SPOKANE, Wash. — Valentine’s Day is approaching and this year the National Retail Federation (NFR) expects spending to hit a record of $14.2 billion this year.
Feb. 14 brings romance and is a night set aside in the year to spend with your significant other. This year, retailers are expecting to see a shift in spending for certain gifts this year including flowers, clothing, jewelry, an evening out and more.
“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.”
Here is the breakdown of the top gifts for Valentine’s Day provided by NFR:
Candy: 57%Greeting cards: 40%Flowers: 39%A night out: 32%Jewelry: 22%Clothing: 21%Gift card: 19%
Spending record expects that there will be about $6.4 billion spent on jewelry, $2.6 billion spent on flowers, $3 billion spent on clothing and about $4.9 billion spent on an evening out.
Based on trends, 2024 is expected to be the second most expensive Valentine’s Day in the past 10 years with 2020 being the highest at $27.4 billion.
The average couple spends about $180 each on Valentine’s Day or leading up to that special day. But some people’s total adds up if they celebrate each special relationship in their lives including pets, friends or coworkers.
“While shoppers may be spending the most on jewelry, overall, the most popular gifts are the classics – candy and greeting cards,” Prosper Insights & Analytics Executive Vice President of Strategy Phil Rist said. “We’re also seeing continued interest in gifts of experience with about one-third of consumers planning to give a gift of experience this year.”
Now even though most people plan a night out on the town for Valentine’s Day, about 29% of couples plan to spend the holiday differently. This may be having a nice home cooked dinner with their significant other or spending the night watching movies.
No matter how someone spends Feb. 14, it will be a day to be thankful for all of the special people in your life.
The survey asked 8,329 adult consumers about their Valentine’s Day shopping plans. It was conducted Jan. 2-8 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.1 percentage points. NRF provides data on consumer behavior and spending for key periods such as holidays throughout the year.
