On Sunday the 2nd January, gifting expert, Courtney Rogers, headed to talkRadio studio to meet with Bob Mills to discuss the top trends for the new year.
We had some brilliant insights from some of our amazing clients that helped to shape this list including the likes of: Playtime PR, Cricut, Paperchase, Hampers.com, Find Me a Gift, and Prezzybox.
Kicking off the lively interview with Bob, Courtney first discussed an overview of the top products from Christmas 2021, and then looked at what key trends we can expect from 2022. Keep reading below to discover more!
Overview of Christmas 2021 Top Products:
This past Christmas saw many new and exciting trends such as the rise of novelty products, like Paperchase’s Banana bread bauble.
Quirky Christmas Ornaments were also a hit this year, such as Marmites ‘The Icons’ range bauble, PG Tips box bauble, The Coleman’s Mustard bauble!
Quality time with family was an important theme, with people wanting to make up for lost time with loved ones. Hampers.com saw a rise in popularity in their home cocktail creation offerings and in particular The Christmas Prosecco Cocktail Hamper, to bring family and friends together in a fun and creative way. Hampers.com expects this trend to continue into 2022.
We can’t finish the round up with Christmas activity, without of course mentioning toys! Like every year, toy sales around Christmas are one of the biggest drivers. But last year was pretty spectacular in terms of growth. According to Shopify, the toy market saw exponential growth in 2021, with 1.8 million average monthly searches for the term “toy”.
Key Themes & Trends for 2022 #1: Retailers selling via online social media platforms like TikTok
TikTok has become one of the biggest social media platforms and brands and retailers are jumping on the bandwagon to reap the rewards of selling via the platform or working with content creators to promote their products.
A case in point, is the trending hashtag on TikTok #tiktokmademebuyit, which has garnered over 7.6 billion views and is influencing people to buy new products. Leading retailers like Amazon are using this to their advantage, and curating online assortments and gift guides that are TikTok best sellers.
The trend of selling via online social platforms shows no signs of stopping and it is predicted that any platform with an audience will start to monetize their offerings through commerce and shoppable content. We will even see the line between shopping and entertainment continue to close with the rise of live-stream shopping, where consumers can instantly purchase a product through a live-stream video.
Key Themes & Trends for 2022 #2: Forget less is more, it’s all about being #extra in 2022!
The emphasis this year will be on finding joy in our lives and buying products to reflect this and being absolutely #extra and owning it!
Cricut said their customers are starting to decorate their homes for every and any occasion, using the Cricut machines to push the boat out on wonderful designs, without having to overly splurge to create ornate and beautiful designs and accessories for the home.
Find Me a Gift predicts a rise in unusual and extravagant gift experiences such as superyacht hotel stays, and swimming with sharks. Now that’s an experience to say the least!
Courtney noted that looking at all this together, the idea of ‘More is More’ will bring on trends such as oversized, neon colour, bold and brash, and foiled lame. This will also influence trending colours this year which are said to be bold reds, hibiscus, purple, indigo, blue, metallic pink, yellow, and green. There will also be exciting new tastes like rosemary & honey, bittersweet ouzo and lemon peel, and papaya blossom and ginger, that consumers and brands and retailers alike will start to play around with.
Key Themes & Trends for 2022 #3: The “GRETA Effect”
Cricut commented that in light of COP26 and taking into account the “GRETA effect”, there will be a strong focus on sustainability this year, a popular trend developing over the past few years that will only continue to increase in importance.
There have been 5.8 billion people who have watched #upcycling content on TikTok and 5.3 million posts using this hashtag on Instagram, being one of the top 30 hashtags on this platform to date.
Cricut makes it easy to upcycle with the Cricut EasyPressTM as you can create a fabric design to cover a hole or a stain on clothes or upholstery, and breathe new life into it in minutes.
Hampers.com have been making big pushes towards recyclable and reusable packaging, and year-on-year see an increase in demand for plant-based food. #Plantbased is even contained in 37.4 million posts on Instagram.
