When business falls in love

The legend has it that a clergyman from ancient Rome, St. Valentine, was executed by the Emperor for marrying off runaway couples. To this day, February 14th is remembered with as much fervour and joy in memory of this kind-hearted Saint. And when it comes to business, Valentines day has much to offer. The following data could be useful to young entrepreneurs who have a lot of opportunities during the festival of love. The statistics are from the US. But I am showing this with the belief that Consumer behaviour should be the same everywhere.

Top Ways to Celebrate Valentine’s Day

Household participation rates

Greeting Cards	65%	Plush	21%
Date Night	44%	Other Gifts	17%
Candy	38%	Perfume/Cologne	12%
Flowers	32%	Jewelry	11%
Gift Cards	29%

Sources: Hallmark/Retail Industry Leaders Association/NRF

Valentine’s Cards
180 million
Number of Valentine’s Day cards exchanged annually, making Valentine’s Day the second-most popular greeting-card-giving occasion. (This total excludes packaged kids valentines for classroom exchanges.) (Source: Hallmark research)

Nearly 50 percent
Typically, the proportion of all Valentine’s Day cards purchased in the six days prior to the observance, making Valentine’s Day a procrastinator’s delight. (Source: Hallmark research)

About 40%
Proportion of all Valentine card purchases which parents account for. (Source: Hallmark research.)

Candy is Dandy

1,271
Number of locations producing chocolate and cocoa products in 2003. These establishments employed 43,379 people. California led the nation in the number of such establishments (with 146) followed by Pennsylvania (with 120). <http://www.census.gov/prod/www/abs/cbptotal.html>

519
Number of locations that produced nonchocolate confectionary products in 2003. These establishments employed 23,343 people. <http://www.census.gov/prod/www/abs/cbptotal.html>

$13.5 billion
Total value of shipments in 2003 for firms producing chocolate and cocoa products. Nonchocolate confectionery product manufacturing, meanwhile, was a $5.5 billion industry. <http://www.census.gov/prod/ec02/am0331gs1.pdf>

3,523
Number of confectionery and nut stores in the United States in 2003. Often referred to as candy stores, they are among the best sources of sweets for Valentine’s Day. <http://www.census.gov/prod/www/abs/cbptotal.html>

24.7 pounds
Per capita consumption of candy by Americans in 2004. Candy consumption has actually declined over the last few years; in 1997, each American gobbled or savored more than 27 pounds of candy a year. <http://www.census.gov/industry/1/ma311d04.pdf>

Flowers
$422 million
The combined wholesale value of domestically produced cut flowers in 2004 for all flower-producing businesses in 36 states with $100,000 or more in sales. Among states, California was the leading producer, alone accounting for nearly three-quarters of this amount ($304 million). <http://www.nass.usda.gov>

$43 million
The combined wholesale value of domestically produced cut roses in 2004 for all businesses in 36 states with $100,000 or more in sales. Among all types of cut flowers, roses were second in receipts to lilies ($78 million). <http://www.nass.usda.gov>

22,022
The number of florists nationwide in 2003. These businesses employed 113,270 people. <http://www.census.gov/prod/www/abs/cbptotal.html>

Jewelry
28,527
Number of jewelry stores in the United States in 2003. Jewelry stores offer engagement, wedding and other rings to lovers of all ages. In February 2005, these stores sold $2.4 billion worth of merchandise. (This figure has not been adjusted for seasonal variation, holiday or trading day differences or price changes.) <http://www.census.gov/prod/www/abs/cbptotal.html> <http://www.census.gov/mrts/www/mrts.html>

The merchandise at these locations could well have been produced at one of the nation’s 1,892 jewelry manufacturing establishments. The manufacture of jewelry was an $8.6 billion industry in 2003. <http://www.census.gov/prod/www/abs/cbptotal.html> <http://www.census.gov/prod/ec02/am0331gs1.pdf>