Winter Press Release Trends: Recapping Holiday News, CES Previews and More
PR Newswire distributed more than 30,000 press releases in the U.S. and Canada in November and December. If you were able to step away from it all and enjoy some deserved R&R over the holidays, we understand if you had trouble keeping up with all the headlines. It’s a tall order even if you’re already registered for PR Newswire for Journalists. So our team monitored the stories and is here with the big trends they spotted.
Of course, the end of the year was filled with holiday-related press releases, from shopping guides to spending trends and beyond. But our team also spotted a number of releases looking forward to 2025, including industry trend predictions and sneak peeks for last week’s CES.
Before we dive into the larger trends, let’s see which releases readers gravitated toward the most.
Popular Releases
Source: PRNewsfoto/The Economist
Regardless of larger trends, some releases just draw a huge audience because they are that big or interesting. These were a few of the most-read releases of November and December and they covered a wide variety of topics and industries:
- Acquisition: Big Lots announced its sale transaction with Gordon Brothers Retail Partners that enables the transfer of Big Lots assets, including stores, distribution centers, and intellectual property, to other retailers and companies.
- Restaurant Revival: Mexican restaurant chain CHI-CHI’S shared plans for new locations expected to open in 2025, nearly 20 years after its last location closed.
- 2025 Forecast: The Economist launched its year-end issue, The World Ahead, which covers editors’ top 10 themes for 2025. The magazine looks ahead to President-elect Trump’s new administration, a clean-tech boom, travel restrictions and more.
- Disaster Relief: Duke Energy and its Foundation announced over $2.2 million in North Carolina aid for disaster relief, rebuilding and readiness efforts since Hurricane Helene.
- Customer Letter: As part of its chapter 11 news, Spirit Airlines shared a complementary customer letter to help answer questions about tickets and rewards.
Holiday News
Source: PRNewsfoto/Geotab Inc.
Back in November, we shared a roundup of holiday news sent via PR Newswire to help journalists plan their festive coverage. Through the end of 2024, the flow of holiday-related copy did not slow down. We continued to see gift guides, cooking and hosting tips, holiday event announcements and much more.
Check out these holiday releases from December that you might have missed:
- How to Keep Your Guests Happy and Awake Until Midnight
- Target’s Holiday Clearance Event Begins Today, Featuring Deals of up to 50% off on Clothing, Shoes, Beauty, Toys and More
- Kansas City Chiefs Release “A Kingdom Christmas Story: Hail Merry”
- What are you serving over the festive season? Follow these tips from “I Love Fruit & Veg from Europe”
- A Diamond is Forever Celebrates Holiday Campaign “Forever Present” Presented by De Beers Group
- Santa’s Sleigh Runs on Magic – But It’s Telematics That Keep It Efficient and Sustainable
- Embrace the Magic of Christmas with Toshiba TV: Your Indoor Wonderland
Holiday press releases were packed with eye-catching multimedia assets. If you need a photo, video or logo for your article, check out the Multimedia Gallery on prnewswire.com.
CES 2025 Previews
Source: PRNewsfoto/LG Electronics
CES wrapped up over the weekend, and it dominated the wire last week. However, we were distributing sneak peeks and award announcements tied to the consumer electronics tradeshow well before the new year, from Innovation Award winners to companies participating in the expo showcasing their new advancements. Major topics included house cleaning robots, mobility innovations, new wearables – and yes, everything had AI.
These were a few of the big CES press releases that took advantage of a slower news cycle during the holidays to get tech lovers excited for the upcoming event:
- CES 2025: viaim Unveils Smart Office Tools RecDot and NoteKit with Exclusive Limited-Time Early Access
- LG’s “Hybrid AI” gram Laptops Offer the Best of Both Worlds with On-Device and Cloud AI Services
- Global Debut: ZHAOWEI’s Dexterous Hand is Ready to Shine at CES 2025
- Zero Zero Robotics showcases bestselling HOVERAir X1 series at CES 2025
- SOLVIT System Wins CES 2025 Innovation Award, Illuminating Paths to Save Lives in Radio Shadow Areas
- CIT Wins CES 2025 Innovation Award for Transparent Antenna
Catch up on more CES 2025 press releases.
2025 Predictions and Forecasts
Source: PRNewsfoto/Taylor Morrison
The end of the year can be a popular time for retrospective press releases (like this one recapping the most-read press releases of 2024). But it’s also an important time to look ahead and plan for the trends that will shape a given industry for the next 12 months.
In addition to the popular Economist forecast mentioned above, we spotted other predictions covering a wide range of industries, from travel to finance, food and beyond.
Catch up (and plan ahead) with these press releases:
- 2025 To Bring Third Straight Yearly Decline in Gas Prices, Though Risks Emerge
- KAYAK is calling it: 2025 will be the Year of Long-Haul, Bucket List Trips
- BMO Survey: More Than a Quarter of Americans Plan to Cut Back Spending in 2025
- CEO Optimism Surges Post-Election, According to Recent Fortune/Deloitte CEO Survey
- OpenTable Serves Up 2025 Dining Predictions
- Taylor Morrison Unveils Top 10 Design Trends for 2025
When setting up your custom newsfeed with PR Newswire for Journalists, select the Surveys, Polls & Research category to be alerted to more releases like these in your coverage area and stay ahead of the curve.
More News Trends
Want to dive deeper into the news trends for the industry you cover? Our team has compiled the trends and top releases across four major industries for November and December. Find them all on PR Newswire’s Resource Center.
Keep up with the latest press releases in your coverage area with a customized newsfeed. Click here to sign up now or email us to fine-tune your existing profile.
Rocky Parker is the Manager of Audience and Journalist Engagement at Cision PR Newswire. She's been with the company since 2010 and has worked with journalists and bloggers as well as PR and comms professionals. Outside of work, she can be found trying a new recipe, binging a new show, or cuddling with her pitbull, Hudson.
