I have written about how I loathe V-Day many, many years in a row now. And honestly, if I haven’t convinced you the contrived holiday is a terrible thing by now, I’m just not going to. I have approached the problem from every angle I can think of. And with all sincerity, I tried to find a fresh one this year. Which is why I only started writing this post on the 11th. I just can’t think of new reasons not to participate. So I’ll just reiterate points I’ve probably made before. With an emphasis on non-participation.
YOU CAN’T ESCAPE IT. As you know, my dear readers, I am not a fan of Valentine’s day—to say the least. But it’s not the kind of “holiday” that can go ignored. It’s thrown in your face. Advertsements for chocolate, chocolate-covered strawberries, and jewlry are suddenly inescapable. And I don’t even have television stations or listen to radio. Still-pervasive. Going into the stores—forget about it! Pink and red are poking my eyes out. Facebook—the zoos?? Have already started contests for couples. And the resturants are gearing up for a big income night. Even at work, they decorated the building with hearts—one with my name on it. And you can’t say—don’t do that without looking like a total douche-bag. I wish I could rip my heart off the door though! Ugh, and the talk. Everybody will talk about the big day. The showing off about plans already starts. Or the sad-sacks (because that’s the camp everyone else gets lumped into) whine about not having plans.
I didn’t know this before, but even the boys will take desperation dates in order to take advantage of lonely, stigmatized women. They want the easy sex-opportunity: Information courtesy of the boys at work. . . And you can’t just say you don’t believe in the day, or try to ignore it, because you are then lumped into the bitter at being a sad-sack group. Which isn’t right and it isn’t accurate.
It’s also awkward at work, because people suddenly ask you candidly about your relationship status. For private people, people with complicated situations, or prople trying to have discretion (read—gays in Utah) this topic is frought with danger. It’s rude not to answer. It’s sketchy to be vaugue. But sharing could yield judgment or consequences. So there’s that. . .
Now let me try to find some sort of statistics of people that believe in or participate in Valentine’s day to see what everyone else feels.
Statistic Verification |
Source: Retail Advertising and Marketing Associatio, Valentine’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey |
Research Date: January 24th, 2016 |
Valentine’s Day Statistics | Data |
Average annual Valentine’s Day spending | $13,290,000,000 |
Number of Valentine’s Day cards exchanged annually | 180 Million |
Average number of roses produced for Valentine’s Day | 198,000,000 |
Percent of Valentine’s Day cards bought by women | 85 % |
Percent of all flowers purchased by men | 73 % |
Percent of women who send themselves flowers on Valentine’s Day | 14 % |
Amount the average consumer spends on Valentine’s Day | $116.21 |
Percent of consumers who celebrate Valentine’s Day | 61.8 % |
Percent of women who would end their relationship if they didn’t get something for Valentines day. | 53 % |
Average number of children conceived on Valentine’s day | 11,000 |
Gifts Most Often Given on Valentines Day (Allowing for multiple gifts given) | Data |
Candy | 47.5 % |
Flowers | 34.3 % |
Cards | 52.1 % |
Jewelry | 17.3 % |
Dining / Eating Out | 34.6 % |
Clothing | 14.4 % |
Gift Cards | 12.6 % |
Other Gifts | 11.2 % |
Valentine Related Business Statistics | |
Number of locations producing chocolate and cocoa products | 1,233 |
Number of people employed by the these establishments | 38,794 |
Revenue of domestically cut flowers | $403 Million |
Number of florists nationwide | 24,600 |
Number of people employed by florists | 123,600 |
Number of jewelry stores in the U.S. | 27,484 |
Annual revenue from jewelry stores | $2.2 Billion |
Relationship Statistics | |
Ratio of single men in their 20’s to single women in their 20’s | 1.2 to 1 |
Ratio of sinlgle men 65 or older to single women 65 or older | 0.33 to 1 |
Number of dating service establishments nationwide | 904 |
Average number of marriages annually | 2.16 million |
Catty Remarks