Trends

{Sponsored} The holiday season will be different this year, no matter what. Regardless of the state of affairs in November and December, and whether we’re still quarantined and social distancing, or if we are post-pandemic, we will have seen people change as a result of this universal experience.

Retailers will need to support customers where they are, either through continued curbside and delivery experience or in stores. Crowds may be smaller, but the wish to show we care by giving gifts will still exist.

WILL SALES BE PREDOMINANTLY PICKED UP CURBSIDE?

While local and state governments may allow stores to be back to normal, our new normal might be different. We may still see many customers utilizing curbside services. For retailers, this means that websites need to be robust. With customers shopping from a variety of devices, it’s important that they have an excellent experience with your website.

Here’s what your website will need to have:

1. Excellent photography will be a must; work with makers to ensure you have several shots of each item.

2. Creative descriptions: tell the story of each item, from paper texture and weight to colors and special finishes.

3. Enough bandwidth — if your traffic in-store quadruples around the holiday season, know that you will probably need to quadruple your bandwidth for Holiday 2020.

4. Great offers to entice customers to shop online.

Another great way to reach customers is via window vignettes. Show off some favorites, marked with item numbers, and suggest customers call your store to learn more and purchase those items. This will also allow you to upsell and suggest items that may be only online.

POST-PANDEMIC IN-PERSON SHOPPING

After everything that we’ve seen this year so far, customers may still be nervous to shop post-pandemic. Be prepared with a plan of how to keep your customers and employees safe during the busy holiday season. Whether this is offering free hand sanitizer, a robust cleaning program or any other safety measures, they should be outlined on your website as well as on your door.

IN-STORE GIFT WRAPPING

A perennial favorite is a great differentiator this holiday season. Consider offering gift wrapping, either complimentary or for a nominal fee in order to introduce a new revenue stream. Choose one to three designs of ream wrap, matching bows and gift tags and add a sticker with your store’s logo that goes with the designs chosen. In addition, consider adding an upgrade that customers can purchase, such as a custom bow with ribbons that complement the wrap chosen.

GIFT WRAPPING SETS

As an impulse item, create gift wrap sets at your register for customers to grab for gifts purchased elsewhere. Choose several wraps, bows, gift tags and ribbons and package them together to add to the shopping experience. You can include these wrap sets in your window vignettes as well!

WHAT’S NEW FOR HOLIDAY 2020 FROM TGWC?

Some of the favorite themes TGWC will be offering for holiday 2020 include traditional red and green Christmas, holiday snowflakes, and the popular winter wonderland set.

“Any time there has been a crisis, globally or nationally, the following holiday season saw a shift back to traditional holiday gift wrap designs,” said Nancy Dickson, creative director at The Gift Wrap Company. Dickson suggests that stores look at the traditional icons and colors that her team has created as well as the Winter Wonderland collection.

To add something fun to your display, include designs from the Go Brightly collection, which encompasses traditional bottle brush trees in brilliant, happy shades of bright plumbs, acid green, mustard and pink along with baubles and matching tissue and ribbons. The “candyshop colors,” as Dickson calls them, are sure to put a smile on the gift giver’s and receiver’s faces alike.

As always, TGWC’s collection includes many Hanukkah designs, foil and glitter, kraft paper, winter styles not specific to any holiday, santas, llamas, penguins and everything else imaginable.

To learn more about this year’s offerings from TGWC, visit www.giftwrapcompany.com. Check out the Holiday 2020 catalog at www.giftwrapcompany. com/catalogs.

© 2020 The Gift Wrap Company