Christmas and the holidays might not be top-of-mind for seaside retailers in the busy summer months, but for vacationers in search of a perfect reminder of their time at the coast, finding an ornament or holiday decor with a beachy theme or name drop can make the winter months a little brighter. Tourists are thinking ahead with how they might display their fondness for the beach during the holiday season.
This desire is why some seaside retailers are even successful in dedicating their entire stores to offering Christmas and holiday products. In Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, for example, Christmas Spirit of Delaware has brought cheer to many vacationers for over the last 50 years.
Owner Jill Hudson says Rehoboth Beach is a big tourist destination, with most people visiting in the warmer summer months. But regardless of the season, Christmas Spirit of Delaware catches the eyes of passersby with its bright holiday lights, Christmas trees and a full-size Grinch showcased in the store’s window display.
Along the Jersey Shore, Mia’s Christmas Gallery in Ocean City, New Jersey, easily sells coastal Christmas decor year-round as well. Jane Saile owns the shop alongside her husband, Jim. She notes that tourists visiting Ocean City love to stop in Mia’s Christmas Gallery for an ornament with the Ocean City name drop regardless of the time of year.
“They come and want to remember their time here,” she says.
Festive favorites
Mia’s Christmas Gallery has an ornament for just about any holiday or theme — from coastal themes to snowmen to pets.
Christmas Spirit of Delaware offers a wide selection of beachy Santa and Mrs. Claus ornaments and decor.
Saile notes that special occasion ornaments from Old World Christmas do particularly well, such as wedding or baby’s first Christmas ornaments. Little kids go crazy for ornaments that feature toys, ballerinas and cartoon characters like Paw Patrol, she adds.
The retailer also stocks a variety of ornaments from popular sports teams, such as the Jets, the Yankees and the Steelers.
“We don’t carry ornaments for all sports teams, but we do for the big ones,” says Jim Saile, co-owner of Mia’s Christmas Gallery.
Trends are important to watch when it comes to stocking Christmas ornaments. For instance, Neal Applefeld, president and CEO of Old World Christmas, says the company noticed an uptick in its Santa and Mrs. Claus Pickleball ornaments, thanks to a growing interest in that sport.
“We’re constantly seeing a mix of traditional holiday with pop culture,” Applefeld adds. “We try to stay up to date on trends. This year we’re launching a ‘Swiftea’ Cup and a Kringle Cup.”
Food-themed ornaments are of increasing interest as well. “Food stuff is trending this year,” says Hudson, adding that her customers enjoy purchasing food-themed ornaments and decor as gifts for people back home.
As a coastal shop, Christmas Spirit of Delaware always does well selling beach-themed Christmas ornaments. The retailer even has three beach-themed Christmas trees to highlight some of its fun, beachy ones.
“For where we are, beachy Christmas stuff sells the best,” says Hudson. “Octopus are really popular this year! Then also jellyfish, crabs and flamingos are very popular.”
Michael Adler, account manager at Kurt S. Adler, says flamingos, mermaids, octopus, starfish and Santas tend to be popular ornament themes for seaside retailers.
“These are fun animals and characters that people get excited about and love to represent in their homes,” he says. “Many of these pieces are important characters in movies, so they are mainstream.”
A natural look
Tara Merrill, marketing manager at wholesale gift company Cape Shore, has found that seaside retailers do a great job selling ornaments with coastal themes, such as turtles, mermaids and shells. She advises retailers to also consider the style and materials used to make the ornaments and decor.
“We have noticed in the last year or two a big spike in that natural look,” she notes.
Ornaments featuring the Ocean City name drop are popular with customers at Mia’s Christmas Gallery.
Cape Shore’s resin ornaments that look like sea glass have been trendy the last few years, according to Merrill. She says Cape Shore likes to craft the sea glass resin into beautiful beach ornaments, including lighthouses, reefs and sailboats.
“As far as sea glass goes, it has that quintessential beachy, nostalgic feel,” she explains. “It reminds you of looking at sea glass, picking up pieces by the beach.”
Natural beachy elements are also trendy, she adds. “Anything that strikes a memory or reminds them of their time at the beach, that’s what we strive for.”
Cape Shore has designed some of its ornaments with resin that look like real shells or driftwood.
Adler agrees. “Resin provides better detailing and more realistic items.”
He says resin ornaments with sculpted details of a resort or hotel along with the resort or beach name do well.
Glass is another material where you can capture details, according to Adler. “Glass does lend itself to a higher price point. Both options are popular for private label.”
Along with the more natural elements, people also prefer more neutral color schemes with their decor today — even when it comes to holiday products. Pumpernickel Press offers a variety of boxed Christmas cards that feature seasonal artwork, and Owner Bob Harju says he’s noticed a preference for softer color palettes lately.
“Minimalist color palettes are popular right now — think soft, neutral tones with warm accents like teal, gold or rose gold, coral or peach,” he says. “Bright, eye-catching pops of color work well against these kinds of settings, like a vibrant magenta instead of a classic red.”
Carmen Mendelson, president of Fancy That Gift and Decor, adds that seaside retailers will likely want to stock holiday decor items that feature watery color schemes, too.
“All shades of watercolor blues and greens are popular,” she says. “We have also seen an interest in more pinks and pastels worked in to go with the gingerbread and confection trend that is happening with traditional Christmas decor.”
A personal touch
Although people love well-designed ornaments, tourists are often drawn to ornaments that feature a name drop of the beach or town they visited.
Seaside retailers also might want to consider offering personalization options for ornaments, allowing customers to put individual names, pet names and dates on their souvenir.
Octopus ornaments like this one from Kurt S. Adler are a hit for seaside retailers this year along with other sea life ornaments.
Every year, Saile says she notices more and more customers asking to personalize their ornaments before they go home from vacation. She adds that a lot of customers also love to put their own address on a beach house ornament. She also sees some people adding dates to wedding or baby’s first Christmas ornaments as well as a child’s name on a sports-themed ornament.
“We have more personalization ornaments than anything else,” Jim adds. “That keeps growing every year. There’s one we have of beach chairs on the beach. Every year, we buy loads of them and sell loads of them.”
More than just Christmas
With so many different tastes and preferences in holiday decorating styles, variety is key when seaside retailers stock ornaments and holiday decor.
“Even within a single design genre, you will still find a wide array of diverse customer interests, backgrounds and tastes,” says Harju. “Challenging yourself to appeal to as broad an audience as possible with varied design options will always pay off.”
Saile adds that she sees younger generations shopping for their own holiday collectibles, too.
“I think for a while people had so much. When COVID came, everyone cleaned out. Now they are looking for new things,” she says. “People didn’t want their parents’ collectibles, but they want their own. I think that’s why Jim Shore and some other brands are all more modern looking now.”
And, most importantly, seaside retailers should deck their halls early.
“If available, display it in peak tourist season,” Merrill says. “Consumers will buy to remind them of their time at the beach. And if they live at the beach, the locals will want to decorate early.”
Hudson says some people even like to keep beachy Christmas trees up all year round. “Some people are leaving their trees up longer, changing it for the season,” says Hudson. “I have some customers who have beach-themed trees and keep them year-round. I think it makes them feel happy.”
No matter what your customers are looking for to decorate their home this holiday season, you can give them a reason to incorporate some coastal into their mix.
