Cupid must be a capitalist.
Despite the sluggish U.S. economy, this year lovebirds still plan to shell out an average of $123 each on Valentine’s Day, up from $120 last year and eclipsing the $101 of 2006. Total outlay for the U.S.: $17 billion, estimates the National Retail Federation’s 2008 Valentine’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by market research company BIGresearch.
The survey polled 8,447 consumers and found that 61 percent plan to celebrate the holiday. The most romantic age group is the 18- to 24-year-old set, 72 percent of which plan to shower their sweethearts with everything from candy to jewelry this February. But it’s the 25- to 34-year-olds who torch the most cash - $160 on average. Men will spend $163 on their valentines; women, just $84. Some of the most popular gifts men plan to buy are flowers (58.2 percent), candy (45.0 percent) and jewelry (26.5 percent).
For as much business as he brings in, Cupid should charge a rich finder’s fee. Gift retailer 1-800-Flowers.com said that Valentine’s Day typically accounts for 10 percent of its annual sales. As the calendar ticks closer to Feb. 14, the company expects to receive more than 100,000 orders per day, up from 10,000 to 15,000 orders on an average day.
In candy land, Hershey estimates that it sells 1.5 billion of its famed chocolate Kisses every year on Valentine’s Day.
As for the sparkly stuff, only 26 percent of men and 7 percent of women plan to buy jewelry on Valentine’s Day this year. With the price of gold reaching dizzying heights in recent months, jewelry gifts will be “less diamonds and gold than silver and semiprecious stones,” says Pam Danzinger, president of Unity Marketing, a market research firm that specializes in luxury goods.
That won’t stop high-end jeweler Tiffany from crashing Cupid’s party. This month, the home of the little blue box plans to promote its signature heart designs in pieces such as the diamond-and-platinum Tiffany Hearts earrings. Starting price: $2,450.
Despite the rise of edgy electronic greeting cards, the most popular Valentine’s gifts are traditional paper cards. BIGresearch estimates that nearly 57 percent of both men and women plan to purchase cards this year, down from 63 percent last year. Valentine’s Day is the second-biggest card-giving holiday of the year after Christmas, according to Hallmark, which offers more than 2,000 Valentine’s Day cards. Total exchanged nationwide every year: 190 million.
America’s 22,753 florists moved 214 million roses for Valentine’s Day in 2007, up from 189 million in 2006, according to the Society of American Florists. Valentine’s Day is the No. 1 holiday for florists, capturing 36 percent of all holiday fresh-cut-flower purchases and 40 percent of the dollar volume.
For all that romance, though, suitors won’t necessarily get on bended knee this month. While some 2.3 million marriages take place in the U.S. each year, just 9 percent of those propositions are lobbed in February.
Contemplating the plunge? Expect to shell out an average of $4,435 for a ring. Average cost of the big ceremony: $27,852.
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