Insight from the Prince & Prince U.S. Consumer Floral Tracking Survey

* This consumer research utilizes the latest U.S. household projections for 2015 to 2020 from estimates determined by the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University (McCue, 2014). The research was sponsored by Smithers-Oasis North America (SONA).  P&P sincerely thank SONA for their financial support in making this consumer research possible, providing benefit for the entire floral industry. 

Prince & Prince, Inc. (P&P), a leader in market research focused on the floral and green plant industries, has released a projection for the retail value of U.S. consumer floral purchasing for the upcoming 2017 Valentine's Day holiday (Valentine's Day is Tuesday, February 14th). The P&P U.S. consumer floral aggregate spending projection for Valentine's Day 2017 is $3.3 billion dollars at retail, including all fresh floral products (fresh cut flowers, including arrangements, bouquets, bunches, single stems, and corsages, and indoor potted flowering and foliage plants & planters) and any associated delivery/ handling service fees. This projected market value for Valentine's Day 2017 is similar to P&P's 2016 Valentine's Day market value projection. According to P&P market survey estimates, Valentine's Day is the second largest "floral holiday" for the U.S. floral industry, in terms of consumer dollar spending, second to Mother's Day (P&P's 2016 Mother's Day floral projection was $4 billion; Prince & Prince, 2016). P&P project that for 2017, more than 43 million households in the U.S. will purchase fresh cut flowers (largely roses) and/or potted plants to express emotions for a loved one, significant other, or special person in or out of the household. P&P also project that each purchasing household, on average, will spend about $75 on floral, including all household members making a floral purchase, with associated delivery/ service fees included.

Prince & Prince has been tracking U.S. consumer floral purchasing behavior for Valentine's Day (and for 20+ other holidays, events, and occasions) over the past two decades with their periodic surveys of floral-buying households that are randomly selected throughout the U.S. (over 6,000 surveys completed since the initial survey in 1996, as well as surveys in 2000, 2007, 2010, and 2013; Prince & Prince, 2014a). Thus, P&P is able to identify salient consumer floral-purchasing trends over time for the floral industry. P&P's new update of the consumer floral survey is scheduled for the Summer/ Fall of 2017 (see below). P&P notes that the overall percentage of U.S. floral-buying households making a floral purchase for Valentine's Day, currently at a somewhat high percentage level (projected at 48% purchasing incidence for 2017), has fallen slightly, yet continuously, over the past two decades (Prince & Prince, 2014b; See Figure 1). Although the household purchasing incidence for this holiday has been trending slightly lower with each periodic P&P survey (about a one percentage-point drop over a 3 to 4 year period) the number of households in the U.S. continues to expand annually, at roughly a one-percentage point increase each year (see Figure 2). Thus, for the 2017 P&P floral-market projection, the small growth rate of U.S. households compensated for the slight decline in household purchasing incidence for Valentine's Day, resulting in a stable 2017 projection from 2016 (note that not all households are floral-buying households). However, if members of the floral industry, through more effective marketing, promotion, and advertising, were able to thwart the decline in household purchasing incidence for Valentine's Day, or to effect small increases in purchase incidence, the floral market for Valentine's Day in the U.S. would likely expand more rapidly (e.g. a multiplier effect of increasing purchase incidence and increasing number of households).

The P&P demographic profile of household floral purchasing reveals that younger-aged households (under age 35), and households with teenagers, lead the floral demand trends for Valentine's Day. For the most recent P&P survey, 63% of floral-buying households under the age of 35 made a floral purchase for Valentine's Day, compared to only 38% for those aged 65 or older. Likewise, 58% of floral-buying households with teenagers (about 21% of all floral-buying households in 2013) made a floral purchase for Valentine's Day, compared to only 48% for households without teenagers residing in the household. 2017 P&P Consumer Floral Research Update Prince & Prince is currently seeking research co-sponsors for a 2017 update of the P&P U.S. Consumer Floral Tracking Survey (specific survey content at the P&P web site). Research co-sponsors receive the floral market presentation first thru an on-site seminar with Q&A, and the complete 800+ slide market research presentation on a flash drive. Sponsors also receive exclusivity of the floral market information for a one-year period, following the completion of the research. Interested parties should contact P&P for research sponsorship opportunities.

Literature Cited

McCue, D. (2014). Baseline Household Projections for the Next Decade and Beyond. Joint Center for Housing Studies, Harvard University.

Prince, T.L. and Prince, T.A. (2016). Prince & Prince Forecast a $4 Billion Dollar U.S. Consumer Floral Market for Mother's Day 2016. Columbus, OH: Prince & Prince, Inc. (Press Release).

Prince, T.L. and Prince, T.A. (2014a). The Prince & Prince U.S. Consumer Floral Tracking Survey, 2014 Edition. Columbus, OH: Prince & Prince, Inc (On-Site Seminar and Seminar on Flash).

Prince, T.L. and Prince, T.A. (2014b). Historical Downward Trend in Consumer Floral Purchasing for Valentine's Day: A "Wake-Up" Call for the Industry? Columbus, OH: Prince & Prince, Inc. (P&P Web-Site Market Report).

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