The short answer: An email marketing calendar is a dated plan of every campaign you will send, built around the retail moments your customers care about. For a Shopify store in 2027 that means about one campaign a week, plus bigger pushes for Valentine's Day (14 February), Mother's Day, Father's Day (20 June), Black Friday (26 November) and Christmas.
Below is every key retail date for 2027, month by month, with a campaign idea for each, followed by the weekly sends that fill the gaps, a simple way to build your own calendar, and the questions merchants ask most. For what is left of 2026, use our Black Friday and Cyber Monday email calendar and our guide to Christmas and New Year email campaigns.
What is an email marketing calendar?
It is a schedule of your planned marketing emails: the send date, what the email is about, who it goes to, the offer (if any) and its status. It turns "we should email our list more" into a plan you can prepare in advance, and it stops two problems small stores run into most: long silent gaps, and big moments such as Mother's Day remembered two days too late.
A good ecommerce calendar has three layers:
- Tentpole moments: the holidays and shopping events that drive extra sales, planned weeks ahead with a teaser, a launch and a last call.
- Regular campaigns: a steady weekly send (new arrivals, bestsellers, stories, how-to content) so your list hears from you between tentpoles.
- Automations: welcome, abandoned cart, post-purchase and win-back emails that run on their own in the background and don't need a slot in the calendar.
2027 retail dates at a glance
| Month | Date in 2027 | Moment | Market |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | Friday 1 January | New Year's Day | US, UK |
| February | Saturday 6 February | Lunar New Year | Global |
| February | Tuesday 9 February | Shrove Tuesday (Pancake Day) | UK |
| February | Sunday 14 February | Valentine's Day | US, UK |
| February | Monday 15 February | Presidents' Day | US |
| March | Sunday 7 March | Mother's Day (Mothering Sunday) | UK |
| March | Wednesday 17 March | St Patrick's Day | US, UK, Ireland |
| March | Friday 26 to Monday 29 March | Easter (Good Friday to Easter Monday) | US, UK |
| April | Thursday 22 April | Earth Day | Global |
| May | Monday 3 May | Early May bank holiday | UK |
| May | Sunday 9 May | Mother's Day | US |
| May | Monday 31 May | Memorial Day and the spring bank holiday | US, UK |
| June | Sunday 20 June | Father's Day | US, UK |
| July | Sunday 4 July (federal holiday Monday 5 July) | Independence Day | US |
| August | Monday 30 August | Summer bank holiday | UK |
| September | Monday 6 September | Labor Day | US |
| October | Sunday 31 October | Halloween | US, UK |
| November | Thursday 25 November | Thanksgiving | US |
| November | Friday 26 November | Black Friday | Global |
| November | Monday 29 November | Cyber Monday | Global |
| December | Friday 24 December (sundown) | Hanukkah begins | Global |
| December | Saturday 25 December | Christmas Day | US, UK |
| December | Sunday 26 December | Boxing Day (UK bank holidays move to 27 and 28 December) | UK |
| December | Friday 31 December | New Year's Eve | US, UK |
Sources: US Office of Personnel Management (US federal holidays), GOV.UK (UK bank holidays), timeanddate.com US 2027 and UK 2027 (observances such as Lunar New Year, Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Halloween and Black Friday), EARTHDAY.ORG and Hebcal. Cyber Monday is the Monday after US Thanksgiving.
The email marketing calendar, month by month
Each month lists the dates, the campaign that fits, and when to start. Pick the moments that suit your products and customers; you don't need all of them.
January: clear-outs and fresh starts
- 1 January, New Year's Day: a "fresh start" email built around goals, routines or organising, if your products fit.
- Early January: a January sale to clear seasonal stock. Lead with the discount and a clear end date.
- Mid-January: thank the customers you won over Christmas and ask for reviews once orders have arrived.
January is also when many people who joined your list in December see your welcome emails. Check that the welcome series no longer mentions Christmas.
Subject line idea: "Start the year with [your product category]: our picks".
February: Lunar New Year and Valentine's Day
- Saturday 6 February, Lunar New Year: worth a dedicated email if a large share of your customers celebrate it, or if you sell gifts, food or homeware that fits.
- Tuesday 9 February, Pancake Day (UK): a light, playful email for food and kitchen stores.
- Sunday 14 February, Valentine's Day: start with a gift guide around 1 February, send an "order by" reminder based on your shipping times, then a last-minute email for gift cards. Consider a "gifts for friends" or "treat yourself" angle for people without a partner.
- Monday 15 February, Presidents' Day (US): a long-weekend sale in the US.
Subject line idea: "Valentine's gifts that arrive in time".
