The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (2024)

This is the complete retail marketing calendar for the year 2024.

If you run an ecommerce business, you know the drill: Having a promotional calendar for marketing and shopping events is key to delivering your sales targets.

And the most successful brands plan their participation in promotions and sales events well in advance.

That’s why I’ve put together the most comprehensive month-by-month retail shopping event calendar you’ll find online.

Including all the key sales dates for Amazon sellers and online shop owners alike. So you know exactly when and how to delight your shoppers and increase your sales in 2024.

Let’s dive right in.

January ·February ·March ·April ·May ·June ·July ·August ·September ·October ·November ·December

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January

With customers looking for opportunities to spend their Christmas money and redeem gift cards, January is one of the most attractive months for online shoppers and sellers alike. Post-holiday sales attract savvy shoppers with an appetite to consume. And this can be a great opportunity to introduce your brand to new customers.

Plus, most consumers spend on their New Year’s resolutions. Veganuary and Dry January are the perfect opportunities to help shoppers with your products to achieve their goals. Right before Chocolate Cake Day arrives at the end of the month 😉

Key dates in January:

2024

  • 1st January – New Year’s Day
  • 1st – 31st January – Dry January
  • 1st – 31st January – Ginuary
  • 1st – 31st January – Veganuary
  • 6th January – National Shortbread Day
  • 15th January – Blue Monday
  • 25th January – Burns Night
  • 26th January – Australia Day
  • 27th January – Chocolate Cake Day

February

With New Year’s resolutions widely abandoned, February holds a lot for dreamers, lovers, and sweet tooths. From World Nutella Day to Valentine’s Day to Shrove Tuesday. You can really set your creativity free this month and use promotions on top sellers to grow your sales.

Key dates in February:

2024

  • 1st – 29th February – LGBT History Month
  • 4th February – World Cancer Day
  • 4th February – Yorkshire Pudding Day
  • 5th February – World Nutella Day
  • 9th February – National Pizza Day
  • 10th February – Chinese New Year (Year of the Dragon)
  • 13 February – Pancake Day
  • 13 February – Shrove Tuesday
  • 14 February – Ash Wednesday
  • 14th February – Valentine’s Day
  • 17th February – Random Act of Kindness Day
  • 20th February – Love Your Pet Day

March

Leaving the cold winter months behind, many hope for the first days with temperatures above the 20 degrees mark. So why not use this happy mood to celebrate International Women’s Day or Mother’s Day with email campaigns that bring loyal customers back to your store to shop for their loved ones? And with Saint Patrick’s Day around the corner, you can even bring some (green) colour to your ads. If that’s not a way to change things up, what is?

Key dates in March:

2024

  • 1st March – St David’s Day
  • 7th March – World Book Day
  • 8th March – International Women’s Day
  • 10th March – Mother’s Day
  • 10th March – Ramadan Start
  • 14th March – Popcorn Lovers Day
  • 17th March – St Patrick’s Day
  • 18th March – BAFTA’s
  • 20th March – First Day of Spring
  • 25th March – International Waffle Day
  • 29th March – Good Friday
  • 31st March – BST starts
  • 31st March – Easter Sunday

April

With the consumption of chocolate eggs and other sweet temptations at its peak before Christmas, buckle up your retail marketing efforts. The upcoming April Fool’s Day is an ideal opportunity for you and your brand(s) to show some discounts that seem too good to be true. And if that’s not your thing, you can lean back and market your products as Easter gifts to shoppers in the week before Easter Sunday instead. April: Sorted.

Key dates in April:

2024

  • 1st April – April Fool’s Day
  • 1 April – Easter Monday
  • 8th April – End of Ramadan
  • 10th April – Siblings Day
  • 11th April – National Pet Day
  • 19th April – Bicycle Day
  • 21st April – National Tea Day
  • 22nd April – Earth Day
  • 23rd April – St George’s Day

May

With temperatures climbing above the 20 degrees mark, why not celebrate the return of summer feelings with the long-awaited World co*cktail Day? And if drinking is not really your thing, you can send your shoppers back to the kitchen with shopping stimuli around World Baking or National Biscuit Day.

Key dates in May:

2024

  • 1st May – Labour Day (UK)
  • 4th May – Star Wars Day
  • 6th May – Early May Bank Holiday
  • 11th May – National Eat What You Want Day
  • 13th May – World co*cktail Day
  • 16th May – International Day of Light
  • 17th May – World Baking Day
  • 20th May – World Bee Day
  • 29th May – National Biscuit Day
  • 27th May – Spring Bank Holiday

June

June. A busy month when it comes to our retail marketing calendar. Wold Gin Day, National Beer Day, Father’s Day and the beginning of summer should give you and your marketing teams enough ideas to fire up social media campaigns. And if you’re willing to engage in a month-long event, why not sponsor your local pride community to build your brand?

