5 Reasons to a Buy Christmas Decor Franchise in 2021

After a record-breaking holiday season in 2020, the growing franchise system is continuing to see huge sales numbers in 2021.

In the nearly 20 years Brandon Stephens has been president at Christmas Decor — the leading holiday decorating brand in the U.S. — he’s never seen the kind of phenomenal growth the company experienced in 2020. “Our numbers were up 20% year over year,” he said. “That’s a big number that speaks to unprecedented demand. We took a huge step forward last year, and we’re expecting that momentum to continue.”

With more than 300 units across North America, Christmas Decor brightens the holiday season for loyal homeowners and businesses with captivating displays of festive lights while offering entrepreneurs the opportunity to generate significant revenue during the holiday season.

Here are five reasons to buy a Christmas Decor franchise in 2021:

1. Off-season income stream for seasonal business owners. For landscapers and other outdoor business owners, Christmas Decor provides an opportunity to offset fixed overhead costs, generate new income streams and maintain key employees year round. “Our model is predicated on our franchisees owning a seasonal core business,” Stephens says. “Probably 70% to 75% of our 300 franchisees are landscapers. Others have pest control companies, irrigation companies, roofing companies and tree care companies. For them, Christmas Decor is the perfect way to expand their revenues during what would have been their downtime.”

2. Repeat affluent customers. “Not only do we have a wealthy customer base willing to spend money on seasonal lighting, we have a very solid retention rate of 80%,” Stephens says. “That’s business you can count on year after year, because once people see what we can do, they want to do it again the next year.” In 2020, the company saw a huge influx of new customers, thanks to the pandemic. “More and more people wanted to bring joy to their yards and smiles to their neighbors, and they were willing to pay for it,” he adds. “It got so feverish last year, we actually did installations after Christmas. Customers would say, ‘If you can’t get to me by Christmas, come and install a day later.’ People were looking for something positive, something to celebrate.”

3. High-revenue commercial demand. Along with new homeowner customers, 2020 brought new commercial customers to Christmas Decor. “There was a huge increase in municipalities ordering holiday installations,” Stephens says. “Communities recognized people were bored, so they made investments in their local quality of life with drive-through lighted parks and festive downtown displays.” In addition to generating high revenues, the commercial sales season starts early in the year — often when businesses and institutions start budgeting for such expenses — allowing franchisees to extend their money making season. “It’s another dimension of the business for our franchisees,” Stephens says. “And this year again, early interest has been very strong.”

4. Opportunity to diversify revenue through sister brand Nite Time Decor. In addition to both residential and commercial Christmas light displays, Christmas Decor also offers permanent lighting and event lighting services through its subsidiary, Nite Time Decor, which is included in the Christmas Decor franchise package. The world’s leading provider of low-voltage landscape lighting products, Nite Time Decor provides contractors with tools, training, support and products, allowing them to design, install and maintain lighting systems at a professional level. “Our franchisees were asking for year-round options, so we launched Nite Time Decor in 1998,” Stephens says. “Landscapers make premium margins on these products and services, and we train them how to use them.” The brand has also recently introduced a permanent light product line that features roofline lighting. “It’s a permanent low voltage product that can be used throughout the year,” Stephens says. “It’s gotten quite a bit of play commercially, and it’s a product that also works very well on homes.”

5. Demonstrated history of excellence. “We’ve been doing this a long time — we recently celebrated our 25th anniversary,” Stephens says. “You don’t make it this long if you can’t make your franchisees successful.” Offering a scalable model that can work for two-person companies or for 200-person companies, Stephens says the brand’s average franchisee makes just shy of $300,000 in gross revenue over the Christmas season, although some do even better. “We have a guy in Fargo who does over a million dollars a season,” he says. Christmas Decor’s history of excellence includes its commitment to giving back. The brand’s Decorated Family Program — launched in 2003 after a franchisee attended a holiday dinner party and thought of all the military members overseas who wouldn’t be able to celebrate with loved ones — allows franchisees to thank the country’s soldiers by decorating their families’ homes over the holidays. “No matter who you are, seeing your home all lit up for the holidays is a great feeling,” says Stephens, who pays a local franchisee to decorate his home every year. “Our franchisees bring joy to their communities.”

Originally created as an off-season supplement to the landscaping business, the Texas-based franchise now brings holiday cheer to over 300 communities across North America, ultimately creating jobs for 3,000-plus seasonal workers that might otherwise be unemployed. Backed by a strong business model and double-digit revenue increase year-over-year for the last 11 years, Christmas Decor is looking to grow in markets across the U.S.