This Valentine’s Day, love in the air means record money in the bank for American retailers. According to the United States National Retail Federation, consumers are planning on opening their hearts—and their wallets—like never before, with holiday spending expected to hit just shy of $26 billion this year.
An NRF poll conducted last month in partnership with Prosper Insights & Analytics revealed that 53 percent of the 8,329 American consumers surveyed have shopping plans for Valentine’s Day, and 86 percent of those shoppers plan on spending their money on a spouse or significant other.
Partner-oriented spending alone is expected to bring in $14.2 billion, according to the NRF, marking a major uptick from the $13.5 billion spent on Valentine’s Day 2023. That number increases even further when spending on non-romantic valentines (friends, family members, children, etc.) is factored in. While a smaller group of survey respondents—just 56 percent—falls into this category, the combined total bumps collective consumer spending up to $25.8 billion.
Learn the benefits of becoming a Valuetainment Member and subscribe today!
“Retailers are ready to help customers this Valentine’s Day with meaningful and memorable gifts,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. “With consumers prioritizing their spouse or significant other this year, retailers expect to see a shift in spending for certain gifting categories.”
According to the NRF, $16.9 billion in Valentine’s Day-related spending will go to flowers, clothing, jewelry, and evenings out, making for new spending records in each category. Unsurprisingly, greeting cards and candy rank highest in the list of top gift items.
Consumers are expected to spend an average of $185.81 per person on Valentine’s Day items, nearly $8 higher than the average of the last five years. While total spending is down slightly from the $27.4 billion peak in 2020—which was followed by a COVID-era slump that coincided with a “loneliness epidemic”—spending on romantic partners has already surpassed that year’s record.
At the same time, non-traditional Valentine’s Day celebrations have increased in popularity. Among survey respondents who are not celebrating the holiday, 29 percent plan to mark the occasion by either treating themselves to something special or going out with single friends. “Galentine’s Day” outings to celebrate female friendship have become an annual tradition for many ever since the term was coined in a 2010 episode of the NBC series “Parks & Recreation.”
A separate survey from Ypulse determined that a growing percentage of Gen Z prefers to spend Valentine’s Day with friends and family. This has created a new market for corporate advertising that extends beyond the holiday’s usual romance-centric themes.
Connor Walcott is a staff writer for Valuetainment.com. Follow Connor on X and look for him on VT’s “The Unusual Suspects.”
Add comment