Christmas in September: Christian Consumer Perceptions of Retailer Early Presentations of Holiday Seasonality

This research examines Christian consumers’ responses to retailers’ early presentations of Christmas merchandise displays. Using balance theory and the extant retailing literature as the theoretical foundation, this scenario-based experimental research shows that early presentation of Christmas displays results in a decrease in the perceived appropriateness of the seasonal display which, in turn, hurts retailer evaluations. Additionally, attitude towards early presentation of Christmas merchandise and both intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity moderate the relationship between the timing of the display and the perceived appropriateness of the display. These findings are discussed in relation to theory and implications for retailers are identified.