Planning Reduced Hours Between Christmas and New Year
The days between Christmas and New Year are strange for small businesses. Some go quiet, some get a rush of returns and gift card shoppers, and many teams are desperate for a break. Planning reduced hours between Christmas and New Year lets you decide on purpose what stays open, who works, and how customers find out, instead of improvising on 23 December.
Key takeaways
- Look at last year's sales, enquiries and staffing for the gap between the holidays before you choose your hours.
- You have four main options: stay fully open, shorten hours, open on selected days, or close completely.
- Plan staff cover early and fairly, and check the employment rules on holiday pay and required leave where you operate.
- Tell customers your hours everywhere they look, and set up auto-replies, online ordering notes and an emergency contact if needed.
September may feel early to think about the last week of December, but it is the right time. Your team is starting to book time off, suppliers are announcing their own closures, and you still have room to plan cash, stock and communications without pressure.
This guide walks you through deciding your hours, building a fair rota, keeping customers informed and making sure nothing important slips while the business runs at half speed.
One note on dates: Christmas Day 2027 and New Year's Day 2028 both fall on a Saturday, so public holidays may move to substitute weekdays in some countries. Check the official public and bank holiday list for every place you trade before you finalize anything.
Start with what actually happens in that week
The right plan depends on your business, not on what everyone else does. A gift shop may see a busy week of exchanges and gift card spending. A B2B consultancy may hear nothing from clients until the first week of January. A cafe in a town center may be busy with walkers and visitors, while one in a business park sits empty.
Pull last year's numbers
Spend half an hour gathering data for the days between Christmas and New Year last year:
- Daily sales or bookings, compared with a normal week.
- Emails, calls and messages received, and how many were urgent.
- Online orders placed and how many needed same-week dispatch.
- Returns and exchanges, if you sell products.
- Staff hours worked and the wage cost for those days.
If you are new and have no history, ask neighbors, your trade association or other owners in your area what their week looks like. Then make a cautious estimate and plan to review it next year.
Pro tip
Look at the hour-by-hour pattern, not just daily totals. Many businesses find mornings in that week are almost silent while early afternoons are steady. Opening late and closing at the usual time can capture most of the trade with fewer staff hours.
Choose your reduced hours model
Most small businesses pick one of four models. Each has trade-offs.
1. Fully open as normal
Best when the week is genuinely busy, such as for retailers handling exchanges or leisure businesses serving visitors. It keeps revenue flowing, but it needs volunteers or a fair rota, and you may pay more if your contracts or local rules require premium pay for certain days.
2. Shorter daily hours
Open every working day, but for fewer hours, for example late morning to mid-afternoon. This keeps you visible and responsive while giving staff shorter shifts. It suits shops, cafes and service businesses with steady but lighter demand.
3. Selected days only
Open on two or three days and close on the rest. This works well for appointment-based businesses, workshops and studios that can bunch bookings together. Customers simply need to know which days to come.
4. Full closure
Close from Christmas Eve until early January. Many B2B firms, agencies and trades do this. It gives everyone a real rest, but you need a plan for urgent requests, deliveries and anything that cannot wait, and you should check whether staff will use paid leave for the closure.
Common mistake
Deciding on hours based only on what the owner wants. If you close fully but your customers expect you to handle exchanges or urgent jobs, you may lose goodwill that took all year to build. If you stay fully open with no demand, you burn wages and morale. Let the data and your customers' needs guide the choice.
Plan staff cover fairly
The days between the holidays are among the most requested days off of the year. A fair, early process prevents resentment and last-minute gaps.
Know the rules before you plan
Employment rules on holiday entitlement, public holiday pay and whether you can require staff to take leave on set days differ by country, state and contract. In some places, employers can require leave on certain days if they give enough notice. In others, contracts set the terms. This is general information, not employment advice, so check the official guidance where you operate and speak to an HR or employment professional if you are unsure.
A fair process for requests
- Announce your planned hours. Tell the team in September or early October which model you are using and how many people you need each day.
- Open a request window. Give everyone two weeks to ask for the days they want off and the days they are happy to work.
- Apply a clear rule. Rotate priority each year, so people who worked last year get first choice this year. Write the rule down.
- Fill the gaps. Ask for volunteers for any uncovered shifts, and offer something extra if you can, such as a choice of shift or a day off in January.
- Publish the rota. Share the final rota by early November so everyone can plan travel and family time.
- Name an on-call contact. If you close, decide who checks messages and handles real emergencies, and for how long each day.
A reduced hours planning template
Copy this into a spreadsheet. The dates, hours and names below are made-up examples for a small shop.
| Date (example) | Open? | Hours | Staff on shift | Online orders | On-call contact | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 December | Closed | None | None | Taken, dispatched 29 Dec | Owner, 30 min check at noon | Substitute holiday, check local list |
| 29 December | Yes | 11:00 to 16:00 | Priya, Sam | Dispatched daily at 14:00 | Not needed | Expect exchanges |
| 31 December | Yes | 10:00 to 14:00 | Jordan | Dispatched at 12:00 | Owner by phone | Early close for New Year's Eve |
Add a row for every day from Christmas Eve to the first working day of January. Seeing the whole stretch on one screen makes gaps obvious.
