How do you stay sane in the run up to the holiday retail season?

Quick Question Series

In our Quick Question Series, we ask industry leaders from your favorite brands for their insights.

How do you stay sane in the run up to the holiday retail season?

Tips for making it through the insanity of the holidays from leaders in apparel, hard goods and CPG.

Smith Teamaker – Darren Marshall, CEO Smith Teamaker

Holiday season is always going to be a little crazy, but it’s also the most fulfilling few weeks of the retail season.  I’ve got three antidotes to holiday stress …

1. Plan ahead. Making sure that we’ve have a great understanding of what consumers are going to be intrigued by, what our team is capable of, and connecting the dots well in advance to make sure that there are no surprises.

2. Be present. Holiday is filled with adrenaline. It’s not the time to be distracted, so staying focused and absolutely “present” is key.

3. Communicate. Daily communication to make sure that everyone is on point, learning from daily wins and losses, and always focused on the goal.


Hydro Flask – Phyllis Grove, VP Marketing & Ecommerce

I stay sane by taking care of myself first – getting in my exercise in the morning before coming to work and making sure I get a decent amount of sleep. On those really stressful days, I try to make sure that morning exercise is a walk that includes walking meditation to get grounded before entering the fray. When things hit a peak during the day, I stop, look outside and take some deep breaths to gain the right perspective.


Best Made Company – Tim Sharp, CEO

Having a plan, backup plans, and backups to the backup plans well in place before the madness hits. A lot is happening over those last eight weeks so make the decisions process easy.


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