End-of-year celebrations 2025: the complete calendar of e-commerce events not to be missed

Introduction

The end of the year is a real marathon for e-retailers. Between the start of the new school year in September, French Days, Halloween, All Saints’ Day, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, the Advent calendar period, then the unmissable Christmas season and finally the winter sales, sales opportunities come thick and fast.

With the right preparation, this last quarter can represent up to 40% of annual turnover for some retailers【Fevad】. But beware: each event has its own codes, logistical constraints and specific expectations depending on the sector (toys, fashion, decoration, beauty, high-tech, etc.).

To help you make sure you don’t miss a thing, here is a complete calendar of e-commerce events from September 2025 to January 2026, enriched with analyses, activation ideas and practical recommendations for each key date.

Sommaire

1. Back to school & French Days (25–29 September 2025*)
   
2. Heritage Days (20–21 September 2025)
   
3. Halloween (31 October 2025)
   
4. All Saints’ Day & autumn holidays (18 October – 3 November 2025)
   
5. Singles’ Day (11 November 2025)
   
6. Advent calendars & pre-Christmas period (end of October – 24 November 2025)
   
7. Black Friday (Friday 28 November 2025)
   
8. Cyber Monday (Monday, 1 December 2025)
   
9. Christmas & New Year’s Eve (24–25 December 2025)
   
10. Winter sales (7 January – 3 February 2026**)
    
11. Conclusion & continuation of the series

1. Back to school & French Days (25–29 September 2025*)

The start of the school year isn’t just about schoolbags: it marks a return to the office, to routines, and to the first autumn purchases. French Days, often referred to as the ‘French Black Friday’, take place at the end of September and offer massive discounts.

• Sectors concerned: high-tech, household appliances, fashion, home decor/furnishings.
• Challenges: clearing stock, preparing the ground before the major holidays, attracting early buyers.
• Activation ideas:
  
  • Create a special ‘Back-to-school bargains’ category on your website.
    
  • Offer bundles (e.g. laptop + bag, back-to-school set for children).
    
  • Focus on SEO around ‘French Days 2025’, ‘back-to-school promotions’ and ‘high-tech offers’.
    
  • Google Ads and social ads campaigns with countdowns.
    
• Sources : Fevad – Calendrier e-commerce 2025, LSA Commerce.
  

2. Heritage Days (20–21 September 2025)

A cultural event that attracts millions of visitors to museums, monuments and historical sites. For e-retailers, it’s an opportunity to ride the wave of heritage, local culture and expertise.

• Sectors concerned: crafts, decoration, tourism, bookshops.
  
• Challenges: strengthening legitimacy and brand image by emphasising authenticity.
  
• Activation ideas:
  
  • Articles or videos on the history of your company or your craftsmen.
    
  • Local special offers: ‘Support the local economy’.
    
  • Social media content focusing on heritage and tradition.
    
• Sources : Service-Public.fr.
  

3. Halloween (31st October 2025) 🎃

Halloween has become an unmissable festive occasion, especially for families and young adults.

• Sectors concerned: toys, home décor, confectionery, fashion/beauty (make-up, accessories).
  
• Challenges: creating social buzz, generating one-off traffic, building community loyalty.
  
• Activation ideas:
  
  • “Halloween Special” category: costumes, make-up, decorations.
    
  • Digital activities: costume photo competition on Instagram/TikTok.
    
  • Scary cake recipes, DIY workshops.
    

4. All Saints’ Day & autumn holidays (18 October – 3 November 2025)

All Saints’ Day remains a key date for florists and funeral directors, but it is also a school holiday period.

• Sectors concerned: flowers, travel, leisure, children’s activities.
  
• Opportunities: promoting seasonal products, family getaways, relaxation packages.
  
• Activation ideas:
  
  • Promotions targeting short breaks, leisure activities or family activities.
    
  • Editorial communication focusing on memory, tradition and conviviality.

