2021 Vision: Key Dates for Retail Marketing

Retail marketing ebbs and flows with seasonal changes, holidays, events and special occasions. Special holidays today serve as benchmarks for higher spending. Most, if not all, holidays are attributed to a spike in consumer spending.

Thus, business owners both big and small should promote heavily around holidays to maximise these opportunities to boost their revenue.

Occasions-based marketing can be hugely profitable for ecommerce and retail brands – providing seasonal and topical angles for all kinds of sales and campaigns. Knowing these key dates will allow you to plan in advance and prepare to increase sales with strategically timed marketing campaigns.

We have created this guide to help you identify key marketing opportunities for promotions, sales, social media content, emails and more. We have included a free marketing calendar in this guide, so you can easily visualise upcoming promotional dates, or integrate with your iCalendar.

Need more help with developing an effective marketing plan? Our Brisbane team of design and marketing experts are experienced in developing tailored, measurable results-driven campaigns. Check out our Masign marketing packages to learn more! 

1^st – New Year’s Day
In conjunction with Boxing Day sales, New Year gives retailers the opportunity to make the most of huge foot traffic in shopping centres and engaged online shoppers.

26^th – Australia Day
Sun and sand, perfect for retailers selling recreational and leisure products for shoppers to use on the public holiday.

27^th – Back to school (QLD)
Huge for stationery stores, office items and school supplies.

7^th – Super Bowl Sunday
A huge day in the US, and getting bigger across the world – give your brand/social an NFL focus for the day.

8^th – Australian Open Starts
Australia’s largest tennis event and the first of four Grand Slams. Tennis provides many powerful visual cues to incorporate into your sales.

12^th – Chinese New Year
A 15-day festival, try running some sales with a Chinese or oriental theme.

14^th – Valentine’s Day
Retailers who sell products that work well as gifts should promote heavily in the weeks leading up to this romantic day.

1^st – Autumn Begins
This season evoke those crisp and cozy feelings – think about incorporating leaf, wood and natural tones into your imagery. Maybe try some alliteration with a Fall Flash Sale?

8^th – International Women’s Day
Connect with your female audience and show your support for equality.

17^th – St Patricks Day
The biggest day of the year for many Irish pubs. Try and incorporate green themes to engage with your audience.

1^st – April Fools Day
Many brands have received high engagement through sharing fake products on this date. How will you get a laugh out of your audience with a prank?

2^nd – 5^th – Easter Weekend
Other than Christmas, this is usually the longest break people get all year. Take advantage of this free time by promoting recreational and leisure products.

7^th  – World Health Day
If your products or brand have healthy theme, consider running a flash sale or promotion.

22^nd – Earth Day
The perfect opportunity to promote your environmentally-friendly or sustainability practices.

5^th – Cinqo de Mayo
Great for hospitality and food venues to create themed menus. How can you associate your brand with Mexico on this day to grab some attention?

9^th – Mother’s Day
Perfect for both retail and hospitality, everyone loves showing their appreciation for their mother with beautiful gifts or a nice meal.

1^st – Beginning of Winter
A great time to promote comfort and showcase warmer products.

9^th – State of Origin
The first of 3 games, Origin is one of Australia’s most widely viewed sporting events. This is a great opportunity for you to connect with your online audience by wearing your team colours.

30^th – End of Financial Year
EOFY is all about beating the June 30 deadline – a great way to introduce urgency into your campaign or sale.

4^th  – NAIDOC Week Starts
A week to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. An opportunity to engage with your audience by showing support.

8–11^th – Christmas in July
Christmas in July is growing in popularity in retail businesses.  It can provide a good retail focus and sales kick in between major seasons.

11^th – Ekka Public Holiday
A time associated with fun and excitement for Brisbane residents – consider incorporating these themes into your marketing during this period. Take advantage of the local public holiday to get traffic through the door.

1^st – Beginning of Spring
A fresh theme that exudes joy and the breath of new life that comes with the season. Retailers could consider a ‘Spring Cleaning’ stocktake sale.

4^th – Spring Racing Carnival begins
A massive Australian tradition celebrating the sport of racing, the social element and the fashion of the races. Here is an opportunity to use the classy and exciting themes of the racing carnival to associate with your brand.

5^th – Father’s Day
Promote this holiday many weeks before if you sell anything that works well as a gift for men. Automotive, sport in equipment or memorabilia, home improvement, clothing and gadgets all sell well during this period.

23^rd – Footy Finals Fever
The time of year when both AFL and NRL are approaching their grand finals. Tensions and fan passions are high, which make this time huge for hospitality venues, who should consider package deals to increase average spend. Connect with your audience (or make enemies) by showing support for your team.

4^th – Queens Birthday (QLD)
A holiday associated with pampering, luxury, and class – perfect for spas or retailers selling luxurious products.

7^th – 10^th – Bathurst Weekend 
Australia’s largest motor racing meet, and probably the one day that we think about cars more than any other. Great opportunity to align your branding with speed, adrenaline and excitement.

31^st – Halloween
Huge if you sell anything related to costumes or horror, but also an opportunity to run some special Halloween sales.

1^st – Movember Starts
A time to reflect on male health, consider running a campaign if you sell products targeted at males.

18^th – Grand Prix
Attracting class and excitement, the Grand Prix is one of Australia’s largest racing events. Consider incorporating the event into your marketing if your products lend themselves to adrenaline junkies.

25^th – 29^th – Thanksgiving Weekend (Black Friday, Cyber Monday)
One of the biggest weekends in the retail calendar. Shoppers have come to expect the biggest savings of the year during this period.

1^st – Beginning of Summer
Although this marks the start of Summer, here in Queensland it feels like Summer started months ago – so this is really more about the lead up to Christmas. Stores have decorations up and foot traffic builds steadily towards the end of the month. Hospitality venues should consider their offerings for Christmas parties and end-of-year events.

26^th – Boxing Day
Get those post-holiday sales up and running! The busiest day in Australian retail, shoppers expect huge discounts.

31^st – New Years Eve
The biggest night of the year for bars and the greater alcohol industry. Brands could consider thanking their audience for their support through the year, or reflect on their achievements.