Key Online Sales Dates 2026 – E-commerce Marketing Guide | Abicart

Key Online Sales Dates 2026 – E-commerce Marketing Guide | Abicart
Succeeding in e-commerce is not just about having great products – it’s also about timing. Throughout the year, there are specific dates and periods when customers are especially ready to buy. By planning ahead, you can create more relevant campaigns, achieve steadier sales, and get better results.
In this guide, we’ve gathered the most important e-commerce dates for 2026, including exact dates and clear recommendations on when you should start marketing for each occasion. This guide is tailored for merchants running e-commerce businesses in Sweden.

Why are key dates so important for e-commerce?

Customers expect campaigns at certain times
Competition is at its highest around major shopping days
Early planning leads to better margins than last-minute discounting
Content created in advance performs better in search results

January 2026 – Start of the year and sales season

1 January – New Year’s Day

6 January – Epiphany

January sales – all month

When should you start marketing? Already in late December
Tips for e-commerce merchants: Extend your post-Christmas sale into January. “New year, new habits” works very well as a content theme.

February 2026 – Relationships & impulse purchases

14 February – Valentine’s Day

17 February – Shrove Tuesday (Semla Day)

Winter holidays – weeks 7–10 (regional)

When should you start marketing? Late January
Tips for e-commerce merchants: Gift guides and ready-made bundles
Deadline messaging (“Order by 14/2 to receive in time”)
A perfect period for social media and email marketing

March 2026 – Spring launch

8 March – International Women’s Day
Spring season / seasonal shift – new collections and spring campaigns

When should you start marketing? Late February

Tips for e-commerce merchants:
March is a great month to:

  • highlight brand values and storytelling
  • introduce your spring assortment
  • refresh content ahead of upcoming peak seasons

International Women’s Day is especially well suited for content-driven campaigns rather than traditional discount sales.

April 2026 – Easter

2 April – Maundy Thursday

3 April – Good Friday

5 April – Easter Sunday

6 April – Easter Monday

When should you start marketing? Mid-March
Tips: Run Easter campaigns instead of traditional sales
Create a dedicated Easter landing page

May 2026 – Time for Mother’s Day

30 April – Walpurgis Night

31 May – Mother’s Day

When should you start marketing?
Early May
Tips: Gift guides for mom, under SEK 500. Send reminder emails close to the date.

June 2026 – Summer and celebrations

6 June – National Day of Sweden

19 June – Midsummer’s Eve

20 June – Midsummer’s Day

When should you start marketing? Late May
Tips: Checklists like “Everything you need for Midsummer”. Highlight seasonal products clearly in your store.
A great period for storytelling and inspiration.

July 2026 – High summer & vacation season

High summer / vacation period – all of July
When should you start planning?
June
Tips: Automate campaigns and email flows. Make sure your content is fully mobile-optimized.
Adjust your messaging: fewer discounts, more inspiration.

August 2026 – Back to School

School starts – varies by region

When should you start marketing?
Mid-July
Tips: Structure, everyday routines, and fresh starts as themes.
Relevant for more industries than just children’s products. Strong SEO opportunities.

September 2026 – Planning and content creation for the autumn sales peak

September often lacks clear campaign days, but it is a crucial month for preparing for the intense sales period ahead.

When should you start planning and creating content? September is the month to stay one step ahead.

Tips for e-commerce merchants:

Create and publish content for:

Starting early in September reduces stress and delivers better results once traffic starts to increase.

October 2026 – Halloween and autumn vibes

Autumn break – week 44 (approx. 26 Oct–1 Nov)

31 October – Halloween

When should you start marketing Halloween?
Already in September
Tips: Halloween is a full campaign period, not just a single day. Build inspiration early → higher conversion rates in October. Create an SEO-optimized Halloween landing page.

November 2026 – The most important e-commerce month of the year

8 November – Father’s Day
11 November – Singles’ Day

23–29 November – Black Week
27 November – Black Friday

30 November – Cyber Monday

When should you start marketing?
October
Tips: Use Singles’ Day as a warm-up. Black Week often converts better than a single day. Communicate stock levels and delivery times clearly.

December 2026 – Christmas sales and post-Christmas deals

Christmas sales – all of December

24 December – Christmas Eve
From 25 December – Post-Christmas sales

When should you start marketing Christmas sales? Early November.
Tips: Gift guides are essential. Clearly display last order dates in your communication – create a banner. Offer digital gift cards after shipping cut-off dates.

Summary – key dates no e-commerce merchant should miss in 2026

14 February – Valentine’s Day
5 April – Easter
31 May – Mother’s Day
19–20 June – Midsummer
31 October – Halloween
8 November – Father’s Day
11 November – Singles’ Day
27 November – Black Friday
30 November – Cyber Monday
25 December – Post-Christmas sales

Plan ahead – sell smarter

By planning around the most important dates of the year, you can:

  • reduce stress
  • avoid unnecessary discounting
  • create more relevant campaigns
  • increase sales throughout the year
For Abicart users, there are plenty of opportunities to plan campaigns, schedule content, and adapt your store to seasonal demand.

Best of luck with your e-commerce year 2026!

If you’d like help or want to brainstorm ideas on how to increase your sales throughout the year, don’t hesitate to contact our knowledgeable team. Log in to your webshop to chat with us!
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