With the holiday season at hand, single mom Nicky Talbot is unemployed and struggling to afford a nice Christmas with her 8-year-old daughter. Hearing that Cartwright's Department Store is hiring temporary holiday help, Nicky rushes in to apply, but is rejected by Senior VP Fiona Aldrich, who considers Nicky a threat to the relationship she hopes to have with Bill, a charming and handsome store manager. In a whimsical turn of events, Harry Osbourne, claiming to be a consultant from corporate headquarters, encourages Nicky to dress up and begin working as Cartwright's store Santa Claus. With the magical help of Harry, who turns out to be a real-life angel, Nicky keeps the job and despite Fiona's attempts at sabotage, becomes the most popular store Santa Claus in Cartwright's history; however, nobody knows Cartwright's Santa Claus is a woman and Nicky fears she will lose her job if her secret gets out.
