Christmas is the most important time for marketers. In the US, the Christmas season for shopping starts from the Thanksgiving weekend with Black Friday being another important event for Christmas shopping.
In the year 2016, about 48% of the US consumers planned to buy gift cards or gift certificates for the festive season as their gifting idea.
The total holiday retail sales in 2017 in the US was $ 687.87 billion.
The average customer spends on Christmas shopping was $862 in 2017.
Online shopping is also becoming an emerging trend for shopping during the holiday season.
Globally about 80% of the customers check the best deals online before making the purchase.
In this article, we will talk about
- popular Christmas gift types
- Christmas gift packaging design tips
- 9 Christmas gift packaging examples
Popular Christmas Gift Types
There are many different types of Christmas gifts. Gifts can be thought of by considering the age group, hobbies, and interests of different individuals.
Some of the most popular gifting ideas during the festive season which will surely impress everyone are provided below:
Games for Children
There are different types of board games which can be gifted to children and young adults on Christmas.
Some of the popular board games include Monopoly, Risk, and Scattergories, Scrabble, Cards Against Humanity etc.
There is still an old-world charm to these board games in today’s digital world as they bring the entire family together. The children will have a fun time playing these games with family and friends.
Technology Gifts
Gadgets are becoming the gift of choice recently during the festive seasons. The market is flooded with a wide variety of gadgets for gifting during the festive season.
Gadgets like the iPhone, iPads, Amazon Echo, headphones, gaming consoles, etc. are hugely popular among teens and young adults.
There is a gadget for each age group and budget in the market for the festive season.
Winterwear
Winterwear makes for a practical and high utility gift during the festive season. Warm clothes and other woolen accessories will be highly appreciated by the recipient as it will keep them warm and protected during the cold season.
These winterwear items can last a long time and will remind the recipient of the person who gifted them.
Books
There is no better gift for the book lovers than books on Christmas. Gift wrapped books can provide a lot of happiness and excitement to the book lovers.
The books can last for a long time and will act as a remembrance for the recipient.
Food Basket
Nothing appeals to the foodie more than a food basket. Food basket contains different varieties of gourmet food items.
The packaging of the food basket is elegant and looks very impressive. The food connoisseurs can make use of the food basket to prepare different culinary dishes during the festive season.
Household Utilities
Household utilities are another practical and thoughtful gifting idea. Home utilities like coffee maker, dishwasher, water filters, etc.
are durable items which last for many years. They help to ease the daily lives of the recipient who will truly admire and remember the gift for a long time.
Chocolates
Chocolates have been a long time favorite during Christmas. There are different varieties of chocolates in the market for gifts during the festive season.
Chocolates can be gifted to anyone irrespective of their age, gender etc. as it is liked by almost everyone.
There are many well-designed chocolate gift boxes and hampers especially designed for Christmas.
Sporting Equipment
Sporting equipment can be gifted to children and young adults. Outdoor sporting equipment like football, cricket equipment, tennis rackets, badminton rackets, etc.
can be gifted to children. the adults can be gifted with fitness equipment like gym equipment, fitness trackers, sports and fitness apparels etc.
The sporting equipment and accessories will motivate them to be physically active and fit throughout the year.
Subscription Boxes
Subscription boxes as a gifting idea for the festive season are unique. While most of the gifts are one time in nature, subscription boxes can extend the gifts to the loved ones beyond January and spread over every month.
There are different varieties of subscription boxes including cosmetics, stationery, sweets, chocolates, personal hygiene products, etc.
Toys for Children
There are different options for toys for the festive season. The toys are meant for infants and small children.
They can be gifted soft toys, powered vehicles, tricycles, doll set, etc. The children will be delighted to receive their favorite toys during the festive season.
Christmas Gift Packaging Design Tips
Christmas is the peak season for the marketing of products. It is the season for gifting. Well-designed and elegant packaging for the gift boxes is important for creating an impact on the customers.
Beautiful packaging differentiates the product from the competition. The Christmas themed packaging attracts the customer’s attention and acts as a major driver for pushing sales.
Some of the important considerations for designing attractive Christmas gift packaging are discussed below:
Use of Christmas Colors
Christmas is symbolized primarily by the bold and bright colors of red, white, and green. Christmas trees, lights, ornaments, and all other forms of decorations are characterized by these colors.
Using these Christmas theme colors creates anticipation and a clear statement about the specially designed festive packaging.
Designing the packaging of the product or the gift item in festive colors also makes for cheerful packaging and attracts the attention of the customers.
Customers are also known to be influenced by such festive season packaging and prefer to purchase such products during Christmas time.
Use of Holiday Graphics
Packaging for products for Christmas season can make use of graphic illustrations which correspond with the theme of Christmas and the festive season.
Use of graphics including snowflakes, pine trees, ornaments, reindeer, and Santa can make the packaging look cheerful and geared up for the festive season.
The use of Christmas graphics on the packaging is a clever and effective strategy for influencing the customers and making them purchase the product.
Christmas gift boxes decorated with festive graphics is ideal for gifting during the season.
