A Day for Romance … and Flowers
As if you didn’t already know, Valentine’s Day is this Wednesday.
This year, U.S. consumers are expected to spend an average of $143.56 to celebrate the holiday with their loved ones. Those in the 25- to 34-year-old category will be the biggest spenders at an average of $202.76.
According to the annual survey released today by the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics, this Valentine’s Day consumers will spend a whopping $19.6 billion — an increase of $1.4 billion over last year’s spending. More than 7,000 participated in this year’s the survey.
The good news for our industry is that they plan to spend approximately $2 billion on flower purchases this year! That’s about what they spent in 2017, but it is a pretty nice number for a one-day holiday.
Flowers and candy are the two most popular Valentine gift-giving categories, followed by an evening out, jewelry, clothing and gift cards.
“Americans are looking forward to pampering and indulging their loved ones with flowers, candy, dinner and all of the other Valentine’s Day stops,” NRF president and CEO Matthew Shay said. “With the holidays behind them and the winter months dragging along, consumers are looking for something to celebrate this time of year.”
Here’s another fun fact for you: approximately 115 Valentine’s Day cards ($894 million) will be exchanged this year, according to greeting card manufacturer Hallmark and the NRF.
What’s in Your Greenhouse?
Did you grow any special plants aimed at the Valentine market this year? Were any of them a home run with customers? How did you market them to the consumers? How about other holiday-themed plants? What other holidays are you capitalizing on in your greenhouse?
I’d love to see photos of any Valentine’s Day (or any holiday) plants that you produce. Just drop me a line at thodson@greatamericanpublish.com.
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