It’s Valentine’s Day, one of my very favorite holidays! (I am a hopeless romantic, after all.)

How do you celebrate? As soon as my husband and I get home from work, we exchange gifts and then go out to dinner (gee, I hope he remembered to make dinner reservations! Or was it my turn this year?).

As you know, Valentine’s Day is also a big event for manufacturers, retailers, and restaurants, with billions of dollars being spent by consumers.

What about you, how much do you expect to spend on Valentine’s Day?

Take Our Instant Poll (at ncponline.com)

Speaking of spending money, here are some fascinating Valentine’s Day facts from Wallethub.com and the National Retail Federation:

  • $27.4 billion: Total Valentine’s Day spending (for partners, family members, friends, co-workers, and pets) projected for 2020 (up 32% from 2019)
  • $196.31: Average amount Valentine’s Day participants will spend in 2020 (an increase of 21% compared with last year’s previous record of $161.96)
  • $101: Average per-couple cost of a Valentine’s dinner out
  • $291 vs. $106: Men will spend nearly three times as much as women, on average, for Valentine’s Day 2020.
  • $10.5 billion: Amount Americans will spend on jewelry ($5.8B), flowers ($2.3B) and candy ($2.4B).
  • Shoppers plan to spend …
    • $5.8 billion on jewelry (given by 21%)
    • $4.3 billion on an evening out (34%)
    • $2.9 billion on clothing (20%)
    • $2.4 billion on candy (52%)
    • $2.3 billion on flowers (37%)
    • $2 billion on gift cards (19%)
    • $1.3 billion on greeting cards (43%)
  • 30% of annual flower sales happen around Valentine’s Day
  • 1,261+: Types of Valentine’s Day greeting cards are being offered by Hallmark in 2020
  • $12.21: Average amount spent by Americans on Valentine’s Day gifts for their pets
  • Least-desired gifts:
    • 24%: Tools
    • 24%: Gym membership
    • 19%: Sporting equipment
    • 16%: Kitchen appliances
    • 15%: Cheesy stuffed animal
    • 13%: Mixtape (I have to admit to giving my husband a mixtape, but it was a loonnnggg time ago!)
  • 45% of adults do NOT plant to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year

I wish you all a very happy Valentine’s Day, even if you’re not celebrating.

And please remember if you buy your loved ones flowers, candy, or clothing, to record these purchases, even if they don’t have a barcode. If you have a scanner, use the Barcode Reference Booklet. If you use the NCPMobile App, use the onboard Non-Barcoded Items Listing.

Hope you have a lovely day!

Best Regards,
Taylor

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