Spring trends in sales

As winter fades away, eBay sellers are getting ready for the new season and its sales opportunities. In this article, you will find useful tips on what to include in your spring inventory if you want to capitalize on seasonal trends. 

According to J.P. Morgan’s forecasts, the consumer spending growth in the US is likely to slow down in 2024 as compared to 2023 [1]. There are multiple reasons for this: declining excess savings, less pent-up demand, stabilizing wage growth, and a low savings rate. To maintain your sales level, we recommend to benefit from spring trends and offer buyers what they will crave most in the upcoming months.

Easter gifts and decor

While being a major Christian holiday, Easter is also celebrated by non-religious people. It has become the holiday of renewal, when nature awakens from winter slumber and everyone is getting ready for the joys of warmer seasons. In 2024, Easter falls on March 31.

In the weeks leading up to this holiday, a lot of buyers look for Easter-themed decor and gifts: garlands, wreaths, and other ornaments. They usually feature the traditional Easter attributes that symbolize fertility and rebirth — the Easter Bunny, chicks, and eggs. Many people exchange gifts and organize fun activities for children, such as Easter egg hunt or egg decorating. To attract more attention to giftable listings before this holiday, create compelling social media posts, Easter-themed promo banners and ads. 

Popular items:

• Homeware with Easter motifs
• Ornaments featuring egg baskets, bunnies, chicks, or flowers
• Easter greeting cards
• Chocolate eggs, bunnies, and other sweets
• Egg decorating supplies
• Pastel-colored apparel with floral patterns

Spring and summer fashion 

In March and April, buyers are shopping for spring clothes and footwear. Dresses peak around Easter Sunday, while women’s tops and blouses also see a surge in demand in March. Starting from April, early birds are getting ready for summer: buying beachwear, hot weather apparel and hats. Sunglasses sell surprisingly well throughout the whole spring.

Popular items:

• Spring apparel and footwear
• Hats and sunglasses
• Summer clothing and footwear
• Beachwear

Garden and patio

According to eBay’s survey [2] conducted in 2023, 72% of US adult consumers tend to spend a lot of time in their backyard or outdoor space in spring and summer. The same percentage (72%) prefer staying at home to going out frequently. It means that a vast majority of consumers look to spruce up their outdoor space, and spring is the right time to do it. 

The survey also revealed that 57% of respondents purchase gardening supplies: turf, grass, plants, and seeds. Almost half of the surveyed consumers (45%) look for home and garden decorations: lanterns, wind chimes, fairy lights, pillows, and rugs. And over a third (35%) of them are ready to invest in ultimate relaxation: hammocks, fire pits, patio furniture sets, and such.

Popular items:

• Gardening supplies
• Lawn care and lawn mower parts
• String lights and other decorations
• Patio furniture
• Pillows and rugs
• Hammocks
• Fire pits

Home improvement and cleaning

Starting from early spring, consumers initiate home improvement projects. In addition to garden furniture and supplies listed in the previous section, many people buy tools and parts to repair broken appliances and redecorate their living space. As days become longer and sunnier, a good number of buyers also invest in solar power supplies to generate green energy and save on electricity bills.

The tradition of spring cleaning is strictly observed in many households. In March and April 2023, the top searches in the Vacuum Cleaners category (“Dyson vacuum cleaner,” “roomba,” and “shark vacuum”) got twice as many searches as in January and February [3]. Since eBay buyers pay much attention to sustainability, it’s no surprise that shoppers are eager to purchase refurbished vacuum cleaners: the sales in this category were ten times higher in March and April than in January and February.

Popular items:

• Vacuum cleaners
• Power tool batteries
• Washer and dryer parts
• Cooking appliance parts
• Solar power supplies
• Water filters
• Portable fans
• Furniture

Outdoor equipment

Warmer weather motivates consumers to spend more time outdoors — whether for exercise or recreation. That’s why there is usually a surge in demand for hiking clothes and equipment, camping gear, bicycles and cycling accessories, rollerblades, skateboards, and more. Create compelling listings or optimize the existing ones to make them more visible and attractive.

Popular items:

• Backpacks
• Tents, stoves, sleeping bags
• Summer sports equipment
• Bicycles
• Athletic wear

Mother’s Day gifts

In spring, a lot of buyers come to eBay to purchase gifts for Mother’s Day. This year, it is celebrated on March 10 in the UK and on May 12 in the US and most other countries. Popular gifts include personalized jewelry, fashionable accessories, household appliances, and other thoughtful presents. If some of your items can make great gifts, add relevant keywords (“best gift for mom”, “Mother’s day gift”, etc.) to listing titles and descriptions for better visibility. You can also set up volume pricing to motivate buyers to purchase more of your items.

Top searches and purchases before Mother’s Day in 2022:

Father’s Day gifts

Though Father’s Day is celebrated on the third Sunday of June (US), a lot of buyers start browsing eBay in May — looking for ideas and prompts. It’s your chance to increase the sales of giftable items: gadgets, toolkits, sporting goods, auto accessories, outdoor gear, and various hobby supplies. Don’t forget to include relevant search phrases into titles and descriptions of your listings: “best gift for dad”, “father’s day gift”, etc.

Top searches and purchases before Father’s Day in 2022:

Useful tips

We have prepared a list of recommendations that will help you make the most out of spring trends.

• Promote calendar-specific items weeks in advance. Thus you will catch “early birds” and minimize potential surplus stock
• Run a flash sale at the end of the season to attract more buyers and offload surplus stock
• Take major sporting events into account — for example, UEFA Euro 2024 and the Summer Olympic Games — and plan your stock and promo activities accordingly
• Use practical tools for increasing seasonal sales: discounts and Promoted Listings, Promoted Stores and Store newsletters, social media posts and Promoted Offsite.

Tap into spring trends and ride the wave!

You may be also interested in:

• 2024 holiday calendar: key dates for your marketing campaigns
• Excellent customer service during busy seasons
• How to package seasonal products and decorate your Store