I've posted this as a comment on another thread, but honestly it's different enough that it warrants its own thread.

Suggestion
Each tier would have not only a communal goal, but an alternative individual one. If the communal goal is reached, it opens for everyone. If the individual goal is reached by an individual then it opens on a specific day (or when it's reached if after that day).

That date would depend on the event/number of tiers, and would be a little later than the date the devs expect the userbase to reach each goal. Say the internal expected goals are the same as the January novel's set dates - 5th, 10th, and 20th. If for whatever reason the shop isn't unlocked by the community by that time, individuals would be able to unlock the shops on the 10th, 15th, and 25th respectively, if they contribute enough.

Reasoning
As I'm writing this, it's two days from the end of January and Tier 3 the Pit/Boneyard is 12% away from unlocking and progressing at about 1% a day. Oof. And I get it - sacrificing SB (via selling carcasses/selling to monkey) for some decors you might find that might not be your style does seem a bit pointless. For some people, though, it might be just their style, and it's very frustrating that they can't get them just because the rest of the playerbase isn't interested.

This isn't the first time this has happened. I've been on the site when the Primordial Spring almost didn't unlock in April, and the devs have had to manually unlock shops several times. Sometimes the community just can't reach the goals, leading to frustration for individuals who are doing everything they can to get it open, but one person's effort just isn't enough.

What Individual Effort is Enough?
That depends on the event. It'd only make sense as a set amount each year, and it'd be I think a little more than what the devs expect the average player to contribute, which only they really have the data. It shouldn't be something too easy to achieve - as the community goal will already unlock for everyone once it's reached - but it should be low enough that it's achievable for anyone with time to explore two or three bars each day and enough motivation to focus on event progress.

Conclusion
As it is, these monthly community-based unlock bars are frustrating, and there are many suggestions about what to do about it. I'm offering this as another way to do it - preserving the community effort aspect while allowing individuals who really want the shops open to be able to open them for themselves if the community doesn't reach the goal in a timely manner.