Shopping early for Christmas seems to be the watchword this year, as people look to spread the cost of their gift buying for the festive season.
“We launched Christmas online on 1 October, as it’s payday for many people, and it was very well received with a flurry of early orders,” confirms Jo Barber, owner of Number 14 Ampthill, Ampthill. “We began drip feeding Christmas into the shop at the start of October, mainly cards and Christmas fragrance products, together with warm knits. We worked all day on 22 October, and into the early hours, to get the rest of Christmas out to coincide with half term. The shop is now a winter wonderland, with best sellers so far Jellycat’s Festive Follies, Shoeless Joe(across the range), ceramic light-up houses from Satchville and felt decorations from Gry & Sif.”
Concurs Bev Yates, manager of Maddison in Harborne: “As always, Jellycat has pulled out all the stops with its Christmas selection, which is selling extremely well along with Indulgence jewellery.”
It’s been an early start to Christmas shopping too, at Hugs and Kisses in Tettenhall. “We put all our Christmas gifts out on display in October, and they are already starting to sell, particularly our Crumble & Core earring cards and our Christmas Jellycat soft toys and matching books,” comments owner Caroline Ranwell. “We also have a lovely range of Christmas figurines and snow globes from Heaven Sends,” she adds.
“We noticed customers starting to shop for Christmas as early as August,” highlights Anne Barber, owner of In Heaven At Home in Market Harborough. “We discreetly launched our Christmas department in September in a small way for those customers who were asking for it and have been adding newness each week ever since.”
Anne says that trending gifts include Marmalade of London’s aromatherapy diffuser, toys, to include teddy bears and Miffy, and items to keep people warm, such as microwaveable wheat bags, draft excluders and hot water bottles from The Wheat Bag Company. “Decorations are starting to sell too,” she confirms. “We’ve noticed that customers love our wooden decorations from Lottie Murphy, and also our cute felt and knitted hanging decorations, particularly the Christmas Jumper.”
Continues Anne: “We’re optimistic about Christmas and believe that it will be a wonderful mix of some customers planning and shopping early, and some leaving it until the last minute, and both will be absolutely fine.”
Top: It’s been an early start to festive season for many gift indies.
