Holiday Gift Giving Trends

 

Seasons Greetings Gift Giving Ideas

Gift giving for the holidays involves general trends  favoring traditional options, personalized presents galore. Trends in 2025 emphasize on conscious ethical giving with a growing shift that aligns with personal interests supporting certain brands or reducing wasteful spending. For Christmas 2025 forecast spending varies with some reports predicting an average around 1,000.00 to 1,100.00 per person on gifts. “ Consumers spent a total of $14.25 billion online for Cyber Monday up 71 percent YoY and above Adobe's initial projection of $14.2 billion up (6.3 % YoY).  In the peak hours of 8 pm to 10 pm consumers spent $16 million every minute.  Cyber Monday remains the biggest online shopping day of all time as shoppers took advantage of competitive discounts in categories such as electronics peaking at 31% off listed price, toys 28%, apparel 25%, computers 23%, television 23%, furniture 19%, appliances 19%, and sporting goods 19%.”  Adobe Digital Insights 

Online shopping propelled by social media and AI powdered services making their mark on the holiday season becoming a helpful resource for consumers to find the latest deals while researching products online. US retailers lean heavily on discounts this holiday season to drive online demand.  Persistent competitive deals throughout Cyber week encouraged consumers to shop early creating an environment where Black Friday challenges the dominance of Cyber Monday.  Mobile spending cemented as preferred transactions of 57.5% of online sales through a mobile device on Cyber Monday versus desktop transactions representing $8.2 billion in spending up 8.0% YoY.  On Thanksgiving 2025 mobile crossed 60% for the first time as well as 61.6% share driving impulse shoppers resulting in  increasing holiday season growth.  Cyber Monday hot sellers include popular toys including Manga Tiles, DIY Craft Kits, Fisher Price Little People, Ms, Rachel Learning toys, card and board games, KPOP Demon Hunter toys and action figures, Play Doh Sets, stuffed animals, Paw Patrol toys, and Nerf Guns. 

Top gaming consoles include Xbox Series X, PlayStation 5, PlayStation Portal, Nintendo Switch 2, and top games MBL the Show 25, Legends of Zelda games, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, Battle Field 6, Donkey Kong Bonanza, Pokemon Legend.  Oculus virtual reality VR company acquired by Facebook now Meta in 2014 is known for its popular headsets like Meta Quest (formerly Oculus Quest) which offers stand alone PC tethered and console free immersive gaming and experiences alongside its development in VR/AR hardware and software and platforms through Meta Reality Lab.  In 2025 the landscape is dominated by Meta Quest 3 and and Quest 3S offering a powerful stand alone VR with impressive color passthrough for mixed reality making them a great option for fitness gaming and work despite Quest 4 rummers pointing to 2026 a booming library of stunning games, solidifying Quest 3 as the best all round headset while older models like Quest 2 remain budget friendly in 2025. 

Every year at Christmas time presents surround the base of the Christmas tree for gift giving celebrations.  Exchanging presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day is a tradition traced back to historical figures and events leading to the holiday season.  Saint Nicholas is known for his acts of kindness and generosity, is linked to the tradition of secretly giving gifts to those in need. His story spread through Europe and later inspired the image of Santa Claus. 

Cheers! 

Patricia Lynn

Images Courtesy of Graphic Warrior at AdobeStock