PrezzyBox’s searches for eco-conscious and eco-friendly gifts skyrocketed this year, and will continue to do so into 2022. Think “grow your own plant/veggie kits, reusable beauty sets and digital gifts, like e-vouchers for experience days.
They have seen an overall 25% increase in vegan gift sales for 2021 compared to 2020. #vegangifts is contained in 105k posts on instagram and has 853.4k views on Tik Tok.
Key Themes & Trends for 2022 #4: Shop Small, Shop Local, Shop Independent
Courtney said, the “doughnut effect” which has been propelled by the pandemic, has created retail opportunities for retailers outside of London with suburbs becoming popular places to shop with consumers working from home.
According to research conducted by Retail Gazette, for every £1 spent with a small or medium-sized business, 63p will then stay within the local economy. The hashtag #shoplocal has an impressive 437.3m views on TikTok.
Prezzybox works with many small businesses local to their Headquarter in Warwickshire, and predicts a huge rise in searches for ‘small business gifts’. This is very much apparent on TikTok with the hashtag #smallbusinessgifts having been viewed 394.5k times to date.
Key Themes & Trends for 2022 #5: Cult followings
Cult followings from popular shows and pop culture will continue to influence consumer buying habits across different sectors.
We have seen this in TV shows such as Squid Games which triggered an increase in searches for retro-inspired tracksuits and basic white shoes, seeing a 97% uptake in search volume globally. Cricut said many of their customers used their EasyPress machine to create homemade Squid Game costumes for Halloween this past year.
There was also a rise in the trend of ‘Pop Punk Revival’, spurred on by two celebrity couples Kourtney and Travis, and Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly.
Courtney said, it is all about self-expression and autonomy and Millennials and Gen Zers alike are reclaiming this style movement and putting their own personal spin on it. On Etsy, searches for spiked collars are up 879% alongside searches for vintage plaid items (up 48%), fishnet items (up 37%), and studded belts (up 34%).
The highly anticipated Netflix show, Emily in Paris, is even using this trend to their advantage. Starting in season two, select luxury products that Emily wears throughout the show will be made shoppable via Netflix or Saks, and is expected to reach a global audience of over 58 million viewers in the first month alone.
Key Themes & Trends for 2022 #6: Personalised, Handmade & Bespoke
Personalised and handmade gifts have been a trending topic over the past year and will only continue to grow in popularity in 2022. #personalisedgift has 21.7 million views on TikTok, #personalised has 111.4 million views on TikTok and an Etsy article stated that it was a top search term for the second year in a row. #handmadegifts has a tremendous 1.9 billion views on TikTok.
Cricut stated that Google Trends shows that searches for personalisation soars each Christmas and continues to get bigger each year, while Find Me a Gift predicts that there will continue to be a rise in personalised pet products this year.
Prezzybox believes this trend is becoming increasingly popular because gifts feel extra special when they are personalised or handmade. Customers will pay more for premium and artisan products, preferring fewer items that are higher-quality rather than a stack of cheaper products.
They also said that this trend will turn towards custom hampers, with customers wanting to choose exactly what goes into their gift, making it personal for the recipient.
Key Themes & Trends for 2022 #7: Taking time for YOU
A report from SpringFair and Trendbible shows that this key trend will be about calming rituals and finding moments of stillness and reflection. Driving this trend is continued prioritization of health and wellness.
In 2020, 25% of people took up a new hobby and 52% of people who took up crafting on machines like Cricut noticed a positive impact on their mental wellbeing. Hobbycraft now offers a huge range of Cricut workshops, perfect for taking some time out and investing in yourself!
Interested in listening to the whole story? Head to the talkRADIO app now-> click on ‘Schedule/Listen again’ -> go to Sunday 2 January -> find Bob Mills and Click ‘Listen Again’ -> then click on timing of 2.30pm to 3pm
CIJ Team