Key dates in June:

2024

  • 1st June – Global Day of Parents
  • 1st June – 30th – Pride Month
  • 10th June – World Gin Day
  • 15th June – National Beer Day (UK)
  • 16th June – Father’s Day (UK)
  • 21st June – International Day of Yoga
  • 20th June – Summer Solstice
  • 20th June – Beginning of Summer
  • 26th – 30th June – Glastonbury Festival
  • 24th June – Midsummer’s Day

July

While July may seem like a quiet month, you should use the slower period to stock up on your inventory and create marketing plans for the upcoming back-to-school busyness. In July, you can still delight your customers by using World Chocolate Day or the start of the school holidays as a hook for your sales campaigns.

Key dates in July:

2024

  • 3rd July – Wimbledon Starts (ends 16th July)
  • 4th July – American Independence Day
  • 6th July – Islamic New Year
  • 7th July – World Chocolate Day
  • 17th July – World Emoji Day
  • 24th July – School Holidays (differs per school)
  • 24th July – Back to School (ends early September)
  • 30th July – International Day of Friendship
  • 31st July – National Avocado Day

August

With everyone in holiday mode, getting your customers’ attention can be hard. Thankfully, shoppers are also online this month. But you may have to become a bit more specific about which customers you want to target:

Book Lovers Day, World Photo Day or National Dog Day attract a wide consumer base but with very distinct interests. Don’t overcomplicate it. Just pick the relevant events that fit your brand.

Key dates in August:

2024

  • 2nd August – International Beer Day
  • 5th August – Summer Bank Holiday (Scotland)
  • 8th August – International Cat Day
  • 9th August – Book Lovers Day
  • 19th August – World Photography Day
  • 24th August – National Burger Day
  • 26th August – National Dog Day
  • 26th August – Summer Bank Holiday (England and Wales)

September

With most shoppers returning from holidays, their kids have to go back to school. That’s an ideal time to offer promotions and discounts to your customer base. World Guacamole Day spices things up if you’re active in the food industry (or have a creative marketing team).

Key dates in September:

2024

  • 1st September – Back to School (differs by school)
  • 2nd September – Labour Day (US)
  • 6th September – Read a Book Day
  • 12th September – National Chocolate Milkshake Day
  • 16th September – World Guacamole Day
  • 22nd September – Autumn Begins
  • 27th September – World Tourism Day

October

October holds some really interesting sales dates for ecommerce sellers: If you want to raise the energy levels of your buyers, use International Coffee Day to attach some coffee samples to your shipments. You can do the same for your vegetarian customer base.

Pumpkin Day and Halloween are proven events to run some effective discounts and promotions on seasonal products at the end of the month.

Key dates in October:

2024

  • 1st – 31st October – Black History Month (UK)
  • 1st – 31st October – Breast Cancer Awareness Month
  • 1st – 31st October – Go Sober for October (Stopober)
  • 1st October – International Coffee Day
  • 1st October – World Vegetarian Day
  • 10th October – World Mental Health Day
  • 16th October – World Food Day
  • 22nd October – National Nut Day
  • 25th October – World Pasta Day
  • 26th October – National Pumpkin Day
  • 29th October – National Cat Day
  • 29th October – BST ends
  • 31st October – Halloween

November

This is the month most retailers love and hate the most at the same time. No other month in the year is as busy, exciting and nerve-racking. Make sure your inventory levels and sales plans are up-to-date. The week before Black Friday can be as busy as Black Friday itself. And even if you don’t sell tech, ensure your top sellers are discounted and promoted on Cyber Monday. Those events are not made to offer small discounts.

Key dates in November:

2024

  • 1st – 30th November – Movember (Men’s Health Awareness Month)
  • 1st November – World Vegan Day
  • 5th November – Guy Fawkes Night
  • 10 November – Remembrance Sunday
  • 11th November – Remembrance Day
  • 29th November – Black Friday
  • 30th November – St Andrew’s Day

December

By now, you’ve hopefully reached your sales targets. And if not, don’t worry. Demand is still VERY high, as everyone searches for Christmas gifts for their loved ones. Make sure you promote and discount your most giftable products with a clear lead-time promise. This ensures your customers understand if their order arrives in time for Christmas.

Key dates in December:

2024

  • 2nd December – Cyber Monday
  • 4th December – National Cookie Day
  • 13th December – Christmas Jumper Day
  • 21st December – Winter Solstice
  • 24th December – Christmas Eve
  • 25th December – Christmas Day
  • 26th December – Boxing Day
  • 27th December – Bank Holiday
  • 31st December – New Year’s Eve

The Retail Marketing Calendar 2024 (Infographic)

Now that you know all the key shopping dates you need to look out for in 2024, here’s a handy infographic you can download to plan your promotions ahead.

