Cal Wilson / February 27, 2026

Depending on your industry – and area of focus – the holiday season can be slow for business. In fact, November to January might bring with it a looming sense of doom, not just related to shorter days and cooler weather, but instead, about your business’ bottom line.

In this article, we take a look at the holiday slowdown that impacts some businesses around this time of year, and some strategies for combatting any potential fiscal consequences it may have.

What is the ‘holiday slowdown’?

As many professionals know, this phenomenon happens when businesses or industries experience a decrease in activity or a slowdown in operations during the holiday season which can make an already tight time of year even more nerve-wracking.

Of course, not all industries are impacted, some sectors thrive during the holiday season. These include:

• Retail and consumer goods businesses.
• E-commerce.
• Hospitality, travel, and tourism.
• Subscription-based services that bill annually, starting in January.

Some of the industries most affected by the holiday slowdown season are:

• Service industries that are not directly related to seasonal activities.
• B2B businesses.
• Retail businesses that cannot offer online shopping alternatives.

What is the culprit behind this slowdown?

There are a lot of reasons your business might slowdown during the holiday season. Some that might be impacting your business include:

• Changing consumer priorities.
• Employee vacations.
• Business closures.
• Budget constraints for both your business’ spending and customer spending.

For these reasons, you might find your suppliers take longer to deliver, your clients and contacts don’t return calls or emails, and, altogether, things are just harder to get done. If you’re trying to accomplish work as normal during the holiday season, it might feel like the rest of the world is plotting against you.

There are strategies for combating the slowdown.

Businesses often need to adapt their strategies to navigate the holiday slowdown. Having a plan for this season can often make the difference between starting the new year off strong, or in a deficit. Depending on your industry, there are many tactics worth considering:

• The launch of holiday-specific promotions, discounts, and other deals to incentivize customer’s purchasing decision.
• Developing campaigns to encourage the sale of pre-paid gift cards and certificates as holiday presents.
• Investing in experimental marketing tactics to increase community engagement and local brand awareness.

Of course, depending on what your business specializes in , these might not be viable options.

Cutting costs is more effective than spending money.

There is a lot of advice out there that will tell you to put money and time into marketing campaigns, revamped customer service training, new product or service offerings, and other investments to survive the holiday slowdown season.

In general, spending money to make money makes sense. However sometimes it’s just another added worry during an already stressful season, and it’s not guaranteed to make the slowdown period any more lucrative. Having a plan to ensure your budget isn’t overextended during the holiday slowdown is the best  tool available to guarantee a successful holiday season, and an even better new year.

What does this “plan” look like?

• Developing a comprehensive holiday business plan that includes sales forecasts and contingency efforts.
• Analyzing past holiday seasons to identify trends and areas for improvement.
• Managing inventory levels effectively to prevent overstocking or stockouts.
• Ensuring you’re not overspending on any essential business expenses all year long.

We’ve found that it’s not uncommon for businesses to be overspending on expenses like telecom, payment processing fees, and waste disposal by around 25-30%. Maybe that’s not a huge problem during your peak season, but during a holiday slowdown, that could pose some real consequences. The best thing your business can do to survive slow periods , is make sure all your costs are optimized, all the time.

In conclusion…

Depending on your industry, holiday slowdowns may become unavoidable. While there’s lots of advice out there encouraging you to spend money on shiny new initiatives or campaigns, one of the best things you can do is look for ways to ensure you’re not overspending throughout the entire year.

Cal Wilson / February 27, 2026

Warehouses and distribution centers are designed for efficiency, but energy isn’t always part of the equation. Their large size, fluctuating activity, and energy-intensive equipment create unique challenges, often driving costs that feel unavoidable. High ceilings, open layouts, and large bay doors mean energy is spent heating rising air, cooling underused spaces, and lighting massive areas, even when they’re unused. Spread across such large spaces, these inefficiencies quietly inflate energy usage without immediate notice.

The Scale Problem: Heating, Cooling, and Lighting Massive Spaces

Unlike office buildings, warehouses rarely have consistent occupancy throughout the building. Yet heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) as well as lighting systems are often designed to treat the entire facility as one uniform space. Considering 17% of commercial buildings in the U.S. are warehouse and storage buildings, that adds up to a significant amount of wasted energy.

Picking areas or shipping lanes may see constant activity, while storage aisles or overflow areas are used sporadically, so energy is used to condition and light areas that may often be unoccupied. Without controls that take into account different zones and occupancies, businesses end up paying to light, heat, and cool areas that aren’t actively supporting daily operations. Over time, this “one-size-fits-all” approach leads to ongoing waste that’s difficult to detect without a closer look at when and where energy is being consumed.

Equipment That Runs Around the Clock

Warehouses and distribution centers rely on energy-intensive equipment like conveyors, charging stations, automated systems, and material-handling machinery. This heavy-duty equipment requires a substantial power source. Even when not in active use, much of this equipment continues drawing power. Extended operating hours, overnight charging, and idle systems add to energy consumption. This creates a situation where energy usage remains high regardless of actual productivity.