Use of Ribbons
Use of ribbons can make the Christmas gift boxes stand out. Ribbons not only add to the elegance of the gift box, but it also provides a novelty to the design of the packaging of the gift box.
It is a cost-effective accessory on the packaging which makes the recipient feels valued and important.
Generally, bright colored ribbons like green and red associated with Christmas festivities can be used to enhance the festive feel of the gift box. Ribbons also provide additional space for branding.
Copy Printing Greetings Inside
Christmas is a special occasion and thus the unboxing of the Christmas gift box should be a memorable experience.
In addition to the external designing of the packaging box, the inside of the gift box can be printed with seasons greetings.
Using of Christmas theme colors and Christmas greetings on the inside of the box adds a warm and premium feel to the gift box.
The customers will have an intriguing experience unboxing such custom created Christmas gift boxes.
Use of Decorative Stickers and Tape
Christmas gift box packaging is all about making use of the festive season’s elements to enhance the visual appeal of the packaging.
Adding decorative festive stickers is a great way to enhance the overall look and feel of the Christmas gift box packaging.
Christmas themed stickers add to the cheerful nature of the packaging and makes the gift box adorable.
In addition to the stickers, customized Christmas themed tapes can also be used to enhance the aesthetics of the packaging.
Eco-Friendly Packaging
As Christmas is the time for festivities and caring, the gift boxes should also show concern and care towards the environment. Ideally, the gift boxes should make use of recyclable and natural materials which will be eco-friendly.
Customers will be more inclined to purchase eco-friendly and sustainable gift boxes for Christmas.
Natural fillers can also be used inside the gift box to give a cozy and premium feel. Wool wood is commonly used as filler inside the gift box.
This provides an excellent finish and also protects the gift from damage.
Examples of Good Packaging for Christmas Gift
Brands always endeavor to come up with specially designed festive season packaging. This connects the product with the festivities and attracts the customers.
Over the years, many brands have successfully used festive branding to increase their sales and image.
Examples of some of the most effective packaging for Christmas products are as follows:
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola came out with their iconic Christmas packaging by printing the polar bear on their bottles and cans.
The graphic illustration is simple and easy to replicate on a bulk scale. The signature Coca-Cola elements have been embedded in the polar bears which add to the novelty of the design for the festive season.
The illustrations are playful and capture the essence of family togetherness and the festive season.
Starbucks Coffee
Starbucks came out with its Christmas blend coffee with a special festive packaging. The packaging captures the different fun elements of Christmas.
The packaging is illustrated with graphics like starry nights, caroling, playing in the snow etc. which makes it cheerful and give the feel of the festive season.
The packaging makes for a good gifting option also during the festive season.
Weleda
Weleda’s range of 100% organic and natural herbal medicines and body care products are very popular.
The brand came out with a special packaging for the festive season. The packaging made use of the bold festive colors and the graphics associated with Christmas.
The packaging looks colorful and elegant which will attract the customer’s attention.
Stella Artois
Stella Artois has a beautifully designed Christmas packaging. The packaging makes use of bright red color which is synonymous with Christmas.
The use of graphic illustrations related to the festive season has a story to tell to the customers.
The overall packaging is very attractive and classifies as an ideal gifting idea for the festive season.
HMS Design Cocoa
HMS design packaged their cocoa into elegant and beautifully designed tin cans. Different types of tin cans were made with each based on a particular Christmas pun.
The packaging cans also featured bold graphic illustrations related to the festive season.
This will inspire the customers to collect all the cans with different puns. The tin cans can be reused after the cocoa is finished.
Marks and Spencer
Marks and Spencer came out with an adorable and unique packaging for Christmas. It packaged its gingerbread and festive sweets in a Santa’s Workshop packaging.
The packaging shows elves putting up the Christmas lights and Santa himself waving outside.
The packaging provides the feel of the festive season and children will be delighted to see it.
Morrisons
Morrisons’ new Christmas packaging is full of warmth and cheer associated with the festive season.
Use of Christmas themed colors and excellent graphics make the packaging stand out. The packaging is full of visual cues which the customers associate with Christmas like the Christmas stars, snowflakes, bright lights etc.
The packaging feels warm, electric, and vibrant and captures the essence of the festive season.
Glinwein Wines
Gluhwein wines are very famous, especially during the festive season. It has a unique aroma which is popular during Christmas.
The packaging for the festive season is impressive. To project warmth, the labels are designed in a classic pattern which resembles knitted sweaters.
The look of the final product is further enhanced by a knotted scarf around the bottleneck.

Impact of Packaging Box on Sales of Christmas Gifts
Packaging the products in special festive packaging and branding has a considerable impact on pushing the sales.
The specially designed packaging for Christmas increases the novelty of the product and is perceived positively by the customers.
Christmas special branding and packaging enhance the perceived value of the product and influence the customers in buying them.
The branding and packaging are the first points of contact between the product and the potential customers.
Products which are well-designed for the festive season add warmth and cheerfulness to the packaging which goes with the elements of the festive season.
Customers are highly likely to purchase such products with festive packaging compared to conventionally packaged products.
The packaging box for the festive season connects the product with the festive season and provides an added stimulus and impulse to the customers to purchase the product.