Inside The Bustling, Competitive Holiday Advent Calendar Business

Long before social media was even a thought (let alone, of-the-moment updates from TikTok), the advent calendar—a Lutheran and Christian tradition—has counted down the days until Christmas. This time period is called “advent” season, and it encompasses four Sundays leading up to the big holiday. The span is typically 24 or 25 days. Traditionally consisting of candies or little tchotchkes, gift recipients had the opportunity to be surprised with a small treat each separate day.

Since the pandemic especially, brands—namely in beauty and wellness—have modernized the ancient tradition, enticing consumers with a selection of discounted best-sellers or new launches. They span anywhere from six days to the original 24 or 25.

But no longer are these eager users counting down the days with anticipation. They can go straight to TikTok for the information they need or want to share. This explains why social-first agency SAMY Alliance has found a 368% year-over-year (YoY) rise in engagement (likes, reposts, comments, shares, etc.) with advent calendar-themed posts. But even though consumers can see everything online, it doesn’t mean an actual experience is totally lost.

“From my perspective, these items have a ‘wow’ factor for the gift recipient and across marketing channels,” says Amy Sveda, president of popular hair extensions brand, Luxy Hair—which launched a 12-piece Precious Metals Hair Adornment Box for $68. “They lend themselves to brand storytelling, and I believe some consumers crave that type of emotive connection more than exclusively making a transaction, especially during holiday season.”

While social media limits an element of surprise, digital platforms allow users and brands to (virtually) experience calendars in a variety of interactive ways they wouldn’t have otherwise.

“Social media plays a pivotal role in both the visibility and evolution of our advent calendar,” explained Brittany Nelson, Beauty & Wellness Brand Representative for Alo Yoga (the brand launched a 24-piece calendar that quickly sold out online). “It acts as a direct line to customers and a dynamic source of inspiration. Platforms like Instagram and TikTok provide immediate feedback on what resonates with the Alo community. It amplifies product appeal through highly engaging ‘unboxing’ videos, which consistently drive excitement, even if they reveal some surprises.”

Lisa Tamburello, Vice President of Merchandising at Ulta Beauty, says the brand awareness driven by these unboxing videos has made the market that much more competitive. In fact, it’s driven them to launch smaller calendars (Donut Disturb 6 Day Bath Bomb calendar and 12 Days of Beauty Advent Calendar—both priced under $22) to supplement their main event, the sold-out 24 Days of Self Care advent calendar.

“The added visibility has increased demand, especially as more consumers look to these moments of self-care and discovery as part of their holiday routine or gifting rituals,” Tamburello said. “Each year, we see unboxing content start earlier than the last, and calendars are often the first to go as guests count down to the holidays.”

Sveda agrees the brand awareness opportunity is key with these calendars, especially when it comes to a niche market like hair extensions.

“What I found interesting about the hair extension space was that the revenue trend throughout the year was comparatively flat,” Sveda said. “Outside of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, we weren’t giving the customer a reason to engage with the brand during the holiday season despite moments when we could provide a solution to her needs. Luxy has such an amazing community, and what better time to interact with them in more magical, feel-good ways? We wanted to create bespoke options that truly reflect the nature of the Luxy brand and the lifestyle of our customers.”

The inspiration behind Luxy’s calendar product choice came from none other than a popular Brownies (Girl Scout juniors) song, Make new friends but keep the old, one is silver and the other’s gold.

“I was talking to the team about our customers, both new and returning,” Sveda shared. “This set the tone for the concept of the adornment box. We evaluated timeless needs with emerging trends to pick pieces that would complement our hair extensions and offer styling optionality. Silver and gold French pins, claw clips, pony pins, Bobby pins, signature clips. Our intent is to always enhance one’s natural beauty, and these individual pieces do just that.”

Counting Down to Success

Consumers wasted no time selling out Ulta’s 24 Days of Self Care calendar—a result of successful planning on the company’s part.