March: Mothering Sunday, St Patrick's Day and Easter
- Sunday 7 March, Mothering Sunday (UK): UK Mother's Day is two months earlier than the US one. Send a gift guide in late February and a delivery reminder in the first week of March.
- Wednesday 17 March, St Patrick's Day: a themed email works for fashion, food and drink stores; skip it if it doesn't fit.
- Easter, 26 to 29 March: Good Friday and Easter Monday are bank holidays in England and Wales, which makes it a four-day weekend sale window. For gifts, chocolate or homeware, send an Easter gift email the week before.
- All month: spring collection launch.
If you sell in both the US and the UK, give UK subscribers their own Mother's Day email in March and US subscribers theirs in May.
April: Earth Day and spring
- Thursday 22 April, Earth Day: only if you have something real to say, such as recycled packaging, a repair service or a donation. Explain exactly what you do and keep claims specific.
- Mid-April: start your US Mother's Day gift guide.
- All month: spring and outdoor products, refills and "get ready for summer" content.
May: Mother's Day and the long weekends
- Monday 3 May, early May bank holiday (UK): a long-weekend sale for UK customers.
- Sunday 9 May, Mother's Day (US): gift guide in late April, an "order by" reminder the week before, and gift cards in the last few days.
- Monday 31 May, Memorial Day (US) and spring bank holiday (UK): both fall on the same day in 2027, so one long-weekend sale can serve both markets. Memorial Day is also the unofficial start of summer in the US.
Subject line idea: "Mother's Day is Sunday 9 May: gifts she'll actually use".
June: Father's Day and summer
- Sunday 20 June, Father's Day (US and UK): the same date in both markets. Gift guide from the start of June, then a delivery reminder and a gift card email.
- All month: graduation and wedding gifts if they suit your range, and summer products.
Subject line idea: "Father's Day gifts, sorted by what he's into".
July: Independence Day and the mid-year sale
- Sunday 4 July, Independence Day (US): the federal holiday is observed on Monday 5 July, so the sale weekend runs from Friday 2 July to Monday 5 July.
- Mid-July: a mid-year or summer sale to clear spring and summer stock.
- Late July: early back-to-school content for stores that sell to students, parents or teachers.
August: back to school and the end of summer
- All month: back-to-school guides and bundles, timed to when schools go back in your market.
- Monday 30 August, summer bank holiday (UK): an end-of-summer sale.
- Late August: preview your autumn range.
September: Labor Day and autumn
- Monday 6 September, Labor Day (US): a long-weekend sale and the unofficial end of summer.
- Mid-September: autumn collection launch.
- Late September: start growing your list for Black Friday. A signup form that offers early access to your Black Friday sale gives visitors a reason to join now.
October: Halloween and Black Friday preparation
- Sunday 31 October, Halloween: costumes, decorations, sweets and party products sell from the start of October; for other stores, a playful themed email or a small offer is enough.
- All month: get ready for peak season. Clean your list, check that SPF, DKIM and DMARC authentication is in place, and switch on or refresh your automations before volume rises.
- Late October: announce your Black Friday plans to your early-access list.
November: Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday
- Early November: teasers and a gift guide with no discount yet.
- Week of 15 November: early access for your most engaged subscribers and best customers.
- Thursday 25 November, Thanksgiving (US): a short thank-you email.
- Friday 26 November, Black Friday, to Monday 29 November, Cyber Monday: a launch email each morning and a reminder to people who didn't open or buy.
Our BFCM email calendar shows the full day-by-day plan; shift each date one day earlier for 2027.
December: Christmas, Hanukkah and the year's end
- Early December: Christmas gift guides and bestsellers.
- Mid-December: your last order date for Christmas delivery. Carriers publish their cut-off dates in the autumn; check yours before you announce it.
- Friday 24 December, Hanukkah begins at sundown: it overlaps Christmas in 2027, so a single "holiday gifts" email can cover both.
- Saturday 25 December, Christmas Day: a short greeting, no hard sell.
- Sunday 26 December, Boxing Day: start your after-Christmas sale. In the UK the bank holidays move to Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 December, giving you a long sale weekend.
- Friday 31 December, New Year's Eve: a year-in-review email or your last offer of the year.
Our Christmas and New Year email guide has ten campaign ideas and a day-by-day plan for this stretch.
What to send between the big moments
Most weeks have no big retail moment. Fill them with regular campaigns that keep your list warm:
- New arrivals: new products, restocks or limited runs.
- Bestsellers and reviews: what other customers are buying and saying.
- How-to content: how to use, style, care for or choose your products.
- Behind the scenes: how something is made, a new supplier, the story behind a product.
- A store newsletter: a weekly or fortnightly round-up that mixes the above.
Behind all of this, your automations do the work no calendar can: a welcome series for new subscribers, abandoned cart emails, a post-purchase thank-you, a review request and a win-back email for lapsed customers. Set these up once and check them each quarter.