The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (1)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (2)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (3)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (4)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (5)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (6)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (7)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (8)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (9)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (10)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (11)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (12)
The Complete Retail Marketing Calendar for 2024 (2024)

FAQs

What is the retail outlook for 2024? ›

Retail sales during 2024 will grow between 2.5% and 3.5% from 2023 to between $5.23 trillion and $5.28 trillion.

What is the 4-5-4 calendar for retail? ›

The 4-5-4 calendar is a guide for retailers that ensures sales comparability between years by dividing the year into months based on a 4 weeks – 5 weeks – 4 weeks format. The layout of the calendar lines up holidays and ensures the same number of Saturdays and Sundays in comparable months.

What is the retail calendar year? ›

The 4-5-4 retail calendar is a scheduling framework that divides the year into months of four weeks, five weeks, and four weeks in a repeated pattern, ensuring each fiscal month starts and ends on the same weekday. This design aligns sales data across similar periods.

What is the retail calendar vs normal calendar? ›

A retail calendar differs from the regular 12-month calendar because it breaks the year into four and five-week periods, instead of months. Primarily, 4-4-5 and 4-5-4 methods are used. Retail sales are heavily dependent on weekend days, and the number of weekend days in a specific month varies from year to year.

What retailers need to know about 2024 and beyond in 5 charts? ›

Here's five charts to consider as retailers get ready for 2024.
  • Ecommerce will drive retail sales once again. ...
  • Deals continue to rule. ...
  • Omnichannel will be more important than ever. ...
  • Younger generations will drive social commerce growth. ...
  • Retail media's success depends on both networks and advertisers.
Oct 10, 2023

Will 2024 be a good year for the market? ›

Heading into 2024, investors are optimistic the same macroeconomic tailwinds that fueled the stock market's 2023 rally will propel the S&P 500 to new all-time highs in 2024.

What is the 4-4-5 calendar for 2024? ›

The 4-5-4 retail calendar for 2024 starts on Sunday, 4th of February 2024 and ends on Saturday, 1st of February 2025. Since retail calendar days need to be multiple of 7, the calendar year is 364 days and not 365, and so every 5 to 6 years one extra week is added to the calendar and makes it 53 weeks.

What is the 53-week year in retail? ›

The 53-week year operates by extending the standard 52-week fiscal calendar to accommodate an additional week. This adaptation allows retailers to capitalize on the increased shopping activity during the extended fiscal period, especially around holidays and seasonal promotions.

Is 2024 a 53-week year? ›

There are 52 weeks in the 2024-2025 tax year, and 53 weeks in the 2025-2026 tax year.

What are the key principles of the retail calendar? ›

The key components of a retail calendar include identifying peak sales periods, strategic promotional dates, seasonal events, and inventory management milestones. By integrating these components, retailers can align their activities with consumer behavior and market dynamics effectively.

What are the best months for retail sales? ›

Let's break down the four retail sales seasons and discover things you can take advantage of and steps you can take to minimize lulls.
  • The holiday season (October through December)
  • The post-holiday/New Year season (January through March)
  • The spring season (April and May)
  • The summer slowdown (July through September)
Nov 14, 2023

What are the two types of marketing calendars? ›

Using Different Types of Marketing Calendars
  • Content marketing calendar for organizing blog posts, reports, whitepapers, web pages, and more.
  • Social media calendar that keeps your social media campaigns organized by showing what is being published to which channels and when.
Feb 8, 2022

Why does the retail calendar start in February? ›

Another important thing to note is that this calendaring system starts in February to include the entire holiday season — from Thanksgiving until after New Year's — so this sales period is represented in one fiscal quarter.

How do you make a merchandising calendar? ›

To create a successful merchandising calendar, it is essential to define objectives and KPIs, conduct market and customer analysis, develop product assortment and pricing strategies, plan promotions and events, map out the calendar, and review and adjust it.

What is the business forecast for 2024? ›

Business investment is expected to increase 3% in 2024, down from 4.5% last year. Government spending is forecasted to rise 2.5%.

What will retail look like in 2025? ›

By 2025, a combination of advanced data analytics and accelerated delivery mechanisms will enable retailers to anticipate and satisfy consumers' desires before they are aware of them.

Are sales down in 2024? ›

In Q1 2024, consumers largely purchased services and goods spending fell. Today's retail sales report also showed a 0.4 percent decline in nominal restaurant and bar sales. After adjusting for inflation, real spending at these establishments were likely even lower.

What is the job market forecast for 2024? ›

Our composite measure of wage growth still shows an overall downtrend, with growth at 4.4% as of first-quarter 2024, down from 5% a year ago and down 180 basis points from the peak in early 2022.

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