Yesterday, romance was in the air -- and, for retailers, so were big bucks. Whether its members love it the holiday or loathe it, the American public nonetheless opens its collective wallet wide every Feb. 14. In this installment of "By the Numbers," the Daily looks at the past, present, and price of the hearts-and-flowers-holiday.
3,950 Returns for the Google search "I love Valentine's Day"
8,060 Returns for the Google search "I hate Valentine's Day"
550 Age of the oldest known existing valentine (which was written in 1415 and is housed in the manuscript collection of the British Library of London)
$218 Average amount spent for Valentine's day by American males
$146 Average amount spent for Valentine's Day by American females
1 billion Valentine's Day cards sent each year
2.6 billion Christmas cards sent each year
175 million Roses produced for Valentine's Day this year
64% People who say they "wouldn't want to change a thing about their significant other's appearance"
35% Surgeons who say they've done surgical procedures that have been given as gifts
58% Men who planned to buy flowers for this Valentine's Day
18% Men who planned to purchase jewelry for this Valentine's Day
$49.95 Cost of a customized romance novel from YourNovel.com
17 Different customizable romance novels available through the site
70% Amount of YourNovel.com's business that occurs close to Valentine's Day
The statistics cited above come from the Cortez Journal Online, Washington Post The National Retail Federation, The Journal News, Newsweek, Shopping in America, Pitney Bowes, Harlequin Enterprises, and the Society of American Florists.
