With Christmas decorations hitting the shelves at craft stores in July, Wal-Mart employees are scrambling on Nov. 1 to tear down Halloween displays and rush in the jingle bells. Spotify stations are playing Christmas music year-round (here are some of our favorites – https://mashable.com/article/spotify-christmas-playlists), and you might think that everyone spends November and December rockin’ around Christmas trees. But, that’s really not the case.
While you and your team might think of “the holidays” squashed between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, there are actually 131 holidays in December alone. Yup. 131. (Don’t worry, you are not expected to buy presents for each one.) And remember, some people don’t celebrate any holidays at all. Just think of all the money they save on Easter eggs, candy corn, and chocolate Santas!
So, whether you are putting on your Santa hat to celebrate or not, all these holidays provide your business with ways to connect with customers through social media, parties, sales, or – our favorite – holiday swag.
More Holidays = More Inclusive
It’s all about being kind and inclusive and we think that’s the best kind of holiday spirit. Diversity experts Lunaria Solutions remind us to avoid making assumptions about employee and client bases. They also remind us that inclusive holiday celebrations (that includes swag!) do not mean Christmas is minimized or ignored. Christmas is an international celebration, both religious and secular, and should be a part of your Fourth Quarter planning. Rather, it means avoiding assumptions about those who celebrate it, not imposing its celebration on others, and always making space for other celebrations, too. Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Yule are beautiful and food-filled holidays with plenty of opportunities for fun – and a bit of learning about other people, their beliefs, and history.
Even if you celebrate Christmas, not everyone has a tree, gets visits from Santa, decorates with lights, or believes in the Nativity. So, even within the Christmas-celebrating American public, there are huge variations. (To be honest, some of us around here find the popular Elf-on-the-Shelf tradition a bit creepy, so there you go.) Read more: https://lunariasolutions.com/blog-post/holidays-inclusion-and-the-workplace-celebrate-belonging/
Be a ‘Radish’
In the late 1800s, merchants in Oaxaca, Mexico began carving vegetables – especially radishes into people and animals as a way to attract customers to their shops. Shoppers snapped them up to decorate their holiday tables and the mayor officially declared December 23 to be the Noche de Los Rábanos or Night of the Radishes.
Now, we’re not saying you need to start carving up radishes and turnips for your customers – but just remember getting creative and thinking out of the box isn’t a bad thing. So if you’re looking for an employee or client gift that is a bit on the “radish” side, skim through our product guides on our Web site. We have a high-quality and curated selection of holiday-themed and non-holiday items available for you as you finish out the year. https://logodepotweb.com/promotional-products/
We’ve Got It All – Almost
With 365 days in every year, you have 365 chances to prepare to celebrate with your customers. And with 131 holidays in December, you can pick a whole bucketload of holidays to have fun with for your employees. So pick that holiday, come up with an unusual way to connect, order holiday swag, and get ready to have some seasonal fun.
(Note: We probably don’t have anything for you if Krampus is your thing. But, if you design a T-shirt for it, we’ll get it screen printed for you even if it creeps us out. Don’t know about Krampus? Read about the European tradition at History.com: https://www.history.com/news/krampus-christmas-legend-origin.)
A few of the religious and cultural holidays for the coming weeks include:
Saint Nicholas Day (Christian)
Fiesta of Our Lady of Guadalupe (Mexican)
Lucia Day (Swedish)
Hanukkah (Jewish)
Christmas Day (Christian)
Three Kings Day/Epiphany (Christian)
Boxing Day (Australian, Canadian, English, Irish)
Kwanzaa (African American)
Omisoka (Japanese)
Yule (Pagan)