Holiday marketing doesn’t end when the last gifts ship. In the final weeks of December, consumers are still shopping, spending gift cards, making returns, and discovering new products. For retailers, that activity creates an opportunity to drive incremental revenue and acquire customers into the new year.
The National Retail Federation reported that 70% of consumers planned to shop during the week after Christmas in 2025. PebblePost’s aggregated campaign data reveals the business impact of this extended shopping period: From December 15–29, 2025, retail brands generated more than $108 million in incremental revenue, with an average incremental return on ad spend (iROAS) of 10x.
The findings point to three opportunities for retail marketers:
- capture continued demand
- account for where consumers are spending
- turn seasonal purchases into lasting customer relationships
Holiday Shopping Doesn’t Stop on December 25
The reasons consumers shop change as Christmas approaches and passes. Gift card redemption, returns, and exchanges all bring shoppers back to stores and e-commerce sites, creating opportunities for additional purchases.
In 2025, Adobe Analytics projected that returns alone would climb 25–35% from December 26-31, compared with earlier in the season.
PebblePost’s aggregated campaign performance data showed an average lift of 102% for retail brands during the two weeks following December 15, 2025.
For marketers, this is a reminder to plan for the full shopping season. Campaign messaging can evolve from gift buying to post-holiday offers, product discovery, and complementary purchases, giving consumers relevant reasons to engage at each stage.
In-Store Spending Creates Another Opportunity
As the holidays approach, shoppers increasingly value immediate access to products. PebblePost’s aggregated data from December 15, 2025, through January 15, 2026, found that consumers spent 17% more in-store than online.
That shift matters for retailers deciding how to allocate marketing investment. Brands with both e-commerce and physical locations need to account for how customers move between channels, rather than planning around online activity alone.
A shopper might discover a product online, purchase it in-store, and later return to the brand’s website. Campaigns that reflect these connected behaviors can help retailers reach customers wherever they’re ready to buy.
Post-Holiday Campaigns Can Build Customer Value
The opportunity extends beyond immediate sales. Between December 15, 2025 and January 15, 2026, PebblePost retail brands acquired 5.5 million new customers. Of those customers, 33% became repeat shoppers within an average of 35 days.
That repeat-purchase behavior highlights the longer-term potential of seasonal acquisition. Customers acquired in late December can continue generating revenue well into the new year.
Retailers can support these goals with complementary audience strategies:
- Optimized CRM to re-engage existing customers and encourage another purchase.
- Retargeting to reconnect with shoppers who have already shown interest.
- Lookalike audiences to reach prospective buyers beyond the existing customer base.
In PebblePost’s aggregated campaign data for December 15–29, 2025, these strategies delivered 16x iROAS from Optimized CRM, 13x iROAS from retargeting, and 8x iROAS from lookalike audiences. Across campaigns, average iROAS was 10x, with a peak conversion lift of 132%.
These results illustrate the potential of matching audience strategies to specific business objectives. Tracking incremental revenue alongside repeat purchases can help marketers assess both immediate returns and the longer-term value of customers acquired.
Build the Full Shopping Season Into Your Marketing Plan
For retail marketers, the opportunity comes down to three practical considerations:
- Plan for changing consumer needs. Adapt messaging as shoppers move from gift buying to returns, exchanges, and purchases for themselves.
- Follow customers across channels. Account for in-store and online behavior when deciding where to invest and how to reach shoppers.
- Measure beyond the initial conversion. Evaluate incremental revenue and iROAS, then track repeat purchases to understand the value of new customers.
The right approach will vary by retailer, audience, and campaign objective. But the planning principle is consistent: Marketing investment should reflect consumer behavior and business opportunity, not an arbitrary end date on the holiday calendar.
The Takeaway for Retail Marketers
Our 2025 data proves that the weeks around Christmas and into January can be a meaningful period for incremental revenue, in-store purchases, and customer acquisition.
For retailers planning their holiday strategy, accounting for the full shopping season can help capture demand today while building customer relationships that continue to pay off in the new year.
Looking to maximize holiday sales before and after Christmas? Contact us to find out how Programmatic Direct Mail and Performance CTV can help.
Source: Aggregated PebblePost Campaign Performance, December 15–29, 2025, and aggregated PebblePost data, December 15, 2025–January 15, 2026. Past results do not guarantee future performance.
