Clinton took part in a holiday food and toy distribution program in Harlem that was organized by the Feed the Children, a nonprofit organization.

CNN: First lady distributes food and gifts to the poor

In a February interview, Ryan Records, a vice president of payments and cards at Starbucks, highlighted rising amounts of money being loaded on the Starbucks Card, a holiday-season spike in new loyalty program members and strong mobile app downloads as reason to see the unit as being increasingly relevant to Starbucks.

FORBES: Starbucks' Secret Recipe for Growth

In another bid to set itself apart from the competition this holiday season, the retailer introduced a toy reservation program, which allowed shoppers to place 50 hot toys on hold.

FORBES: Toys 'R' Us CEO: Wal-Mart, Target, Amazon Have Nothing On Us This Black Friday

DDR, which owns hundreds of shopping centers across the country, launched a mobile program called ValuText at 27 of its retail centers for this holiday season.

FORBES: 'Tis the Season to Give Shopping Malls the Shaft

For one month a year, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) converts this area into holiday central for NORAD's Santa Tracker, a half-century-old program that has become a thing of legend -- a curious juxtaposition of warfare preparedness and storybook magic.

ENGADGET: A visit to NORAD's Santa-tracking facility (video)