Every year, the Grinch stands in the snow with Grinch feet ice-cold, arriving at the same realisation: Christmas is about more than gifts. It’s togetherness, joy, and those hard-to-price intangibles that make the season feel like the season.
And every year, a host of characters – led by the wide-eyed Cindy-Lou Who – patiently pulls him back towards the heart of it all.
This year, that familiar storyline has been reworked with a very modern twist. In Walmart’s big holiday marketing play, Cindy-Lou Who is once again moved by an urge to help the people of her town… to score deals.
It’s wholesome and consumerist at the same time – and, in many ways, a fitting metaphor for the holiday season as a whole. People still want a merry Christmas, but plenty are struggling to find the funds to make it happen.
The “Joy Deficit” and the Problem With Anxiety-Led Messaging
Behind the festive packaging sits a more uncomfortable emotional backdrop. The leader of the Kearney Consumer Institute says there’s a real joy deficit among consumers – made worse by marketing that leans too heavily into financial stress.
The feeling, in their view, is that brands have been amplifying the anxiety: you’re stressed, everything’s expensive, and then you’re seeing that message reflected right back at you in ads, on social feeds, and in the comment sections.
It’s not happening in a vacuum, either. TikTok commentary around grocery bills and rising costs can become an echo chamber of “we’re all struggling,” reinforcing a loop of stress rather than easing it.
Yet even within that pressure, consumers are still finding ways to push through the season – often with a little help from buy now, pay later options, flexible budgeting, or simply making different choices about how they celebrate.
The Economic Squeeze Reshaping What “Gifting” Looks Like
If holiday marketing is usually emotional, this year it has to be emotional within context.
Relentless inflation and the ever-changing state of tariffs have strained shoppers’ wallets in ways that are directly shaping gifting behaviour. A Bank of America study found that more than 60% of shoppers anticipate holiday expenses will put financial strain on them, while 58% expect higher prices on gifts this year.
That pressure is influencing where people shop – and what they buy. The vast majority of consumers, 87%, say they plan to shop at discount retailers this season. Just over half are also considering gifting “dupe” products, signalling a growing willingness to trade down if it means staying within budget.
Who Will Spend – and Who Will Step Back
Not all shoppers are moving through the season at the same speed.
The senior vice president of corporate finance at Moody’s Ratings, noted that higher-income shoppers are expected to drive purchasing, while middle- and lower-income consumers will likely be more cautious. In line with that, they also predict a bump for discounters and off-price retailers as value becomes the headline.
There’s also a more fragile piece underneath: some consumers may increase their credit balances to make holiday spending possible, particularly if inflation continues to outpace real wage growth.
The season may still deliver sales volume, but the “how” behind those purchases could be carrying longer-term risks for household finances – and for retailer trust.
Resale Rises, with Gen Z Setting the Pace
If discounting is one survival strategy, resale is another – and it’s increasingly being reframed as smart, intentional gifting rather than a compromise.
It was suggested that resale could be an option for gifting this year, with Gen Z leading the trend and often starting their product hunt on resale platforms.
The shift is showing up in the numbers too. Shoppers’ willingness to gift resale products is up 9%, bringing the total to 64% this year. In other words, resale is no longer niche; it’s entering the mainstream holiday toolkit, especially for categories where brand, scarcity, or style matter more than “brand new in box.”
Spending Differently, Not Necessarily Spending Less
The national director of retail services at Colliers argues the story isn’t simply that shoppers won’t spend – it’s that they’ll spend in different ways.
For some, that means swapping individual gifts for experiences or group activities at holiday get-togethers. Ornament painting, for example, becomes an event in itself rather than another item in a gift bag.
Core family members will still likely receive presents, but there’s an expectation of “smarter gifting” trends: affordable luxuries like face masks, fewer add-ons, and less spend on wrapping accoutrements.
The word that keeps resurfacing is “intentional” – intentional about who gets gifts, how much is spent, and when people choose to buy.
Waiting for Deeper Discounts – and Extending the Season to Cope
Retailers are seeing caution show up in timing as well as preferences. Urban Outfitters has observed shoppers holding out for deeper discounts as the season progresses, and the popularity of deal days like Black Friday – including among some of the youngest holiday shoppers – underlines how price-sensitive the season has become.
