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February 7, 2025
Super Bowl Shaping Up To Be the Next American Holiday, at Least as Far as Omnichannel Sales Are Concerned
There’s Christmas, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Father’s Day, Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day — and of course, shopping-centric holidays such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
But in the catalog of holidays with a price tag often attached, whether you celebrate simply or lavishly, perhaps none is as uniquely American as the newest U.S. holiday coinciding with a massive spend: the Super Bowl.
Super Bowl Becoming an Instigator for Significant Omnichannel Spending
While the Super Bowl being a big deal isn’t anything new, the spend associated with the event has blossomed into countless avenues as brands scramble to capitalize on the excitement surrounding the big game.
As Chain Store Age senior editor Dan Berthiaume suggested, Super Bowl LIX is shaping up to be a one-of-a-kind opportunity for brands, both retail and beyond.
“Now, the grand finale to the football season, the Super Bowl, is emerging as a single-day event with consumer participation and interest approaching that of calendar mainstays such as Christmas,” Berthiaume wrote.
“According to data from Numerator, two-thirds of consumers will watch the ‘Big Game,’ and a combined half of those viewers will host or attend a home gathering or watch in a bar or restaurant. This is a national party, and retailers and brands want to be sure they’re included on the guest list via every selling and marketing channel possible,” he added.
Berthiaume outlined a few major examples backing his point.
- Livestream shopping: Provided via Tubi, who is partnering with Shopsense AI to host a livestream shopping Red Carpet event, this curated stream allows customers to buy items via smartphone throughout game day. Items include football-related party essentials, fashion and accessories tied to trends worn by notable WAGs (wives and girlfriends of star players), team apparel, and other fan merch.
- PepsiCo and Wing do drone delivery: Select fans in the Frisco, Texas, market will be able to snag a promotional pack delivered via drone. Packs feature Doritos, Tostitos, and Pepsi Zero Sugar soda.
- Discount bundles from Walmart and Amazon: Both retailers are offering discounted “Game Day” bundles for sports fans. These bundles feature tailgate menu favorites and are available for in-store pickup or delivery.
Tubi’s Red Carpet Livestream Shopping Experience Puts Super Bowl Front and Center
Hosted by famous model Olivia Culpo, herself married to San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey, the Tubi-Shopsense AI collab coming in the form of a shoppable Red Carpet event may prove a test case for more interactive shopping experiences built around U.S. cultural touchstones like the Super Bowl.
“Television is rapidly transforming into an interactive marketing platform that can effectively influence consumer behavior from initial awareness to final purchase,” said Shopsense AI CEO and co-founder Glenn Fishback, as Retail Touchpoints reported.
“With this partnership, we’re bringing the power of shoppable TV to one of the biggest cultural moments of the year. This is the future of retail, where every entertainment touch point becomes an opportunity for brands to captivate and connect with consumers,” Fishback continued.
Tubi CRO Jeff Lucas was equally enthusiastic about rolling out the red carpet on game day in his remarks concerning the shopping event.
“Tubi’s collaboration with Shopsense AI is an important step forward in blending entertainment and commerce for brands and consumers through retail media CTV partnerships. Our commitment to delivering premium entertainment that is free and accessible, combined with an incremental audience that is incredibly passionate about our content, allows us to experiment in ways that are tangible and truly interactive. Shoppable integrations are the next frontier for ad-supported streaming services,” Lucas said.
Pop-Ups in New Orleans From Revlon, Abercrombie & Fitch, Lids, and Urban Outfitters Push Experiential Retail
In advance of Feb. 9’s contest between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs, at least four fashion-forward retail brands are going all-out in New Orleans.
Revlon is participating in a massive pop-up (dubbed “The Block”) produced by marketing agency Athletes First, one which involves four interconnected mansions and a 10,000-square-foot courtyard complete with pools and gardens. From Feb. 6 through Feb. 8, the “House of Revlon” will exhibit both a Revlon “Glimmer Bar” as well as an “American Crew Grooming Lounge” for the gents. There, professional makeup artists and hairstylists will be on hand to make guests look their very best. Juicy Couture and John Varvatos fragrances will also be provided for sampling.
Abercrombie & Fitch will be running a one-day pop-up on Feb. 8 entitled “Abercrombie House.” The pop-up is slated to be located in The Chicory in downtown New Orleans and will feature Super Bowl LIX merchandise alongside selections from the Abercrombie Spring collection. NFL stars will be on hand to mix and mingle with fans, and a custom embroidery station allows participants to personalize their purchases on-site.
“At Abercrombie, we’re all about creating moments of surprise and delight for our customers, and Abercrombie House captures that spirit perfectly,” said company CMO Carey Collins Krug, per Retail Touchpoints. “Combining the energy of the game with our high-quality, vintage-inspired gear, we’ve reimagined how fans can celebrate their favorite teams — on and off the field.”
Meanwhile, Lids has teamed up with New Orleans’ Café Du Monde for an exclusive collection of caps to be sold exclusively at Lids locations in the area — as well as at a two-day pop-up at Café du Monde’s Grandad’s General Store — and Urban Outfitters is taking to The Big Easy for a free Fazit pop-up from Feb. 7 to 9 at its store there. Fans can get adorned with red or green Fazit Faux Freckle Makeup, representing their allegiance to the Eagles or the Chiefs, for free.
Tech Retailers and Grocers Round Out the Super Bowl Sales Frenzy
Finally, tech retailers and grocers are two other major players in the Super Bowl sales market, developing their own strategies for picking up a few extra dollars from fans looking to enjoy the big day on a big screen — and with a big feast.
