Holiday Shopping: Who You're Really Buying From This Season

The Gift-Giving Illusion

The holiday season accounts for approximately 20% of annual retail sales in the United States, with consumers spending an average of $900+ per person on gifts, decorations, and food. The gift-giving ritual creates the impression of thoughtful, personalized choices across hundreds of brands and categories.

But behind the wrapping paper, a handful of multinational corporations profit from the majority of holiday spending. Understanding who owns the brands you gift reveals the corporate concentration hiding inside every stocking, under every tree, and inside every gift bag.

Stocking Stuffers: Two Companies Dominate

The Candy: Mars vs Hershey vs Mondelez

Stocking candy is one of the most concentrated categories in retail:

Mars, Incorporated:

M&M's, Snickers, Twix, Milky Way, Skittles, Starburst, 3 Musketeers, Dove Chocolate

Hershey Company:

Hershey's Kisses, Reese's, KitKat (US license from Nestle), Jolly Rancher, Twizzlers, York Peppermint Patties

Mondelez International:

Oreo, Cadbury (international), Toblerone, Sour Patch Kids, Swedish Fish

Three companies make virtually every candy in a typical holiday stocking.

The Toiletries: P&G vs Unilever

Holiday gift sets of body wash, lotion, and grooming products come from two corporate parents:

P&G: Olay, Old Spice, Gillette, Pantene, Secret, Crest

Unilever: Dove, AXE, TRESemme, Degree, Vaseline, St. Ives

The Lip Balm and Small Beauty

• Burt's Bees lip balm gift sets: Clorox Company
• EOS lip balm: EOS Products (private)
• ChapStick: Haleon (spun off from GSK)
• Bath & Body Works gift sets: Bath & Body Works, Inc. (independent public)

Under the Tree: Category by Category

Toys

The holiday toy market is a two-company race plus LEGO:

LEGO is the world's largest toy company by revenue and remains privately held by the Kirk Kristiansen family of Denmark. It is one of the few major toy brands that is genuinely independent.

Video Games

Microsoft's 2023 acquisition of Activision Blizzard for $69 billion means that Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Candy Crush now share a corporate parent with Xbox and Windows.

Coffee and Tea Gifts

JAB Holdings, a Luxembourg-based investment firm controlled by the Reimann family, is the hidden giant of coffee. Through its stakes in Keurig Dr Pepper and JDE Peet's, JAB controls Keurig, Peet's, Green Mountain, and many other coffee brands.

When you buy Starbucks coffee beans at the grocery store as a gift, Nestle profits (not Starbucks corporate, which licensed its packaged coffee rights to Nestle for $7.15 billion in 2018).

Alcohol Gifts

The spirits you gift trace primarily to three European companies: Diageo (UK), LVMH (France), and Pernod Ricard (France). Brown-Forman (Jack Daniel's, Woodford Reserve) is one of the few major American-owned spirits companies.

Candles and Home Fragrance

Yankee Candle, the best-selling candle brand in America, is owned by Newell Brands (NYSE: NWL), the same company that owns Rubbermaid, Sharpie, Graco baby products, and Coleman camping gear.

Gift Cards

Gift cards are the #1 most-requested holiday gift. The top gift card brands and their parents:

The Holiday Food Table

Baking and Cooking

Holiday Treats

Premium chocolate gift boxes trace primarily to European family-owned companies: Lindt & Sprungli (Switzerland), Ferrero (Italy), and Mondelez (US, but with deep European roots through Cadbury).

The Numbers

A typical family's holiday spending pattern:

Approximately 60-70% of total holiday gift spending flows to fewer than 20 corporate parents.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are there genuinely independent gift brands?

Yes. LEGO (toys), Dr. Bronner's (personal care), Patagonia (outdoor), local craft brands, and many small artisan businesses are genuinely independent. Buying from local makers, farmers' markets, and independent retailers is the most reliable way to support non-corporate businesses.

Do holiday "gift sets" offer good value?

Holiday gift sets are often specially packaged for the season. Some offer genuine value (more product for less money). Others contain smaller sizes or different formulations than the regular product line. Compare per-unit pricing to regular products before assuming a deal.

Which holiday brand categories are most concentrated?

Candy (Mars, Hershey, Mondelez control ~75%), personal care gift sets (P&G and Unilever control ~50%), and spirits (Diageo, LVMH, Pernod Ricard control ~60%) are the most concentrated holiday gift categories.

The Bottom Line

Holiday gift-giving feels personal, but the corporate reality is that most holiday spending flows to the same multinational corporations that dominate consumer spending year-round. Understanding who owns the brands you gift does not diminish the thoughtfulness of giving, but it does add a layer of awareness about where your holiday dollars ultimately go.

Research any brand's corporate parent on WhoBrands before you shop, or browse brands by category.

All brand ownership data verified through WhoBrands.com's research methodology. Last updated: February 1, 2026.