Research site finders.com forecast that more than 22 million Brits (52.8%) would spend money on their loved ones this Valentine’s Day, compared to 31.2% who would not celebrate the occasion and 16% who planned to celebrate without spending. Out of those celebrating Valentine’s, each person is estimated to spend an average of £28.45 and people were most likely to spend within £1 – £10 (15.3%).
Women are more likely to be spending nothing (18.7%) compared to men (13.2%). They’re also more likely to be spending less, with 19.3% of women dropping between £1 – £10, compared to only 11.2% of men. Men are more likely to be dropping the bigger amounts – they’re three times more likely than women to spend more than £201 (men at 1.22%, women at 0.39%).
According to GlobalData, card and gift sales in the UK were forecast to hit £1.1 billion, a 0.7 per cent growth on last year and drop from the 1.4 per cent year-on-year growth seen in 2017. This waning interest has driven more consumers to discount retailers for the day of ‘romance’. The supermarket Tesco was judged by consumers to have offered the best Valentine’s Day promotions.
Last year, less than a third of shoppers thought Valentine’s Day was an important celebration while 31.7 per cent tried to avoid it all together. This research company found that 45.8 per cent of consumers thought Valentine’s Day was a waste of money and 56.2 per cent thought it cost too much.
To compensate for the declining interest in Valentine’s, brands are looking at other options, such as “Galentine’s Day”, an American holiday which celebrates female friendship. Notonthehighstreet also took a tip from across the pond by promoting gifts for pets.
Clinton’s, meanwhile, discovered that those aged 45-54 are most likely to send a Valentine to their child (10%) with Mums twice as likely as Dads to send a card. Cards from siblings are generally more uncommon – on average only one-in-100 will send a card to a brother or sister on Valentine’s Day.
Bucking the trend slightly, 10% of respondents living in Northern Ireland say they have sent a card to siblings in the past.
Across the Atlantic, meanwhile, it was found by the National Retail Federation that Americans will spend about $19.6 billion on Valentine’s Day—including $654 million on gifts co-workers, or about $4.79 each. A total of around $751 million will be spent on pets, while the average spend per person on significant others was almost $89. People aged 25-to-34 will be spending the most on Valentine’s Day gifts this year, spending an average of $202.76 per person. Traditional gifts of confectionery, flowers, cards and jewellery are still the most popular choices.
Over in Australia, the Valentine’s Day spend was forecast to reach a whopping $528 million, with much of the splurge going on flowers. Research analyst finders.com also found, however, that there was a rising anti-Valentine’s Day sentiment, with 64 per cent of Australians planning to boycott the day altogether.
Images featured are from British Craft Trade Fair exhibitors Bagstock & Bumble, Vikki Lafford Garside, Lucy Addison, Anne Reeves and Aroma Holidays