TechRadar was able to round up 23 different Super Bowl TV deals from a variety of different retailers, and Grocery Dive also echoed the assertion that the Super Bowl was becoming a holiday event.
Citing a report from Advantage Solutions, the outlet indicated that a vast majority of respondents polled (79%) said they were planning to purchase party- and family-sized portions for their Super Bowl celebrations. Grocery Dive was careful to point out, however, that Walmart and other mass retailers were laying claim to a significant portion of this assumed spend.
Discussion Questions
Would you consider the Super Bowl to be an American shopping holiday, particularly given the omnichannel sales opportunities it produces? Why or why not?
What aspects of the Super Bowl, and the associated entertainment, cultural, or commercial attachments it spawns, present the most opportunity for retail brands moving forward?
What major criticisms, if any, can be levied toward the spectacle the Super Bowl has become — both from an economic perspective as well as from a broader point of view?
Poll
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Jeff Sward
Founding Partner, Merchandising Metrics
Gary Sankary
Retail Industry Strategy, Esri
Lisa Goller
B2B Content Strategist
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I agree that participation in the Super Bowl is enormous. However, participation is much shallower than for other occasions. For most it is basically watching, having snacks and drinks, and maybe a gathering and buying some team merchandise. So, there are opportunities here, but spending for Super Bowl is way below big events like Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. These events are prolonged, deep, multi-category, and multidimensional. Super Bowl is not.
The Super Bowl has long been an occasion to purchase fun food. It only makes sense that talented marketers are figuring out how to leverage the big event to move merchandise and experiences during the Super Weekend.
Is the Super Bowl is shaping up to be the next American holiday? I’d say it’s already up there with our other favorite made up holidays.
If anyone is allowed a holiday, when is Retail Wire Day?
It’s the third Tuesday in July. 😉
As I noted a few days ago, the Super Bowl has been the biggest home entertainment holiday since the 70s. But, a time to shop? Really?
We got a heckuva good deal on a TV screen to set up in front of the treadmill! And everyone knows the hours while the game is on is the best time to do a Target run.
Well, that makes sense. Next year!
Although Super Bowl Sunday is already a “holiday” in its own right, there is no reason to make it official, any more than Black Friday.
Omnichannel sales surrounding the Super Bowl are increasing year after year, especially in the restaurant and food industry.
Retailers are eager to participate, especially in order to recover from holiday returns in January. Nevertheless, if non-food retail stores wish to hold a big sale on Super Bowl Sunday, it would be an obvious mistake since everybody who cares is watching the game. A weeklong promotion leading up to Sunday might be effective, however.
In a nutshell, Super Bowl Sunday is an omnichannel shopping holiday that will continue to thrive year after year, but only the strongest will succeed.
The Super Bowl is evolving as an American shopping holiday that invigorates retail sales in Q1. Grocery, foodservice, licensed merchandise and retailers’ ad businesses benefit from the big game’s influence.
I agree that the Super Bowl drives grocery and restaurant delivery sales, along with party goods and team apparel (for the teams lucky enough to make it). I’d be more interested in seeing how the commercials during the game drive sales and other metrics for the goods and services being promoted at such high cost.
I have an advantage here because I am writing post Super Bowl. The quality of the product (the game!) has gone steadily downhill, along with the quality of the half time show (I would be interested to know what percentage of the audience enjoyed it) and, finally, the quality of the commercials.
The NFL desperately needs a revised and rebooted Super Bowl, because last night was tedious on multiple levels.
The Superbowl is one giant marketing extravaganza with some football thrown in to keep people interested. Caveat: from where I sit, that’s the entire NFL these days, from pre-season to Super Bowl.
I totally understand that the Super Bowl is a massive marketing moment, but is that the same thing as a sales opportunity or a shopping holiday? And I totally understand that pizza, beer and lots of different snacks and party goods probably see a sales spike. Does Amazon have a spike? Could placer.ai spot the traffic spike with their foot traffic data?
The Super Bowl means eyeballs, and the presence of eyeballs means marketing opportunity. I always thought Super Bowl ads were an opportunity to invest in longer term brand promises versus short term buying. Sure, there is some business to be done in support of the day, but I always thought the day was an opportunity for brands to elbow their way into the market for a “look at me!” moment.
I’ll answer my own question. The marketing moment and shopping holiday are two completely different things. Now lets talk about the ROI on the marketing.
Yes, for retail categories such as grocery, restaurants, and apparel, the Super Bowl is considered an unofficial American shopping holiday. For these specific categories, it makes sense for brands to focus on providing quality omnichannel experiences to position their brand as the top choice for consumers.
Take the famous Oreo blackout tweet from 2013, which capitalized on the cultural event to bring their brand front and center. Platforms like Instacart and Doordash, which are used much more frequently than back then, would need to seize upon the opportunity to serve up Oreos front-and-center to app users – making the most of the moment to satisfy thousands of consumers’ cravings for Oreos when they wanted the product most.
The Super Bowl has absolutely turned into an American shopping holiday. Retailers treat it like Black Friday, it’s like a goldmine for brands, but also a reminder of how consumerism dominates culture.
The biggest opportunity is in omnichannel sales through livestream shopping, exclusive merchandize, and same-day delivery. But the spectacle also exposes the economic disparity where companies make billions, while many Americans struggle financially.
The Super Bowl has become more than a game, it’s a giant money-making machine. Therefore, like like any machine, it runs on people’s wallets.