You’ve probably heard about Christmas Creep. Most briefly described as holidays appearing earlier and earlier on store shelves, it’s a phenomenon that really seems to bother a lot of people (not me) on principle.
Why does Christmas Creep even exist?
The term itself seems to have originated in the 1980s. People noticed Christmas merchandise appearing on store shelves earlier and earlier before the generally accepted Thanksgiving/Black Friday switchover. At the same time, radio stations would battle for which would turn programming over to Christmas music first (and thus scooping up the precious Christmas ad revenue first.)
Both were experiments in trying the market. Stores and media outlets would try to roll out the goods earlier and earlier before Thanksgiving; if there was no pushback, they’d roll the dice even earlier the next year. And see, the thing is… it worked. For all the bluster you hear against Christmas Creep, it’s profitable. Stores that sell Christmas year-round can attest!
Christmas Creep in stores is also a practical solution. Many stores have a section that is designated for seasonal items (think Target). They don’t move general merchandise into those areas if they can help it because reconfiguring it would be a waste of time and resources.
Unfortunately, that’s exactly why you get The Nightmare Before Christmas setups that many people (again, not me) despise most. When the store can’t justify fully filling the seasonal space with Halloween/Thanksgiving merch, some Christmas inevitably fills in.
But what is Christmas Creep really? It’s human, man.
Disgust with the commercial reality of our most sacred celebrations. Being forced to confront the passage of time. Remembering that we’re perpetually running behind inside a frenetic society of our own construction.
But there’s the other side – the side of the fence where I’m living.
I’m a Holly Holiday. I love holidays. I love celebrating, even in small, stupid ways. Walking through the orange, black and purple of Target’s Halloween displays, only to stumble into the aisle with electric neon blue, red and green twinkling lights? Come on, y’all. That’s magic.