Creating a Personalized Holiday Experience: Build Loyalty with Wishlists and Exclusive Perks

The holiday season is a time when shoppers want to find meaningful gifts, treat themselves, and experience something special. For beauty supply stores, it’s the perfect opportunity to build deeper connections with your customers while driving sales. One of the best ways to do this is by offering personalized shopping experiences that make customers feel valued. Two fantastic ways to achieve this are by creating a Holiday Wishlist or Beauty Bucket List and by offering exclusive perks through a loyalty program.

By combining these two approaches, you can enhance the shopping experience, encourage repeat visits, and increase both customer satisfaction and sales during the busy holiday season.


1. Build a Personalized Holiday Wishlist

One of the most memorable ways to engage with customers during the holidays is by creating a Holiday Wishlist or a Beauty Bucket List. It’s a fun, interactive way to help customers find exactly what they’re looking for while adding a personal touch to their experience. Here’s how you can implement it in your store:

How to Set Up a Holiday Wishlist:

  • In-Store or Online Wishlist: Invite customers to write down their beauty product wishlists at the store or on your website. You can provide them with a physical card to fill out with their favorite items or create a digital form for them to save and share. This could include hair care products, skincare essentials, makeup kits, or even luxurious gift sets.
  • Share with Family and Friends: Allow customers to share their wishlists with loved ones so they can buy the perfect gift. You can also offer a gift registry feature where family members can easily purchase items for the customer.
  • Reminder Service: Offer to send friendly reminder emails to customers (and their family or friends) about the items on their wishlist as the holidays approach. This could be a great way to encourage last-minute shoppers who might need a gentle nudge to make that purchase.

The beauty of a wishlist is that it’s not only helpful to customers but also creates an opportunity for your store to capture sales that customers might otherwise forget. You can even offer discounts or special promotions for items left on their wishlist as the holidays near, creating a sense of urgency.


2. Encourage Holiday Shopping with a Loyalty Program

A loyalty program can be a game-changer during the holiday season, offering customers exclusive perks that keep them coming back long after the holidays are over. Combine your wishlist system with a rewards program to enhance customer satisfaction and increase repeat visits. Here’s how to make the most out of your loyalty program during the holidays:

How to Implement a Loyalty Program:

  • Earn Extra Points for Holiday Purchases: Reward your customers for every purchase they make during the holiday season by offering extra loyalty points for certain products or categories (e.g., holiday gift sets, skincare bundles, etc.). This creates an incentive for shoppers to spend more and return to your store for future purchases.
  • Exclusive Discounts for Loyal Customers: Offer exclusive VIP discounts or “early bird” access to sales for loyalty members. For example, give them early access to holiday sales or offer a special “Loyalty Member Discount” during the busiest shopping days.
  • Special Holiday Gifts or Bonuses: Customers love a surprise! When they reach a certain point threshold, reward them with a gift with purchase like a travel-size product, a beauty accessory, or even a sample of a new product. This makes customers feel appreciated and valued, encouraging them to continue engaging with your store.
  • Limited-Time Holiday Perks: Consider running time-sensitive promotions only available to loyalty members—like “Buy One, Get One Free” or “Free Gift Wrapping” with a purchase. These perks make customers feel special and encourage them to take advantage of exclusive offers while adding extra cheer to their shopping experience.

3. Combine Wishlists and Loyalty for Maximum Impact

When you merge the concepts of Holiday Wishlists and a Loyalty Program, you’re creating a customer experience that is both thoughtful and rewarding. Here’s how these two elements work together to create a seamless, personalized holiday shopping experience:

  • Wishlist + Loyalty Perks: After customers create their holiday wishlists, invite them to sign up for your loyalty program to earn points on any purchases made from their wishlist. Offering them bonus points on wishlist items adds value to their shopping experience and entices them to buy from your store instead of competitors.
  • Personalized Offers Based on Their Wishlist: Use your loyalty program to send customers personalized offers. For example, if a customer adds a certain makeup kit to their wishlist, offer them exclusive discounts or bonus points when they purchase it. This can encourage them to complete their shopping and bring in sales from customers who might otherwise have procrastinated or gone elsewhere.
  • Gift Registry + Rewards: Customers can share their wishlist items with family and friends, who can then purchase those items for them. As a bonus, you can offer both the customer and the gift-giver extra loyalty points for any purchases made through the gift registry, creating a sense of excitement and rewarding everyone involved.

4. Customer Experience: The Gift of Personalization

Offering customers the ability to create wishlists and join a rewards program is more than just a way to increase sales—it’s about creating a personalized shopping experience. Customers want to feel special, especially during the holiday season, and providing them with an opportunity to curate their beauty desires and earn rewards will leave them feeling appreciated and valued.


Holiday Shopping Made Personal

By combining the Holiday Wishlist and a Loyalty Program, your beauty supply store can create a holiday shopping experience that is tailored, rewarding, and memorable. Whether it’s helping customers select the perfect gift, rewarding their loyalty with extra perks, or offering them a fun, interactive wishlist experience, you’ll foster a sense of community and excitement. Not only can this lead to increased sales, but it will also help you build long-term relationships with your customers, making your store their go-to destination for beauty all year round.

The holiday season is all about connection, gratitude, and celebration. Use these personalized strategies to make your customers feel like they’re part of something special—and watch your store thrive through the holidays and beyond.


OTC Beauty Magazine offers useful business tips and effective selling tools to boost revenue and customer traffic for OTC retailers. The magazine also provides invaluable product knowledge, industry news and insights for retail store owners, manufacturers, distributors and professionals in the barber and beauty supply industry. Contact us: editor@otcbeautymagazine.com

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December 2025

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