The Rise of Experiential Gifting: 5 Studies Arts Leaders Need to Know
It’s mid October. Your patrons are about to face one of their biggest holiday season frustrations: finding the perfect gift. And you are in a better position to help than ever before—because consumers are increasingly craving experiences over things.
Search for “experiential gifts” on Reddit and you’ll come across thousands of posts like these:
“What are some good gift ideas for people that hate stuff?”
“What are the best experience gifts you’ve ever been given?”
“What’s your go-to gift idea for someone who’s almost impossible to get a gift for?”
These trends aren’t confined to Reddit boards. They’re happening nationally. And the data is clear: consumers are shifting from “stuff” to experiences. Here are five consumer studies highlighting this shift:
Deloitte’s 2024 Holiday Retail Survey: Deloitte found that consumers are increasingly favoring experiences over goods. Deloitte projected holiday spending on experiences to rise 16% year-over-year.
Circana’s 2024 U.S. Holiday Purchase Intentions Research: Circana found that more than half of consumers (55%) planned to buy experiential gifts. One of the top categories? Tickets to live events.
TD Bank's 2024 Merry Money Survey: TD Bank found that nearly half of consumers plan to gift experiences, with Gen Z (68%) and Millennials (61%) much more inclined than Baby Boomers (23%).
GetYourGuide’s 2023 Research: GetYourGuide found that a full 92% of U.S. adults said they’d rather receive an experience than a physical gift—up 30 points from 2021 (a nearly 50% increase).
The world doesn’t need more stuff. It needs more experiences—and the arts are built for this moment.
The Psychology of Giving Experiences
Amit Kumar, an assistant professor of marketing and psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, has spent years studying experiential purchases—everything from travel and dining out to outdoor activities and recreation.
His findings are remarkable: experiences “represent a more promising route to enduring consumer happiness than the consumption of material goods.” In other words, people don’t just enjoy the activity itself. They enjoy the anticipation beforehand (choosing a date, making plans, telling friends), the preparation (shopping, packing, even just getting ready to go), and the stories and memories that live on long after.
That insight is tailor-made for the arts. A ticket to a concert, exhibition, or performance isn’t just a two-hour event—it’s weeks of looking forward, a night out with friends or family, and a memory that keeps resurfacing.
Arts organizations have an edge here: every performance has the potential to generate joy that lasts far longer than the moment the curtain goes down.
Turning the Gift Into an Experience
But selling tickets is just the beginning. The presentation of a gift can be an experience in and of itself.
Patrons may want to give more than “two tickets in an envelope” but not know where to start. Could you offer gift packages that include:
A beautifully designed certificate or keepsake card
A small ornament or program book as a memento
A pre-show dining voucher or drink ticket to extend the experience
A branded gift box or holiday wrapping option
By helping patrons make the presentation memorable, you deepen the joy of both giving and receiving.
Consumers are telling us—through surveys, science, and their own online conversations—that they want experiences over things. The arts deliver exactly that.
When you frame your performances, memberships, or classes as the ultimate holiday gift, you’re filling seats. But you’re also positioning the arts as the answer to one of the season’s biggest frustrations: finding a gift that truly lasts.
