As winter quickly approaches, many of us are already starting to feel the effects of the changing seasons – whether it be the dropping temperatures, snow falling, or those bright festive lights and holiday decorations all over town. ‘Tis the season for getting into the holiday spirit by enjoying time with family, participating in fun winter activities, and preparing for new bidding opportunities for your business.
Holiday Spending
Consumers collectively spend billions of dollars this time of year. The winter holidays are the most expensive holidays of the year by far. According to a study done by the National Retail Federation, there’s forecasted to be an 8.5%–10.5% increase in holiday sales from 2020 resulting in $843–$859 billion dollars in total sales this year. Since 2008, holiday sales have continued to increase year-over-year. In 2021, it is forecasted that consumers will spend at least $998 dollars on average for holiday gifts and other items. This includes most winter holidays such as Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and Christmas. To break that down even further, of that $998:
- $648 is expected to be spent on gifts for friends, family, and coworkers
- $231 on items such as food and decorations
- $118 on other non-gift purchases for themselves or family
It’s also interesting to look at consumers shopping preferences expected for 2021. Here are the top six:
- 57% plan to shop online
- 47% at department stores
- 44% at discount stores
- 43% at grocery/supermarkets
- 30% at clothing stores
- 24% at local/small businesses
(Source: 2021. “Winter Holidays Data Center.” NRF.com, 30. Nov. 21)
It’s clear that online shopping is starting to dominate the market and its proportion will likely increase over time. As online shopping is becoming more popular so is finding bid opportunities, downloading bid documents, and submitting bids online.
Holiday Opportunities for your Business
Keep in mind that just as consumers are spending a lot of money around the holidays so is the government, resulting in more bid opportunities for your business. Whether your specialty is in holiday supplies, winter equipment, or any other industry, there’s a lot of new bidding opportunities being issued. As 2022 approaches, it’s best to stay vigilant and be on the lookout for any new bids or projects.
Wintertime brings many new opportunities for different types of products and services that are needed at all levels of government. Just as consumers host parties and events, cities and towns also host holiday events that need viable businesses to help bring them to life. Whether it be holiday lights or decorations needed downtown, food catered for a holiday party or services such as snow plowing and salting roads, there’s likely to be an opportunity for your business to get involved. You can read this article on finding winter related opportunities.
Here are some examples of recently closed bid opportunities related to holiday season for reference:
- Closed: Holiday Lights Luke in AZ
- Closed: Com Rec Holiday Candy in OH
- Closed: Christmas Tree Collection in CA
There are many opportunities for your business to skate into winter. It all starts by getting out on the ice and placing a bid.
How to Find these Bid Opportunities
The best way to find out about these opportunities is to use a bid notification service like bidnet direct that sends you daily email notifications every time there are products or services needed that match with your business. By using the “Saved Search” feature you can set up keywords like “holiday lights” or “snow removal” to easy find specific solicitations that you’re looking to bid on. You can read more on how to use filters to search bids on bidnet direct.
Receiving your bid opportunities all in one location will save you time and effort that you can put towards writing winning proposals. You’ll receive documents, specifications, delivery information, and more, making it easy to start bidding any time of the year.
As 2021 comes to a close and we get ready to start fresh in 2022, getting notified of many of the new projects that federal, state, and local agencies will be issuing in the new year is just the way to start your year off right. It’s time to “jingle bell rock” into the holiday season and get excited for all the potential new bidding opportunities coming your way.
Andrea Cortina | bidnet direct
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