Boxing Day is the day Canadian retail actually settles its year, and almost none of the content that runs on it is filmed in December. By the 26th everyone is either on holiday or in a warehouse, so what goes out was shot weeks earlier.

Why the date behaves differently here

In much of the world December 26 is a quiet day. In Canada it is a shopping event with its own habits, its own store queues and now its own online week. Buyers arrive already knowing they want a deal, which means the video does not have to persuade them to buy, only to choose you.

What to film in November

Straightforward, well lit demonstrations of the three or four products you will actually discount. No seasonal decoration, because the same footage has to keep working into January. Show the product doing its job, and let the price overlay carry the offer.

The Quebec version of the day

Boxing Day is a Canadian retail tradition and the French language version, l'Après-Noël, is used widely in Quebec. Your French creative should sound like a Quebec shopper describing a purchase, not like a translated Toronto ad, and Quebec advertising rules mean the French version cannot be an afterthought.

Stock is the real constraint

Everything you promote has to still be in the warehouse. Film the deep stock lines rather than the ones you expect to sell out before the holidays, otherwise you spend the whole day pointing traffic at an out of stock page.

What to reuse in January

The same videos carry into the January clearance and the winter restock with only a price change. That is the reason to film clean and undecorated, and it is why a November shoot pays for itself twice.

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Frequently asked questions

When should Boxing Day content be filmed?

In November, before the holiday freeze.

Should it look festive?

No, so it keeps working in January.

Does Quebec need its own version?

Yes, and not a literal translation.

What limits the product list?

Stock depth, not margin.