“Selecting brands and products for the curation of our annual advent calendar is a thoughtful process,” Tamburello said. “We’re constantly in the kitchen with our brand partners, and we aim to balance beloved, go-to brands with emerging and trending products that feature innovative solutions, adding something special to the self-care journey. Our team also looks for items that work together to offer guests a holistic experience and full routine across skincare, wellness and beauty. This way, each day’s reveal feels fresh, exciting and indulgent.”

This was equally important to the team at Alo, which gets going on their purposeful curation process a full year in advance.

“We aim to create an inspiring wellness journey that ensures each year feels fresh, and aligns with our ethos of mindful movement and elevated wellness,” Nelson said. “Keeping the same price point helps maintain accessibility for loyal customers, while every other detail is curated to bring something special and different each year. We focus on balancing new products with beloved best-sellers, selecting wellness items, accessories and apparel that create a harmonious experience.”

This year, Alo introduced the calendar to products from two new categories—candles and supplements—as a way to offer an immersive introduction to the brand’s holistic approach.

When Advent Calendars Go Wrong

No brand is exempt from potential advent calendar cancellation. In addition to the inevitable argument over sustainability, there’s the aspect of value. It’s not about the cost itself, but how the contents occasionally don’t reflect it. We’ve seen it happen with Chanel’s $825 “luxury scam” in 2021. This year, Sephora was the culprit. The company declined a request for comment in this article, but TikTokers wasted no time calling out the 2,500 rewards-points-only purchase.

While the online consensus was that the gifts were redundant and of minimal practical value, the biggest argument was that there was no skincare, makeup or other actual formulaic products. The calendar predominantly only featured miniature face tools and blending sponges.

“Multiple people redeemed it, thinking it was going to have makeup, skincare and bath products because that’s what was advertised,” lamented one customer. “And instead, it just had s—t like five-dollar accessories. I was one of those people [who] was scammed.”

In that same video, content creator Trevor Barrett told his one-million followers, “Go search up this calendar and you will see this girl is not exaggerating. It is literally a scam. I read your comments, and people are right.” The brand also launched two inexpensive Sephora Collection advent calendars.

Playing It Safe

Some brands are confident taking chances with their calendars—Ulta, for example, found a formula and has successfully stuck to it.

“Everything we do is through an inclusive, guest-first lens,” Tamburello said. “We take into consideration emerging trends, including skincare, haircare, and self-care at the top of the list. We look closely at what our guests are interested in discovering more of, and we work collaboratively across teams, from merchandising to creative, to put our best foot forward with an advent calendar that represents a balanced selection of our most-loved and exciting new offerings.”

The brand proudly featured what they consider “the best of self-care,” including best-sellers from Peach & Lily, Clinique, Patchology, Sunday Riley, Cosrx and Dermalogica.

For Alo, with a $250 price tag and a $600 value, the brand is aware their consumers expect them to deliver.

“Each day’s ‘gift’ is thoughtfully selected to feel both exciting and aligned with the Alo lifestyle,” Nelson said. “It creates a journey that grows with each new item. We put great care into the design, making sure the calendar itself feels like a luxe, beautifully crafted experience from the first moment. Our approach is grounded in the goal of delivering true value, so customers can always count on the Alo advent calendar as a worthwhile, elevated addition to their wellness journey.”

Because Alo is so heavily driven by social media, Nelson needed to plan accordingly.

“For this year’s calendar, inspiration was drawn from popular social media formats like Get Ready with Me (GRWM) and “My Routine” videos,” Nelson explained. “We recognized the value of curated routines in the Alo lifestyle. Inside, customers could find a morning skincare sequence complete with essential accessories, as well as a “sleepy girl” nighttime routine featuring magnesium to foster relaxation. This thoughtful curation not only enhances the customer experience, but also naturally encourages creators to share their routines. This promotes the calendar in a way that feels authentic and true to Alo’s community-centered ethos.”

Following the lead of Alo’s community was a move in the right direction. According to data provided by the brand, the advent calendar’s in-feed graphic achieved engagement levels 100% above its average, ranking as its fifth best performing post year-to-date (excluding joint posts). Additionally, the Instagram story generated link clicks 11,300% above its usual rate.

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