Seasonal Spikes That Become Permanent Costs

Every industry has its peak season, which likely requires longer hours, added shifts, and increased output. Energy usage rises accordingly, but the problem begins when those temporary changes aren’t reversed back.

Lighting schedules, HVAC settings, and equipment run times adjusted for peak demand frequently remain in place long after volumes return to normal. As a result, businesses can find themselves paying peak-level energy costs year-round without realizing it.

Aging Infrastructure and Deferred Upgrades

Many warehouses operate in older buildings with outdated lighting, HVAC systems, or insulation. While these systems may still function, they are rarely efficient by modern standards. Upgrades are often postponed in favor of seemingly more essential operational spending. Unfortunately, the longer these inefficient systems remain in place, the more they quietly drain budgets over time through higher energy consumption and maintenance costs.

How Can It Be Combatted?

Addressing warehouse energy challenges doesn’t require a total overhauling of operations. Small, targeted changes can make a measurable difference, such as implementing zone-based lighting and motion sensors to limit energy use to active areas, or scheduling equipment more efficiently to reduce idle power draw.

Get To Know Usage Patterns

Regularly reviewing energy usage patterns will help to identify hidden inefficiencies and ensures that the energy being used supports operations rather than running independently of them. For a busy warehouse manager, this can be a daunting task. Partnering with a third-party consultant to provide expert analysis and actionable recommendations allows them to focus on day-to-day operations instead.

Energy Control Is an Operational Advantage

Warehouses and distribution centers will always require energy, but wasted energy is not inevitable. By understanding the unique challenges these facilities face and regularly reviewing how energy is used, businesses can turn energy from an uncontrollable overhead cost into a managed operational expense.

The most efficient facilities aren’t just moving faster; they’re ensuring every dollar spent on energy supports real productivity.

Cal Wilson / February 27, 2026

Warehouses and distribution centers are designed for efficiency, but energy isn’t always part of the equation. Their large size, fluctuating activity, and energy-intensive equipment create unique challenges, often driving costs that feel unavoidable. High ceilings, open layouts, and large bay doors mean energy is spent heating rising air, cooling underused spaces, and lighting massive areas, even when they’re unused. Spread across such large spaces, these inefficiencies quietly inflate energy usage without immediate notice.

The Scale Problem: Heating, Cooling, and Lighting Massive Spaces

Unlike office buildings, warehouses rarely have consistent occupancy throughout the building. Yet heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) as well as lighting systems are often designed to treat the entire facility as one uniform space. Considering 17% of commercial buildings in the U.S. are warehouse and storage buildings, that adds up to a significant amount of wasted energy.

Picking areas or shipping lanes may see constant activity, while storage aisles or overflow areas are used sporadically, so energy is used to condition and light areas that may often be unoccupied. Without controls that take into account different zones and occupancies, businesses end up paying to light, heat, and cool areas that aren’t actively supporting daily operations. Over time, this “one-size-fits-all” approach leads to ongoing waste that’s difficult to detect without a closer look at when and where energy is being consumed.

Equipment That Runs Around the Clock

Warehouses and distribution centers rely on energy-intensive equipment like conveyors, charging stations, automated systems, and material-handling machinery. This heavy-duty equipment requires a substantial power source. Even when not in active use, much of this equipment continues drawing power. Extended operating hours, overnight charging, and idle systems add to energy consumption. This creates a situation where energy usage remains high regardless of actual productivity.

Seasonal Spikes That Become Permanent Costs

Every industry has its peak season, which likely requires longer hours, added shifts, and increased output. Energy usage rises accordingly, but the problem begins when those temporary changes aren’t reversed back.

Lighting schedules, HVAC settings, and equipment run times adjusted for peak demand frequently remain in place long after volumes return to normal. As a result, businesses can find themselves paying peak-level energy costs year-round without realizing it.

Aging Infrastructure and Deferred Upgrades

Many warehouses operate in older buildings with outdated lighting, HVAC systems, or insulation. While these systems may still function, they are rarely efficient by modern standards. Upgrades are often postponed in favor of seemingly more essential operational spending. Unfortunately, the longer these inefficient systems remain in place, the more they quietly drain budgets over time through higher energy consumption and maintenance costs.

How Can It Be Combatted?

Addressing warehouse energy challenges doesn’t require a total overhauling of operations. Small, targeted changes can make a measurable difference, such as implementing zone-based lighting and motion sensors to limit energy use to active areas, or scheduling equipment more efficiently to reduce idle power draw.

Get To Know Usage Patterns

Regularly reviewing energy usage patterns will help to identify hidden inefficiencies and ensures that the energy being used supports operations rather than running independently of them. For a busy warehouse manager, this can be a daunting task. Partnering with a third-party consultant to provide expert analysis and actionable recommendations allows them to focus on day-to-day operations instead.

Energy Control Is an Operational Advantage

Warehouses and distribution centers will always require energy, but wasted energy is not inevitable. By understanding the unique challenges these facilities face and regularly reviewing how energy is used, businesses can turn energy from an uncontrollable overhead cost into a managed operational expense.

The most efficient facilities aren’t just moving faster; they’re ensuring every dollar spent on energy supports real productivity.