If You Think Holiday Decor Came Early This Year, You're Right—Here's Why

It's time to take advantage of stores already breaking out the ornaments and advent calendars.

Home Depot sold out of its giant skeletons in July, when Halloween fans got a little ~spooked~ about them disappearing from store shelves. While you can still find them on eBay, it costs between $450 and $700 to secure a new-in-box one (the retail price is $299). Halloween in July is admittedly early, even for the biggest pumpkin spice latte lover—and Christmas in July may be even harder to fathom. But the holiday displays continue to appear earlier and earlier each year.

The “Christmas creep” phenomenon, defined by Merriam-Webster as "the gradual lengthening of the Christmas season, with ever earlier displays of lights, wreaths, and decorated trees" began in 2021 with the concern that the pandemic would diminish holiday sales. A year later, ornaments and menorahs were displayed alongside back-to-school supplies, and customers took notice—and while it's a little jarring, many see the early access to seasonal decor as a plus.

Related: 9 Reasons Why It’s Never Too Early for Christmas Decorations

“In fact, many customers plan to take advantage of an extended holiday shopping season to manage budgets, which continues to be important to many in this inflationary environment,” Barbara Connors, vice president of strategy and acceleration at 84.51°, told The Food Institute.

Some stores set out their summer Santa displays to clear out old stock before new holiday items arrive or because they’ve sold out of the current season's inventory.

“There are only two reasons why Christmas stuff shows up in August. One half is, they have sold through all their summer inventory, and they need to put something out on the floor," Nikki Baird, vice president of strategy at retail technology company Aptos, told CNN. “The other is that they have Christmas inventory they packed up and held from last year, so this is the inventory they have to put out.”

Another factor in the early onslaught of tinsel and turkeys: Amazon Prime Days (mark your calendars for October 10 and 11 this year). Catching some in-store business before online shopping fully takes over gives brick-and-mortars a head start on fourth-quarter sales, which can make or break many of them.

So rather than lament the warm-weather appearance of witches, reindeer, and artificial pumpkins, take advantage of the opportunity to stock up on in-demand gifts and decorations—and, of course, peppermint or pumpkin-flavored everything. You may have missed out on a 12-foot skeleton, but there’s an animatronic Santa somewhere in need of a good home.

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