Tell customers clearly and everywhere
Reduced hours only work if customers know about them. People check different places, so repeat the same message in each one.
Where to publish your hours
- Google Business Profile. Add special hours for each day, and use a post or update to explain the plan. Customers often check this first.
- Your website. Add a banner or a short notice on the homepage, contact page and checkout.
- Door and window signs. Put them up at least two weeks before Christmas.
- Email and social media. Mention your hours in your December emails and posts, and pin a post near the top of your profiles.
- Receipts and order confirmations. A one-line note stops many "are you open?" questions.
- Phone and email auto-replies. Set them to say when you are back and where to find urgent help.
Sample holiday hours message
"Holiday hours: we are closed on [dates] and open [hours] on [dates]. Online orders placed while we are closed will be sent from [date]. Need help urgently? Email [address] and we will reply within [time] on working days. Thank you for a wonderful year, and see you in January!"
Auto-reply for B2B and service businesses
"Thanks for your message. Our team is taking a short break and we are back on [date]. We are checking messages once a day for urgent issues with existing projects. For anything else, we will reply as soon as we return. Wishing you a restful holiday."
Hypothetical example
Imagine Rosa, who runs a small bike repair shop. Last year she stayed fully open between the holidays and barely covered the wages, while her two mechanics missed family time. This year she checks her records, sees that most of that week's work was picking up repaired bikes, and chooses to open three afternoons only. She books collections into those slots, updates her Google Business Profile, puts a sign on the door in early December and sets an email auto-reply. Her team gets a real break, and customers still collect their bikes on time.
Keep cash, orders and admin on track
A quieter week can quietly cause problems in January if a few practical details are missed.
Cash flow
Reduced hours mean reduced takings. Check that you have enough in the bank to cover January rent, wages and supplier bills, and remember that some customers pay invoices late around the holidays. Send invoices before you close, and schedule any payments you need to make so they go out on time.
Suppliers and deliveries
Ask suppliers, couriers and wholesalers for their own holiday dates. If a supplier closes for two weeks, you may need to order extra stock in early December. If you close, cancel or redirect deliveries so nothing sits outside a locked door.
Online orders
If your online store stays open, add a clear note at checkout about dispatch dates, and consider pausing express shipping options you cannot fulfil. Set a realistic dispatch schedule for the days you are open.
Security and premises
If the premises will be empty for several days, check locks and alarms, turn off non-essential equipment, set heating to a safe level to protect pipes in cold weather, and make sure someone can respond if an alarm goes off.
Use the quiet time well
If you do open with light trade, the quiet hours are ideal for jobs that never get done: a stock count, tidying the stock room, updating product photos or planning January promotions. Prepare a short task list so staff have useful work between customers.
Your reduced hours checklist
- Pull last year's sales, messages and staffing for the gap between the holidays
- Check the official public holiday dates for 2027 and early 2028 where you trade
- Choose your model: fully open, shorter hours, selected days or closed
- Check employment rules on holiday pay and required leave
- Open a fair request window and publish the rota by early November
- Name an on-call contact and set clear response times
- Update your Google Business Profile, website, signs and social profiles
- Set phone and email auto-replies and add notes to receipts
- Confirm supplier and courier dates and order stock early
- Plan cash for January and secure the premises before closing
Frequently asked questions
Should my small business close between Christmas and New Year?
It depends on your customers. If last year's records show little demand and your customers are also closed, a full closure can give everyone a real rest. If customers rely on you for exchanges, repairs or urgent work, shorter hours or selected days usually work better.
Can I make staff take holiday during a closure?
In some places employers can require staff to use leave on set days if they give enough notice, while in others contracts and local law decide. Check the official employment guidance where you operate, review your contracts and speak to an HR professional before you announce it.
When should I tell customers about holiday hours?
Start mentioning them in early December, and put door signs and website notices up at least two weeks before Christmas. Update your Google Business Profile special hours as soon as your plan is fixed.
What if a big order arrives while we are closed?
Have your on-call contact check messages at a set time each day. Agree in advance what counts as worth handling during the break, and reply to everything else with a warm note and a clear date for when you will respond.
Related reading
The bottom line
Planning reduced hours between Christmas and New Year is about making a clear choice early. Look at what really happens in that week, pick the model that fits your customers and your team, build a fair rota, and publish your hours everywhere customers look. A few practical checks on cash, suppliers and premises keep January running smoothly.
Set aside an hour this month to pull your numbers and draft the plan. Your team will thank you for the early notice, and your customers will know exactly when they can find you.
