When many retail brands think of their favorite season for holiday sales, many focus immediately on winter and the time leading up to Christmas specifically. But a new phenomenon—Summerween—has exploded all across the country. This unique pre-Halloween buying period gives you an interesting opportunity to boost sales and capture the attention of a specific segment of your target audience.
If you sell anything spooky, scary, Gothic, or dark, you have an automatic in with the customers who love autumn. Even if your product lines don’t match these descriptions, you can still leverage the Summerween season popularity for e-commerce upgrades and brick-and-mortar store shelves.
What is Summerween?
This unique summertime phenomenon actually began with the animated series Gravity Falls. Even though it was still summertime, the residents of this fictional town started celebrating Halloween quite early. With the increasing popularity of spooky style decorations and fashion, Summerween has become an intriguing and important part of sales for both big-name stores and smaller brands.
Despite the specificity of Summerween’s origin, it really has nothing to do with the series or, in many cases, getting ready for Halloween itself. Instead, the whole season evokes the type of cozy autumn feeling with a touch of spookiness. This works the same way warmth, togetherness, and gift giving symbolizes the winter holidays, even for those who do not celebrate Christmas.
For stores that do sell decorations, costumes, and Halloween-specific products, the buying season has extended considerably. This holiday’s heaviest sales periods have started one to two weeks earlier every year since 2020. If you sell fine jewelry, fashion, high-end housewares, or tech, you can still get in on the action and make Summerween work for you.
Four ways luxury retailers can embrace Summerween
You don’t want to turn your luxury shop or e-commerce website into a Halloween extravaganza in early September. Even with the popularity of this annual holiday, you still need to stay true to your brand so that all customers get what they want and need from you. However, there are ways you can lean into the Summerween excitement and captivate your audience with a blend of expected elegance and charm and the spirit of the season.
The allure of Halloween offers a creative canvas that allows for increased innovation and a sense of whimsy. The four tips below will drive customer engagement, offer the type of exclusivity that luxury shoppers want, and keep your brand on the edge of the online conversation.
1. Lean into the early Halloween décor season
Start in September with a gentle introduction to autumn-themed displays, and then continue to introduce Summerween elements as the days go by. In the beginning, this simply introduces them to the idea that you have a seasonal message to share, unique products, and possibly special events or valuable offers available before the end of October.
The specific decorations both online and off depend on the identity and feeling of your luxury brand. A high-end professional apparel company that focuses on elegance and exclusivity will not want to hang cartoon bats from the ceiling or make the shop assistants wear silly costumes behind the checkout counter. Instead, sophisticated pumpkin arrangements and an autumnal color scheme will work quite well.
2. Specialty shop options and themed events
Create an in-store display focused entirely on Summerween themes and styles. Use appropriate signage to convey the meaning of the season and spark an interest in spookier options. Take the opportunity to curate exclusive themed collections that blend with these elements in order to offer a unique experience that combines summer, autumn, and luxury.
While these full season displays and shopping options work well, themed events can be even more fun. Hold a product introduction party, a fashion show of gothic styles, or a private shopping night with a Halloween flare. You can also organize online events such as social media scavenger hunts and virtual gatherings to introduce new product lines or educate consumers about their options.
3. Customized product collections or gift boxes
Limited time deals always attract attention. Special collections feed into people’s fear of missing out or desire to be a trendsetter in their group. Summerween lends itself well to very specific and time-sensitive products. You can either market these based on their limited availability or present special offers that clearly demonstrate value.
Gift boxes or baskets are an excellent way to do this. Tie these into special events like those listed above by creating a prize basket of unique pieces and items that anyone can enjoy. This can range from a new autumn tweed jacket and gold leaf earrings to something more whimsical like bat-patterned silk pajamas and the selection of gourmet pumpkin spice treats.
4. Make your marketing spooky with personalized messages
You won’t be able to share the Summerween season feeling without the right type of marketing messages. The spooky twist that doesn’t detract from your overall brand identity. Incorporate eerie yet elegant visuals and language that evokes an enticing atmosphere of mystery. As always, keep your messages as personalized as possible for different segments of your target audience.
You may even have some customers who are not interested in the Halloween season at all. One look at the statistics, however, clearly demonstrates that this group is getting smaller every year. The more information you have about them, the better you can tailor your direct mail, social media, and other forms of communication.
Conclusion
Even before the autumn season starts, retailers who specialize in luxury products can cash in on the Summerween trends and increase sales. Halloween is one of the most beloved annual holidays, but today it is possible to leverage the love of pumpkins and spooky designs into new levels of customer enthusiasm. Track your own data through the seasons with the Clientbook sales assistant software so you can harvest the profits and develop long-term consumer loyalty that lasts all year round.
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