Sales of gifts for Valentine’s Day in February this year fell by half, follows from the data of the analytical resource “Check Index” of the OFD Platform company (studies fiscal data from more than 1.1 million online cash desks in the country).

In early February of this year, the average check for gifts for Valentine’s Day was 590 rubles, which is only 4% lower than in the same period last year, according to the Check Index data. But the frequency of purchases decreased immediately by 57%. We are talking about those products, in the name of which the belonging to the Day of all lovers was indicated, the company explained.

The average check for traditional Valentine’s cards for this holiday was 128 rubles, which is 21% higher than last year. However, the frequency of purchases decreased by 6%.

Russians spent an average of 1680 rubles on bouquets of flowers before the holiday, which is 10% higher than last year. The frequency of purchases decreased by 13%.

The average check for soft toys amounted to 590 rubles, which is 10% higher than last year. The frequency of their purchases before February 14 increased by 10%

Valentine’s Day is becoming less and less romantic holiday, the company’s experts noted. This year, this trend is especially noticeable.

“Like last year, in 2023, in the run-up to Valentine’s Day, consumer demand shows a decline in demand for traditional gift categories, especially in offline retail. The value of this holiday was leveled, some citizens more radically note that it is “not ours,” the company noted.

The growth in sales of some groups of goods before February 14 can be observed online, analysts added. However, in their opinion, this is a consequence of the overall growth in the share of e-commerce, there is no direct connection with the popularity of Valentine’s Day.

Read more in the Izvestia article:

Love passes: the demand for gifts by February 14 has halved