Britain’s dads get set for 200 million worth of spoiling this Sunday

Father’s Day is fast approaching – and as consumers across the UK plan the perfect present, new research from Mintel (Gifts and Greeting Cards – UK- 2013 report) finds Britain’s dads are on track to be spoiled this Sunday as Mintel forecasts they will be the beneficiary of a massive £200 million worth of gifts on Father’s Day.

Last year almost two in ten (18%) Brits bought their dad a gift on his special day, while just under a third (30%) of the nation sent a Father’s Day card.  Proving an unpopular choice for Father’s Day – vouchers will not be high on the agenda this Sunday, indeed, last year just 3% of Brits chose these as a gift for their dad.

Jane Westgarth, Senior Retail Analyst at Mintel, said:

“We may be stretched financially, but the nation is still keen to spoil dad on Father’s Day. While Father’s Day is relatively newer than Mother’s Day, the nation is keen to embrace dad’s special day. Remembering mother, father and a special loved one remain key events on the greetings calendar because these are all highly charged with emotion for the givers and the receivers. As a result they appear less vulnerable to changing habits.”

Meanwhile, Britain’s mums enjoy more indulgence on their special day. Almost one in two (45%) Brits send their mum a card on Mother’s Day, while almost three in ten (27%) Brits buy their mum a gift on her special day. Mintel estimates total spend on Mother’s Day in the UK to be around £400 million.

Research looking at the gifts and greetings cards market in the UK, shows the number of people who never buy greetings cards has risen dramatically, up from 5% in 2006 to almost one in five (17%) in 2013. Despite a reduction in the number of card purchasers for the majority of occasions, Mother’s Day (up from 42% in 2006 to 45% in 2013), and Valentine’s Day (up from 25% in 2006 to 32% in 2013) appear to be holding up, but many other occasions have seen a fall in numbers of purchasers. The number of Brits sending Father’s Day cards has remained more or less stable at 32% in 2006 compared to 30% in 2012.

The top three occasions for which consumers bought greetings cards in the last year are Birthdays (77%), Christmas (66%) and Mother’s Day (45%).

But as the number of people not buying greetings cards continues to rise, so too does the choice in which they can communicate their greeting.  Indeed, one in ten (19%) greetings card buyers say they have sent a greetings message by text, email or via a social network instead of paying for a card and 14% of greetings card buyers have sent free e-cards instead of paying for a card.  But it seems the rise of technology is not replacement for the greeting card just yet – while more than one in ten (12%) say they have cut down on the number of paper cards sent in the last year or two to save money, just 2% of Brits say that they have cut down on the number of paper cards they send because they prefer to send e-cards.

“This is a market driven by bonding, showing affection and expressing feelings towards others. But in today’s world of instant communications the conventional greetings card is being joined by a plethora of new ways to affirm these emotions. While, for now, many consumers stay loyal to the old-fashioned card through the letterbox, the signs are that things will change. The card and gift retailers of today need to move with the times, embracing change and innovation in order to remain relevant to tomorrow’s consumer.” Jane concludes.