Christmas Matters - Don’t Fall Short This Festive Season

If you run a rural business, hear this clearly: Christmas is not optional. Christmas is oxygen.

For many small, independent businesses, the festive period isn’t just a season — it’s the moment that can make (or break) the entire year.

But here’s the mistake I see over and over again:

Everyone assumes Christmas is already “oversaturated”… so they hold back. Meanwhile the businesses who lean in — who do more, think bolder, collaborate harder — are the ones who walk into January with momentum, profit, and a community who remember them.

And rural businesses?

You have less competition, not more.

You have closer community ties, not fewer.

You have more room to stand out, not less.

The truth is… Christmas isn’t saturated. Your corner of the world is waiting for you to do something worth talking about.

Stop Copying. Start Creating.

If you’re a pub, yes — everyone and their grandmother will be launching a festive menu.

But not everyone will be hosting a “Build Your Own Christmas Hamper” night, where locals fill baskets with artisanal goods, chutneys, beers, small-batch gifts and handmade items from the village.

If you’re a cheesemonger, of course you’ll be selling cheese boards. But not everyone will be teaming up with the local wine shop to create a limited-edition cheese and wine tasting flight— pre-packaged, beautifully branded and ready to gift.

If you run a boutique, everyone will be doing a “Christmas shopping evening.” But not everyone will be offering complimentary gift styling, handwritten tags, mulled wine, free wrapping, or a mini photoshoot with every purchase.

Creativity is the gap in the market.

You don’t need to reinvent Christmas — you just need to reinvent the experience.

Collaboration Is the Secret Weapon of Rural Business

A hill I will always die on:

Rural businesses must support each other if they want to thrive.

When you join forces, customers feel the strength of your community — and they spend more money supporting the ecosystem they believe in.

Think:

• The pub + the florist + the farm shop co-hosting a Christmas market.

• The café partnering with the candle maker for a “coffee and candle pour” workshop.

• The vineyard working with a bakery for a sparkling wine and mince pie tasting night.

• The butcher teaming up with the deli for a Christmas roast recipe box.

Instead of competing for the same people, you share customers, share visibility, share rewards — and everyone grows.

Festive Effort = Festive Revenue

Most business owners think they’re doing “enough” for Christmas.

They’re not.

People want to feel something. They want magic, novelty, warmth, community — especially in the countryside, where traditions actually matter.

Christmas is your moment to:

• Give people a reason to step inside your business

• Create experiences that spark word of mouth

• Deepen loyalty with your regulars

• Bring in brand-new customers who were previously indifferent

• Make a financial impact that carries you through quieter months

If Christmas doesn’t feel special in your business, it won’t feel special to your customers.

This Season: Don’t Play Small

Your customers are choosing where to go, what to buy, who to support — and they will choose the business that puts in the effort.

Don’t fall short.

Don’t blend in.

Don’t assume people already know how brilliant you are.

Be the business that creates excitement.

Be the business that collaborates.

Be the business that makes Christmas feel like Christmas.

Because the rural businesses who dare to make a fuss now?

They’re the ones who will still be thriving come spring.