That’s one reason many brands are stretching the holiday calendar. By pulling sales earlier and running promotions across more weeks, retailers give consumers more opportunities to spread spending and reduce the financial hit in any single month.
It’s a strategy that’s now been in play for multiple years, led by October sales events from giants like Walmart, Target, and Amazon.
Pricing Trust is Fragile – and Shoppers are Paying Attention
For all the tactical discounting, there’s a line retailers can’t afford to cross: playing games with pricing. After years of rising costs and shrinkflation, shoppers are highly sensitive not only to price increases, but also to the feeling of being manipulated.
One shopper described buying a replacement of the same sweater every year – only to find that this year’s sale price matched last year’s full price.
The risk, according to the analysis, is a slow consumer “melt”: shoppers might swallow disappointment and still buy this season, but the long-term effect could be a quieter erosion of trust. It may not show up immediately in headline numbers, but the damage can compound, especially when loyalty is being held together by habit rather than belief.
The Pivot Back to Emotion – But it Has to be Sincere
After months of being inundated with deals and discount terminology, there’s also a renewed opportunity for retailers to connect in a more emotional way as the season winds down.
The key, as highlighted, is that those efforts have to feel thoughtful and sincere – and not just like another tactic. That message can also be carried into stores, where staff interactions can either reinforce warmth or expose the gap between campaign tone and real experience.
Several brands have leaned into that shift. Gap earned praise for upbeat campaigns featuring Katseye and Parker Posey, then changed pace with a holiday ad starring Sienna Spiro singing an a cappella version of “The Climb.”
Home Depot traced the journey of a Christmas tree to a young boy’s home, while Etsy focused on connection and understanding – emotional territory that feels natural for the season, but still needs careful execution if consumers are already weary of retail theatre.
Joy Doesn’t Have to be Serious – It Just Has to Feel Real
Emotional marketing isn’t always sombre. In fact, one of the most effective routes to joy is playfulness.
Target, which stirred plenty of conversation last year with its “hot Santa” effort, brought the charismatic Kris K back into the lineup this year – a move it said was driven by shoppers wanting more joy.
Starbucks ran an upbeat ad with marker-drawn characters running across coffee cups, while Maybelline took an entertainment-first approach by producing a microdrama Christmas content series.
Another lever is sensory storytelling. Seasonal taste and scent cues – the “pumpkin spice” phenomenon being the obvious proof point – can instantly create nostalgia and warmth.
Gift sets, bundles, and limited-edition flavours like peppermint can deliver a feeling of festive abundance without demanding premium spend. Even the format matters: brand imagery in digital content, or tactile efforts like catalogues, can spark an emotional response that feels more comforting than yet another “limited time only” banner.
In-store Experiences Are Back on the Table
It’s not all happening online, either. In-store engagement is expected to be popular throughout the season as retailers look for ways to add levity and create moments.
Target announced in-store toy demos early in the season, while QVC staged a two-day Holiday House pop-up in New York in November. The underlying bet is simple: if consumers are tired of being sold to, they may respond better when shopping feels like an experience – not a pressure test.
Crucially, bringing joy into the shopping journey doesn’t have to come at the expense of sales. Done well, it can be the thing that makes a purchase feel justified – not because it was the cheapest option, but because it felt good, felt human, and fit the season.
Conclusion: Finding the Balance Between Hearts and Wallets
Walmart’s Grinch-era holiday campaign lands because it captures the contradiction many shoppers are living right now: they want the magic of Christmas, but they’re counting every pound.
With inflation pressures, tariff uncertainty, and widespread anxiety about the cost of living, consumers are becoming more deliberate – leaning into discount retailers, dupes, resale gifting, and experience-led celebrations that stretch festive value without stretching finances too far.
For retailers, the challenge is no longer just driving demand. It’s earning trust while selling joy – avoiding pricing games, recognising fatigue around constant discount language, and meeting people where they are emotionally.
This season, the brands that win won’t be the loudest about deals; they’ll be the ones that understand why shoppers still want to believe in the spirit of Christmas – even when they’re shopping with a calculator in hand.
