Supermarket shock as Christmas treats arrive five months early: Are the days of seasonal holiday foods over?

Coles shoppers were left doing double-takes on Thursday as festive favorites suddenly appeared on shelves.

While most of the seasonal items will be at the supermarket temporarily for ‘Christmas in July’ celebrations, nine.com.au has confirmed at least one will remain in Coles stores until December: Fruit mince pies.

Even more festive favourites will drop in August, with the full range of Christmas products rolling out from October.

For the month of July, Coles shoppers can expect to see two types of ham, sides and desserts.

These include Free-Range Triple Smoked Leg Ham Portion for $17 per kilo, Pull Apart Ham with Smokey Maple Glaze for $25 per kilo, Frozen Duck Fat Australian Potatoes and Triple Smoked Ham & Three Cheese Croquettes.

Also part of the range are Traditional Fruit Mince Pies for $4.30 per pack and Apple & Rhubarb Pies for $6.25 per pack.

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Coles Development and Innovation Chef, Michael Weldon told nine.com.au in the decade he has been working on the supermarket’s Christmas offering, he has seen ‘Christmas in July’ grow in popularity, with a noticeable pivot to pre-prepared products and other time-savers.

“People are wanting to do more than cooking, and we are in a cost of living crisis ... we want to deliver a great Christmas to our customers, and make sure we take care of the people at all costs and all sort of preferences,” he said.

“We have a team now that work on Christmas year-round, so it’s pretty exciting.

“I think that the key thing we’re seeing is convenience is really important.

“It’s about making sure people are getting the time back and not spending the whole day in the kitchen.”

The ‘risk’ of releasing holiday favourites early

Retail expert Dr Sasha Wang from QUT told nine.com.au Coles’ early jump on Christmas is part of a growing trend being seen at supermarkets and food retailers across the country.

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Not only are Christmas products arriving in stores earlier each year, hot cross buns lovers also enjoyed an extended hot cross buns season this year.

These will arrive again in supermarkets in December, alongside small Easter chocolates, as was seen at Coles and Woolworths in 2025.

And while seasonal products such as these can prove popular with customers, the strategy can come with a risk.

Wang said Christmas, Easter, and other seasonal grocery items have a “hedonistic value” rather than a “functional value” for consumers.

Hedonistic value focuses on feelings of happiness, whereas functional value is linked to saving money on discounted items on sales events.

Coles’ early release of Christmas products, for example, is to prompt hedonistic value outside the hassle of the Christmas period, she explained.

“Seasonal events like ‘Christmas in July’ do have cultural value as well, and when there is scarcity – when products are available for a limited time only – that means people want to buy more and buy it now.”

“There is a concrete time period, and you may notice Coles won’t sell everything they usually offer over Christmas earlier in the year. They will pick some favourite items that are good value.”

The risk being that if these items are stocked beyond a single month in July, this may impact the hedonistic effect of the festive season.

“If they do sell Christmas products for half of the year, this may increase overall sales, but it might dilute Christmas,” Wang added.