NEW YORK–Credit unions can easily pull data to measure auto loans, but there’s another indicator during the holiday season of how well cars are selling—bow sales.
The red bows first made famous in Lexus commercials showing the vehicles being given as holiday gifts have become ubiquitous across vehicle brands during the Christmas season as buyers place the oversized bows on vehicle hoods and roofs as they surprise the gift recipient.
But according to the manufacturers of the red bows, sales are weak this holiday season.
Orders are down 35% this holiday season at King Size Bows, which sells thousands of car bows each year to dealerships and individual consumers, according to the Wall Street Journal. That works out to hundreds fewer bows than normal, Amber Hughes, the Costa Mesa, Calif., company’s owner, told the publication.
Michael Rudolph, president of Car Bow Store in Warminster, Pa., also told the Journal that sales have declined, though he won’t know by how much until the end of the year.
And on the dealership side of the market, Tom Maoli, the owner of Lexus of Route 10 in Whippany, N.J., told the Journal he ordered fewer bows this year because new car sales are down and his inventory has been low.
‘Real People’ Do Buy at Christmas
“Real people—not just the ones who appear in commercials—do occasionally buy cars for loved ones as holiday gifts,” the Journal reported. “Mr. Maoli figures that roughly 15% of holiday-season sales at his dealership are gifts, which is in line with estimates that Lexus says it has heard anecdotally from other dealers over the years. December was the strongest month for car sales from 2010 to 2020, according to an analysis from the research firm J.D. Power. During that period, 9.6% of sales occurred in December, and specifically among luxury brands, December accounted for 11.5% of sales.”
‘Bow-Cession’ Not Hitting Everyone
But the “bow-cession,” as it was dubbed by the Journal, isn’t hitting everyone.
“At Golden Openings, a ceremonial supplies and events company in Urbandale, Iowa, car-bow sales are up 40% this holiday season, which amounts to roughly a hundred more bows, says owner Kimberly Baeth,” the Journal added.
And if you or your credit union is considering buying the bows, the Journal reported the bows Lexus sells to its dealers cost about $450 apiece, and some high-end bows are even more expensive. At King Size Bows, a premium bow with a 4-foot diameter and 11 loops sells for $700 and another with an additional four loops sells for $800 (while offering cheaper options, the Journal said.
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