How to build your own email marketing calendar
- Pick your tentpoles. Go through the 2027 dates above and keep the moments that fit your products and your customers' countries. Most stores need one or two per month.
- Plan backwards from each date. For a gifting moment, put the gift guide two to three weeks before, the "order by" reminder a few days before your shipping cut-off, and the last-minute gift card email in the final days.
- Set a steady cadence. Decide how many regular campaigns you will send each week, and keep to it. If you aren't sure, our guide to how often to send marketing emails walks through the trade-offs.
- Choose the audience for each send. Engaged subscribers first, buyers excluded from offers they have just used, long-inactive contacts left out of peak weeks.
- Write it down in one place. For each email record the date, the moment, the audience, the offer, the subject line and its status (idea, draft, scheduled, sent).
- Review each month. Look at what was opened, clicked and bought, and adjust the next month.
Here is what one month looks like when it is written down, using May 2027 for a US store that sells gifts:
| Send date | Campaign | Audience | Offer | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday 27 April | Mother's Day gift guide | All subscribers | None | Scheduled |
| Tuesday 4 May | "Order by" reminder for Mother's Day | Openers and clickers who haven't bought | Free gift wrap | Draft |
| Friday 7 May | Last-minute gift cards | Non-buyers this month | None | Draft |
| Tuesday 18 May | New summer arrivals | Engaged subscribers | None | Idea |
| Friday 28 May | Memorial Day weekend sale | All subscribers except recent buyers | Store-wide discount until 31 May | Idea |
A spreadsheet works for this. If you would rather not build it yourself, tinyAlbert’s AI campaign calendar plans the year for your store.
How tinyAlbert builds your calendar for you
tinyAlbert is an AI email marketing app for Shopify stores. It plans a year of campaigns, writes them and your core automations in your brand's voice, and sends them. Instead of starting from a blank spreadsheet, you start from a calendar that is already filled in:
- Built around your store. The AI campaign calendar is pre-generated for your store's category and the retail moments that matter to it. In our test store, the run-up to the end of the year included campaigns such as "Black Friday Teaser", "Christmas sale", "After Christmas sales" and "Exclusive New Year's Discounts".
- Calendar and list views. See future and recurring campaigns by month or as a list, and add your own campaigns at any time.
- A steady weekly rhythm. tinyAlbert sends about one campaign a week by default; you choose how many campaigns go out each week, the send time, and whether they go to subscribers only or to all your Shopify contacts. Campaigns can also repeat on a chosen weekday.
- You stay in control. Every campaign can be previewed on desktop and mobile, edited, sent as a test, regenerated or rescheduled before you switch it on.
- Automations included. Welcome Series, Abandoned Cart, Thank You For Purchase, Product Review and Win Back Flow are pre-written in your brand's voice and switch on with one toggle.
One merchant described it on the Shopify App Store:
"Within a day of adding TinyAlbert, we had a calendar of ads set to go out…" (electricbyke, US, Shopify App Store review)
tinyAlbert starts at $3 a month for up to 100 contacts after a 7-day free trial. See pricing, or read our Shopify email marketing guide for the bigger picture.
Frequently asked questions
What is an email marketing calendar?
An email marketing calendar is a schedule of every marketing email you plan to send, with its date, topic, audience, offer and status. For an online store it is built around retail moments such as Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Black Friday and Christmas, with regular weekly campaigns in between and automations running in the background.
How do I create an email marketing calendar?
List the retail dates that suit your products, then plan each one backwards: gift guide, reminder, last call. Fill the weeks in between with regular campaigns such as new arrivals and bestsellers. Record the date, audience, offer, subject line and status for every email in one spreadsheet or tool, and review it monthly.
How far in advance should I plan my email marketing calendar?
Map the whole year's key dates once, so nothing big catches you out, then plan the detail one to three months ahead. Gifting moments need the most lead time: start Black Friday and Christmas planning in September or October, and Mother's Day and Father's Day about six weeks before.
How often should a Shopify store send marketing emails?
There is no single right number. One regular campaign a week is a manageable starting point for a small store, and it is tinyAlbert's default; add extra sends around big moments like Black Friday. Watch unsubscribes and spam complaints: if they rise, send less often or to fewer, more engaged subscribers.
Is there an email marketing calendar template?
Yes. A simple spreadsheet with columns for date, moment, audience, offer, subject line and status is enough for most stores. You can also use our email calendar generator, which builds a dated plan for your store, or let tinyAlbert's AI campaign calendar create and fill one for you.
tinyAlbert is an AI email marketing app for Shopify stores, made by tinyCo, the company behind tinyEmail. About tinyAlbert.