Funded by what was left

Eid al-Adha, expected at the end of this month depending on the sighting, is rarely a line in a plan.

The first Eid is. It sits under the fasting month, in a block that was argued over in the winter, with a number, an owner and a set of dates attached to it. The second one is usually whatever is left after that block has been spent.

Nobody decided that. It is what happens when nobody decides.

Look at the order things happen in. The annual budget is built around the months everybody already agrees are big, and both of those approvals are taken in the calm of the previous year. By the time anyone turns to this month, the year is running, the first block has overspent slightly, as it always does, and the reforecast is looking for the same amount back from somewhere.

So the second Eid gets planned last, which means it is approved late, which means the media is bought from whatever is still available, and if anything has to come out of the half year, it comes out of here first. It is the only holiday in the regional calendar whose budget is a remainder.

The customer is at the other end of the same fortnight. Booking a flight. Clearing a shelf in the freezer. Settling who is hosting and who is travelling. Getting ready for the largest family week of their year.

A holiday funded by what was left is a holiday the company has quietly decided is not one. Nobody says that in the room and nobody has to. The budget says it, in the week the customer cares most, and a customer can tell the difference between a brand that planned for them and one that turned up with the change.