Sources : School calendar – French Ministry of Education, Service-Public.fr.

5. Singles’ Day (11 November 2025)

Still relatively unknown in France, Singles’ Day is slowly gaining ground, especially in the digital world.

• Sectors concerned: fashion, high-tech, beauty, digital entertainment.
  
• Challenges: attracting a young, connected clientele and testing targeted offers.
  
• Activation ideas:
  
  • Self-care offers (wellness products, streaming subscriptions).
    
  • Limited-time bundles and promotions.
    
  • Fun social media campaigns (#SingleDay #TreatYourself).

6. Advent & pre-Christmas calendars (end of October – 24 November 2025)

Advent calendars are not sold in December: they are prepared and marketed from the end of October onwards, to accompany the whole month of November.

• Sectors concerned: beauty (cosmetic calendars), gourmet (chocolates, teas), home décor (candles, gift sets).
  
• Challenges: creating repeat business, boosting basket value and preparing for Christmas.
  
• Activation ideas:
  
  • ‘Advent Calendar 2025’ category online from 25 October.
    
  • Blog articles: ‘5 original Advent calendar ideas for your customers’.
    
  • Daily email campaigns highlighting one product per day.

7. Black Friday (Friday, 28 November 2025) 🖤

This is the most eagerly awaited time of year for French consumers..

• Sectors concerned: high-tech, household appliances, fashion, sports.
  
• Challenges: generating maximum traffic and recruiting new customers.
  
• Activation ideas:
  
  • Create an SEO-optimised Black Friday landing page in October.
    
  • Offer powerful, time-limited discounts.
    
  • Activate Google Ads/Meta Ads to capture purchase intent.
    
• Check the latest shipping dates with your carriers (La Poste, Chronopost…).

8. Cyber Monday (Monday, 1 December 2025) 💻

Cyber Monday is a ‘second chance’ for consumers. It particularly attracts bargain hunters online.

• Sectors concerned: high-tech, fashion, digital services.
  
• Challenges: re-engage those who are hesitant, prolong the Black Friday effect.
  
• Activation ideas:
  
  • Separate Cyber Monday category to capitalise on the event.
    
  • Exclusive online offers, free 24-hour delivery, discounts on remaining products.
    
  • Emailing & retargeting targeting those who abandoned their shopping carts over the weekend.

9. Christmas & Christmas Eve (24–25 December 2025) 🎄

The peak of the season. Consumers are looking for last-minute gifts, experiences and services.

• Opportunities: maximise average basket size, attract latecomers.
  
• Activation ideas:
  
  • Promote digital gift vouchers.
    
  • Create express delivery reassurance campaigns.
    
  • Focus on emotional content and building close relationships with your customers.

10. Winter sales (7 January – 3 February 2026) 🛍️

The winter sales mark the end of the season.

• Sectors concerned: fashion, sports, household appliances, home goods.
  
• Opportunities: sell off unsold post-Christmas stock, generate traffic in January.
  
• Activation ideas:
  
  • Aggressive offers on seasonal stock.
    
  • Creation of a Sale category with SEO filters.
    
  • Segmented email campaigns to reactivate Christmas shoppers.

Tableau récapitulatif des marronniers 2025–2026

* French Days dates to be confirmed.

** Sales dates to be confirmed on DGCCRF.

Conclusion

The end-of-year period is a strategic sequence for any retailer: each event, from French Days to the winter sales, deserves dedicated preparation.

The challenge is not only to offer promotions, but to create experiences tailored to different highlights and sector-specificities: decoration and atmosphere from autumn onwards, toys to be anticipated from October onwards, high-tech on Black Friday, or beauty and gourmet gift sets for Christmas.

👉 In our next article, we will delve deeper into a key topic: how to secure your logistics and manage returns after the holidays, with best practices and feedback from one of our expert partners. We will then open up an essential discussion: should you play the Black Friday game or opt for an alternative such as Green Friday to assert your brand values?