oklahoma City-based Chirps + Cheers. “Products that sell great one year never seem to move the following year,” said Knipe. “For the 2024 holiday season, we were extra unsure. We assumed budgets would be tighter, especially in seemingly extraneous things like giftwrap and holiday greeting cards. But our giftwrap services were the best ever. We did predict correctly that holiday greeting cards were less sought-after.”

8. Write a book. Cantrell always wanted to create an Advent Ticket Book — and hers was a career highlight! “Our amazing team and freelance graphic designer came up with 25 “moments” to count down to Christmas. One team member came up with fun ideas like trivia and special deals and our graphic designer executed them beautifully. We gave them out at our holiday open house, then saved a few for special customers and big spenders!”

9. Think pink. Luna’s Pink Friday event, held the Friday prior to Black Friday, continues to grow. “It encourages shopping small before the big-box rush. We serve snacks and sips, stay open late and offer 25% off one item. That gets people in the door, and many end up spending well above our average holiday order value. More importantly, they spend their hard-earned money with us first.”

10. Make a prize purse. Instead of a tote or other giveaway, Cantrell assembled a holiday raffle. Anyone who spent over $50 was entered into the weekly raffle for a $100 gift card, with bigger ones during Small Business Saturday. “Our manager made the drawings really fun in the store and on our Instagram Stories!”

11. Trim the fat. Matsler was slammed early on, and decided to cut custom holiday cards. “We hid them on the website and never advertised that service. I was afraid it might hurt our business, but it freed me up to focus on other sales. We still designed a handful for longtime customers, but by eliminating a chunk of custom orders, it significantly reduced my personal stress level.”

12. Dress for success. The Urbanic brand literally lives on its customers’ hearts — thanks to custom apparel. “Knowing this would be our last holiday season at this location, we thought we’d create some Urbanic gear — cozy hoodies and cute tees with our crest logo and tagline, ‘Urbanic forever,’ on the back. Seeing people out in the wilds of Los Angeles wearing our brand was — and still is — beyond exciting!”

13. Beat the rush. After seeing a decline in Small Business Saturday traffic over the past few years, Luna offered 30% off entire purchases — but customers had to arrive before the shop’s 10 a.m. opening. “It felt like a gamble, but it generated real buzz, brought in early shoppers, and we ended the day up 12% over the previous year after discounts. Meanwhile, shoppers were thrilled.”

14. Pick up men. Matsler’s Guys Shopping Night fell flat. “We will attempt it again this year, but experiment with different ways to get the word out. The men who came enjoyed themselves, but we’ve got to work on getting them in the door.”

15. Stay in touch. “Over the years, I’ve learned that collaborating with my best wholesale brand partners is a win-win,” Woollen shared. “For example, some check in on our stock levels leading up to the most crucial days, while others send essentials like gift bags and ribbons or best sellers on consignment during the final stretch. We sell what we can, and get invoiced on that, and return any unsold items. This kind of teamwork manages the holiday rush AND benefits everyone financially.”

16. Stay in the house. Like Urbanic, Occasionette is generating its own offerings. “Last year inspired us to design and create as much product in-house as possible. We do well with our Occasionette exclusive items for a number of reasons — margin, being the only place people can find it, etc. — so we want to continue to build that business.”

17. Hire extra hands. With their giftwrapping services more than doubling, Urash and Knipe suspect customers felt rushed, too. Because they hired extra staff, Urash explained, “this freed us up to complete this giftwrapping quickly on a strict turnaround time.”

18. Give a holiday bonus. Luna launched a VIP customer giveback initiative. “We created 25 gift bags filled with favorite holiday products and surprised our most loyal customers. The response was incredibly heartfelt and emotional; it reminded us just how deep the relationships we’ve built over the past 12 years really are. We’ve decided to continue it in 2025 as a quarterly program. Each season, we’ll choose 10-plus amazing customers to receive a curated gift bag as a small but sincere thank-you for their continued support.”

19. Treat your team well. Cantrell ensured that her hardworking staff enjoyed the holiday spirit as well. “We did a candle making class at a top candle vendor for us this year, plus a holiday party with a white elephant — all really brought the team together off site! Lunches on busy Saturdays are a
given for morale, (as are) coffee and cupcakes from local shops.”

20. Stay open. The lazy days between Christmas and New Year’s Eve are ideal for browsing stationery. “In expanding our staff, we were able to stay open. Those extra open days really paid off in a way we didn’t expect,” pointed out Knipe.

21. Think like an indie. “We’ve learned that personal connection, curated experiences and thoughtful promotions win over blanket discounts and long hours,” Luna finished. “Our customers crave meaningful interactions as much as great products or pricing. So our focus remains on making every touchpoint intentional and memorable. That’s what keeps people coming back — not just during the holidays, but all year long, and what will keep them coming back even if prices continue to rise due to inflation and tariffs.”