The holiday wishlist is being rewritten as consumers find a new kind of joy.
For years, wishlists were exactly what they sounded like: lists of things, from a trendy jacket to a fragrance or the latest in wearable tech. But increasingly, the product is only part of the appeal. Consumers are also thinking about the experiences, routines, and identities those products can help create.
A jacket becomes part of a winter escape. A fragrance sets the mood for a special night out. A fitness tracker supports a fresh start.
For marketers, that changes more than the holiday message. When shoppers are thinking in terms of aspirations and occasions, those signals can shape everything from the creative they see to the audiences, creators, and channels used to reach them.
As this shift takes shape, Pinterest’s 2026 holiday insights offer an inside look at the searches, trends, and behaviors influencing holiday wishlists. But the implications extend well beyond Pinterest. Across social, search, and paid media, these signals can give marketers a clearer picture of what shoppers want from the season before they decide exactly what to buy.
Here’s what the new wishlist means for holiday media strategy.
The Product Is Only Part of the Story
When shoppers are choosing gifts based on the identities and experiences they represent, brands have to communicate more than function.
Vogue recently explored the “Erewhon-ification” of CPG, where everyday products like water, protein bars, tea, and matcha are borrowing from fashion and beauty to become part of a broader aesthetic. The shift goes beyond elevated packaging. These brands are building identities around routines, wellness, cultural relevance, and the people who use them, turning everyday purchases into expressions of taste.
That approach is showing up across categories. Ninja recently introduced its Luxe Café in 7 limited-edition colorways, transforming a functional appliance into a design choice and daily ritual. Target is taking the idea even broader with its “Inside Out” campaign, using styled vignettes to connect products with different personalities and everyday moments.
For holiday media, the opportunity is to bring those different roles into the creative. A product-first ad can communicate what something is and what it does, while lifestyle-led variations can show why someone might want to give it, receive it, or add it to their own wishlist. Testing those different contexts can help brands understand which motivations resonate and build that learning back into their holiday creative strategy.
As the wishlist expands beyond individual products, the creative brief should expand with it.
Search Is Revealing the Why Behind the Buy
The modern wishlist may begin with an aesthetic, occasion, or aspiration long before it reaches a specific item.
The context surrounding a product can help create that aspiration. Vogue points to David Protein’s frozen dessert appearing in Bella Hadid’s hands on a yacht in Cannes, placing an everyday CPG product in a highly aspirational setting. The product sold out in 28 minutes following the launch.
But holiday shoppers do not always begin that journey knowing which brand belongs on the list. According to Pinterest, 96% of top searches on the platform are unbranded. Someone may start with “gifts for a runner,” “holiday party outfit,” or “cozy reading nook” before narrowing in on a particular product or brand.
That discovery behavior extends beyond Pinterest. TikTok reports that billions of searches happen on the platform every day, up more than 40% year over year, as consumers increasingly use social platforms to explore ideas, interests, and products.
For holiday marketers, that period before the wishlist takes shape can be especially revealing. Search terms can show who consumers are shopping for, the moments they are planning around, and the outcomes they want. Those insights can inform keyword strategy, audience development, messaging, and landing pages across channels.
The opportunity is not just to appear in holiday search. It is to understand what shoppers want before they know which brand they want it from.
Trends Can Help Predict What Makes the Wishlist
Holiday trends can tell marketers more than what is popular. They can reveal the experiences, priorities, and behaviors shaping what consumers may want to give and receive.
Pinterest’s anticipated Q4 trends offer a useful example. Artful Entertaining reflects interest in hosting, The Great Offline a desire to unplug, Glow Coded a focus on self-care, and Trinket Effect an appetite for personalization and self-expression.
The first step is identifying the behavior behind the trend and where your product naturally fits. From there, turn that insight into a holiday hypothesis to test. A rise in hosting could influence which products are featured together, the creators a brand partners with, and the occasions highlighted in paid creative. Interest in unplugging could shift holiday messaging toward experiences, downtime, or connection.
Paid social can then show which ideas deserve more investment. According to Meta’s Holiday Guide, 58% of shoppers say Meta platforms are likely to influence their purchase decisions, giving brands an opportunity to test which trends can translate into action. According to Pinterest Predicts, checkouts on content related to its 2025 predicted trends increased 68% year over year.
Start with the behavior, build a few ways into the moment, and let performance determine what earns a bigger place in the holiday plan.
The Wishlist Is Only the Beginning
The holiday wishlist may end with a product, but increasingly, it starts with a plan, aspiration, or moment a shopper wants to create.
For marketers, those early signals matter. Search behavior, emerging trends, and creative performance can reveal what shoppers want from the season and help brands find where they naturally fit.
The new holiday wishlist is not just a list of what people want. It is a window into why they want it.
