‘Boom’ in sales of gin advent calendars and Christmas boxes for adults

Just over half of adults said they give a festive stocking to their partner at Christmas, according to research for Clearpay.

Vicky Shaw
Sunday 15 September 2024 07:00 BST
Last year saw a boom in sales of festive items tweaked for adult tastes, according to Clearpay (Lewis Stickley/PA)
Last year saw a boom in sales of festive items tweaked for adult tastes, according to Clearpay (Lewis Stickley/PA) (PA Archive)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Last year saw a boom in sales of festive items traditionally aimed at children which were tweaked for adult tastes, according to data from a buy now, pay later provider.

Clearpay said there was a 31% rise in sales of advent calendars containing gin in the run-up to Christmas 2023, compared with the same period in 2022.

Sales of advent calendars aimed at women also jumped by 240% while there was a 463% uplift in sales of Christmas Eve boxes for adults.

Clearpay compared its search and sales data from October to December 2023 with the same period in 2022.

Some savvy shoppers are already ahead of the game

Rich Bayer, Clearpay

It also commissioned a survey of people who celebrate Christmas, which found more than half (52%) of adults give a festive stocking to their partner.

The most popular stocking fillers include sweet treats, socks, perfume and aftershave, accessories, and make-up and beauty products, according to the research released ahead of the 100-day countdown to Christmas from Monday.

Nearly a fifth (18%) of people surveyed said they have already started their Christmas shopping, with women (20%) being more likely than men (15%) to have already got into the festive spirit.

Rich Bayer, UK country manager at Clearpay, said: “Some savvy shoppers are already ahead of the game and are picking up sought-after items such as advent calendars.”

OnePoll surveyed 2,000 people across the UK in August and September who celebrate Christmas.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in