This week, a look at how brands are prepping for the holidays. Top fashion brands told Glossy all the ways they’re tackling inventory, gift guides, referrals and more for holiday 2025.
It’s only June, but brands are already preparing for the holidays. No, not holiday 2025 — holiday 2026.
In a working group at the Glossy E-commerce Summit in Miami this week, brands from across beauty and fashion discussed how they’re preparing for the holidays. Thanks in large part to tariffs, brands started earlier than ever, many ordering their inventory months ago in anticipation of shipping delays and changing tariff costs. Some are so wary of extensive delays that they are also prepping their manufacturing partners around the world on next year’s holiday inventory.
One brand, which makes high-end leather goods with materials sourced internationally, told Glossy that congestion and increased inspections at U.S. ports have led to some of their shipments getting sent back to their manufacturers, delaying their operations by months.
“It added a ton of extra work for us,” the executive said. “We actually ran out of inventory and couldn’t restock. This holiday, we’re pushing our orders earlier and even starting on next year’s orders by talking with our manufacturers so they can get their assembly lines prepped.”
One brand founder said the costs of tariffs doubled the price of one of its products overnight. Another executive, the founder of an accessories brand, said that tariffs are causing not just costs to go up but wait times as well. The brand has started to add at least two weeks to all its order estimates to account for the delays.
“When the tariffs went down, suddenly all of our ports were slammed,” the executive said.
Once the product makes its way to market, brands are similarly torn about how to handle discounts. On the one hand, customers expect them and wait for them — particularly around he holidays — but on the other, tariffs are eating into margins so much that a steep discount is hard for brands to swallow.
One brand, which sells luxury watches, never discounts. So instead, an executive said they’re it’s free expedited delivery by Christmas.
“We don’t discount so that’s the best I can offer,” an exec from the brand said.
Another executive, from a cosmetics brand, said that while his brand can’t offer one-day shipping, it can offer one-day processing of orders. Another executive said the opposite: It has longer processing times, but can offer guaranteed one-day delivery.
Holiday referrals were a hot topic of the conversation. Some brands spoke highly of the “Give $5, get $5” strategy, in which customers can gift a friend a $5 credit and receive one themselves. But one attendee had a different approach.
“We started testing, basically, ‘Give $10, get $0,’” she said. Her brand sells intimates, in which fit is paramount. “When people find a brand that fits them really well, they get excited about sharing it. The hypothesis was: ‘If you’re that excited about the product, are you OK with receiving nothing for the referral?’ And it actually worked even better, in terms of conversion, than a ‘Give $5, get $5’ deal.”
The conversation also touched on gift guides, with the consensus being that the earlier you put them out, the better.
“The closer we get to the holidays, the worse gift guides perform because people know what they’re getting,” one exec said. “The sweet spot for us is November 1.”
Executive moves
- Ulrik Garde Due, a seasoned luxury executive formerly of Burberry, Celine and Mark Cross, is taking over as CEO of the sustainable couture brand ArdAzAei.
- Ben Taverniti was appointed as the new creative director of the streetwear brand D-R-G-N. Taverniti has worked with Jeremy Scott, served as creative director of Hudson Jeans and founded the luxury streetwear Unravel Project.
- The British businesswoman Karen Blackett, known for her role as GroupM’s UK CEO from 2018 to 2024, is joining the board of the British Fashion Council.
News to know
- PVH is cutting its profit outlook for the rest of the year, citing impact from the trade war. Still, first-quarter growth was good at Tommy Hilfiger, thanks to strong revenue in the U.S. and the Middle East.
- In May, Skechers announced a surprise $9.4 billion deal with 3G Capital to take the company private. Now, it’s being sued by a group of shareholders who say the deal violated federal securities law and unfairly favored 3G Capital against other bidders.
- The Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that it will reduce its collection of data on consumer prices. The cuts will give businesses less insight into inflation and the health of the economy.
Inside Glossy’s coverage
Chief merchandising officer Jill Sando on Target’s collaborations with DVF, Kate Spade and more
‘Price tags will have to go’: Brand executives weigh in on potential solutions to tariff challenges
How wedding guest fashion became the main character on TikTok
