BOLO TRENDS
Weekly Newsletter · Issue 016 · Thursday, October 8 2026
THE LEAD · SOURCE NOW
Holiday party dresses went 69x by November. Two years in a row.
Occasion keywords have a track record here. Readers of this newsletter have reported +35 confirmed sales from the dress occasions we've called, from Kentucky Derby to wedding guest to homecoming. Holiday party is the next one on the calendar."
Google search data shows holiday party dress at 1,600 searches in August. Last August it was also 1,600. Then it climbed.
September 2025: 4,400
October 2025: 22,200
November 2025: 110,000
December 2025: 60,500
That is 69x from August to November. The year before did the same thing: 2,400 in August 2024, 165,000 by November. Same multiple. Same month.
One honest note. Last November's peak was smaller than the one before it, 110,000 against 165,000. The generic search shrank. The specific ones grew. Holiday velvet dress went from 12,100 in November 2024 to 40,500 last November. Sequin new years dress went from 12,100 in December 2024 to 49,500 last December. Buyers are telling you the fabric they want.
Now the title. Last November, holiday party dress and holiday dress women each hit 110,000 searches. Christmas party dress women hit 18,100. Same dress, about 6x the buyers searching with "holiday".
Put “Holiday Dress” in your titles.
And a second window sits right behind it. New years eve dress peaked at 74,000 last December, and at 110,000 the December before. We’ll discuss that more soon.
Source: The New York Times
THE MOVE
Pull party dresses now, while searches sit at the floor. Velvet, sequin, satin, metallic, little black dresses, cocktail length to midi. Title it with brand (optional), "holiday party dress", then the fabric, then the size. List by early November. Last year searches went 5x from October to November. When December starts, add "new years eve dress" to the title for anything sequin or metallic.
TITLE: [BRAND] + Holiday Party Dress + [SIZE] + [FABRIC] + [ERA]
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT · THE OUTERWEAR VIDEO
How to resell outerwear. The short version.
Sunday's video walked the coat racks. If you missed it, here’s the summary:
Eddie Bauer down jacket. Google search data shows it went from 1,600 searches last August to 22,200 this year. Almost 14x, the biggest year over year jump of any outerwear keyword we track. Check the fill tag before it goes in your cart: goose down, not polyester. Then title it with “Eddie Bauer down jacket”, word for word.
The Barbour. Barbour jacket searches went from 60,500 in September to 165,000 by November last year, and this year already came in at 60,500. Look for a corduroy collar, a tartan lining, a waxed cotton shell and the Royal Warrant crests on the inside label. The short one is the Bedale. The longer one with the big pocket across the back is the Beaufort. Barbour and the model name go up front, and "waxed jacket" goes in the description. Jackets in the same lane are up over the last year too: Baracuta G9 up 85%, Harrington jackets up 40%, Wilsons Leather up 54%, London Fog up 28%.
Old reliable. Carhartt jacket searches hit 1,000,000 in November and 1,220,000 in December, two years in a row. Last September they were already at 246,000. Source now and list immediately.
THE EASY BUTTON.
Last November, women's puffer jacket hit 201,000 searches. Women's puffer coat hit 18,100. Same two numbers in 2024. That is 11x the searches for the same coat. If it stops at the hip, it is a puffer jacket in your title.
One more thing: 95% of you voted yes on a BOLO Denim Guide last week. Heard. Coming soon!
BOLO Watchlist · Subscribers Only
BOLO 01 · Bags
Fringe bags just hit a four-year high.
Google search data shows fringe bag at 14,800 searches in August, the highest in four years of data, up from 8,100 a year ago. It has not dipped below 9,900 all year. In the first eight months of 2025 it never got above 8,100.
The 12-month average is up 56% on the year before. And this is not a seasonal item. Last fall it touched 12,100 in September, then sat at 8,100 from October through December.
The move. List the fringe bags you already have. Pull suede and leather fringe crossbodies and shoulder bags on sight. "Fringe bag" goes in the title, then the material.
BOLO 02 · Sneakers
Salomon women's shoes almost tripled in a year.
A follow-up to the September Keyword List (Issue 013), where Salomon shoes led the sneakers page at 368,000 searches. The women's cut is moving fastest. Google search data shows Salomon women shoes at 22,200 buyer searches, up from 8,100 a year ago. That is 2.7x.
It has held at 12,100 or higher every month since last October, stepped up to 14,800 in March, then set a new four-year high in July and again in August.
The move. Pull women's Salomon shoes on sight and list them now. Trail runners and hiking shoes both count. Title it Salomon, then the model name, then "women's" and the size.
BOLO 03 · Dress Shoes
Nude heels have beaten last year every single month of 2026.
Google search data shows nude heels women at 14,800 searches, up from 8,100 a year ago and tied for the highest month in four years of data. Every month this year has come in above the same month last year. The 12-month average is up 79%.
No seasonal cliff to worry about, either. Last fall it held between 5,400 and 8,100. And if you are pulling party dresses, you might get bundle offers.
The move. List now. Pumps, slingbacks and block heels in nude, beige or tan. "Nude heels" goes in the title every time.
BOLO 04 · Knitwear
Fair Isle sweaters hit 90,500 in November. Both years.
More style-based BOLOs! Fair Isle sweater searches came in at 12,100 in August, up from 9,900 a year ago. Last year they went to 18,100 in September, 33,100 in October and 90,500 in November, then held 90,500 through December. November and December 2024 were 90,500 too.
That is 9x from August to November last year, on the same schedule two years in a row. Women's has bigger demand: searches hit 33,100 last November. Men's hit 14,800.
The move. Source fair isle now sweaters now. Yoke sweaters, crewnecks and cardigans, wool first. Use “fair isle” in the title. List by late October.
The Receipts
Seven sales in one day.
@alanys.ky added "cocktail" to her titles: "Not just dresses, but also nice blouses and skirts sold since adding keywords, specifically "cocktail," to my titles! I started adding keywords a few days ago, and I made 7 sales in just one day which is incredibly out of the ordinary for me." Then a new listing: "A new listing I posted sold in less than an hour and I'm confident it is because I added "wedding guest" and "cocktail" to the listing title!"
Peacoat in the title. Sold in under 10 days.
@Theetruekidd won with this one! In inventory less than 10 days, sold with no offers. Flawless!
Cardigans came off the floor right on schedule.
In Issue 010 we said cardigan was sitting at its floor, 135,000 searches in July. Pull now, list in September. August came in at 201,000, exactly where it sat last August. Last year it went on to 246,000 in September and 301,000 in November.
Scored: CONFIRMED. If you pulled cardigans in August, they should be listed now.
Western boots did not come back.
In Issue 004 we told you to lead titles with western boots, at 60,500 searches. In Issue 010 we walked that back when July fell to 18,100, and said we would keep watching. August came in at 22,200, against 74,000 last August. Two straight months well under last year.
Scored: FADED. Stetson cowboy hat, the maker name we pointed you to instead, cooled too: 135,000 in July, 60,500 in August, down from 135,000 last August. We are watching that one, closely.
Receipts coming soon: vintage Polo Ralph Lauren (Issue 014), suede bags (Issue 011) and midi skirts (Issue 014).
Got a sale from a BOLO Trends tip? Reply to this email. Your win might be next week's Receipt.
TL;DR: Source holiday party dresses now and title the fabric. List fringe bags, women's Salomons and nude heels while they sit at their highs. Bank Fair Isle for November.
And now you know.
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