The UK Valentine's Day 2025 report forms part of the Retail Occasions series, and offers a comprehensive overview of the major retail occasion of Valentine's Day. The report analyses the market, the major players, the main trends and consumer attitudes.
This year, consumers opted to splash out for Valentine's Day. Over two thirds of Valentine's Day shoppers spent more on the occasion this year than in 2024. Gifting rebounded in popularity as consumers felt more at ease to indluge for the occasion, though food & drink gifting remains the favoured method to celebrate, leisure spend rose to its highest level since 2021 as consumers supplemented spend on gifts with meals out and events.
This year, consumers opted to splash out for Valentine's Day. Over two thirds of Valentine's Day shoppers spent more on the occasion this year than in 2024. Gifting rebounded in popularity as consumers felt more at ease to indluge for the occasion, though food & drink gifting remains the favoured method to celebrate, leisure spend rose to its highest level since 2021 as consumers supplemented spend on gifts with meals out and events.
Key Highlights
- Spending on Valentine's Day has risen as consumers feel more financially secure.
- Gifting popularity has surged this year, with 6 out of 10 Valentine's Day shoppers purchasing this category in 2025
- Spending on leisure reached its highest level since 2021 as consumers felt confident to splash out on takeaways and meals out to celebrate.
Reasons to Buy
- Identify the key retailers used by consumers to purchase Valentine's Day products across various categories, and what drives consumers to shop with these retailers.
- Understand the most popular Valentine's Day categories shopped for by consumers in 2025.
- Understand which channels used by consumers are the most popular when shopping for Valentine's Day products.
Table of Contents
- KEY FINDINGS
- Summary of Valentine's Day 2025
- The key findings
- Consumers feel more financially secure to treat their loved ones this Valentine's Day
- Consumers favour convenient gifting options to celebrate Valentine’s Day with loved ones
- Desire to spend on leisure grows in 2025 as consumers feel comfortable to splurging on the occasion
- Trend insight - stores
- Trend insight - online
- CONSUMER ATTITUDES
- Buying dynamics
- Financial wellbeing
- Valentine's Day spending
- Financial spending
- Who shoppers bought for
- Valentine's Day activities
- Meal choices
- Takeaway cuisines
- Dining in choices
- Valentine's Day statements
- Retailer selection
- Retailer ratings - grocers
- Retailer ratings - non-food retailers
- Retailer drivers by category
- FOOD & DRINK
- Buying dynamics
- Retailer selection
- Channel usage
- Store type
- Device usage
- Fulfilment
- Spending
- Buying dynamics
- GIFTING
- Buying dynamics
- Retailer selection
- Channel usage
- Store type
- Device usage
- Fulfilment
- Spending
- Planned/Impulse Purchases
- Personalisation
- CARDS & GIFT WRAP
- Buying dynamics
- Retailer selection
- Channel usage
- Store type
- Device usage
- Fulfilment
- Spending
- Planned/Impulse Purchases
- Personalisation
- METHODOLOGY
- Technical details: consumer survey work
- Retailer ratings across key measures - grocers, 2025
- Retailer ratings across key measures - non-food retailers, 2025
- Percentage point change - top 10 retailers shopped at for Valentine's Day food & drink, 2024 to 2025
- Percentage point change - top 10 retailers most shopped at for Valentine's Day food & drink, 2024 to 2025
- Percentage point change - top 10 retailers consumers switched to for Valentine's Day food & drink, 2024 to 2025
- Products purchased, sweet products, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, meat & meat-free alternatives, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, alcoholic drinks, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, fruit & vegetables, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, breakfast foods, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, frozen foods, 2025
- Products purchased, non-alcoholic drinks, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, fish, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, delicatessen products, 2024 & 2025
- Products bought on impulse, 2024 & 2025
- Percentage point change - top 10 retailers shopped at for Valentine's Day gifts, 2024 to 2025
- Products purchased, food & drink gifts, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, food & drink gifts, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, flowers & plants, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, flowers & plants, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, fine jewellery & watches, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, fine jewellery & watches, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, clothing, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, clothing, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, health & beauty, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, health & beauty, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, accessories & footwear, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, accessories & footwear, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, soft toys, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, soft toys, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, experience, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, homewares, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, homewares, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, stationery, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, stationery, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, entertainment, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, entertainment, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, vouchers & money, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, electricals, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, electricals, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, books, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, books, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, sports, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, sports, 2024 & 2025
- Gift products bought on impulse, 2024 & 2025
- Gift products personalised, 2024 & 2025
- Average spend on cards & gift wrap, 2024 & 2025
- Percentage point change - top 10 retailers shopped at for Valentine's Day cards & gift wrap, 2024 to 2025
- Products purchased, cards, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, cards, 2024 & 2025
- Products purchased, gift wrap, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers used, gift wrap, 2024 & 2025
- Cards & gift wrap products bought on impulse, 2024 & 2025
- Consumers shopping for Valentine's Day, by gender and age, 2025
- Top five Valentine's Day activities undertaken, 2025
- Most purchased gifting categories, 2025
- Top retailers shopped at for cards & gift wrap, 2025
- Proportion of consumers that agreed with the statement 'Valentine's Day is an important celebration for me', 2025
- Proportion of Valentine's Day shoppers that spent more on Valentine's Day this year than last year, 2025
- Highest rated grocers, 2025
- Valentine's Day dining in choices, 2025
- Valentine’s Day participation penetration, 2023, 2024 & 2025
- Valentine’s Day shopper penetration, 2023, 2024 & 2025
- Valentine’s Day shopper profile, 2025
- Valentine’s Day retail penetration, 2023, 2024 & 2025
- Valentine’s Day leisure penetration, 2023, 2024 & 2025
- Financial wellbeing compared to last year, 2024 & 2025
- Valentine's Day spending compared to last year, 2024 & 2025
- How consumers financed Valentine's Day spending compared to last year, 2024 & 2025
- How consumers split Valentine's Day spending between retail & leisure, 2025
- Who consumers spent money on for Valentine's Day, 2024 & 2025
- Valentine's Day activities undertaken, 2025
- Valentine’s Day meal choices, 2025
- Valentine’s Day takeaway cuisines, 2024 & 2025
- Valentine’s Day dining in choices, 2024 & 2025
- Agreement and disagreement with statements about Valentine’s Day 2025, and change on 2024
- Which retailer did the best job of promoting or communicating deals for Valentine’s Day 2025, and change on 2024
- What’s driving retailer selection - summary, 2025
- Food & drink penetration, 2023, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers shopped at for food & drink, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers most shopped at for food & drink, 2024 & 2025
- What’s driving food & drink retailer selection 2025, and change on 2024
- Consumers switching from their usual main food & drink retailer, 2023, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers consumers switched to, 2024 & 2025
- Consumers using each channel for food & drink, 2025
- Consumers using each physical store type for food & drink, 2025
- Consumers using each device for food & drink purchases, 2025
- Consumers using each fulfilment option for food & drink, 2024 & 2025
- Valentine’s Day food & drink average spend 2025, and change on 2024
- Sweet products penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Meat & meat-free alternatives penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Alcoholic drinks penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Fruit & vegetables penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Breakfast foods penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Frozen foods penetration, 2025 (by demographic)
- Non-alcoholic drinks penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Fish penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Delicatessen products penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Planned/impulse purchases, food & drink, 2025
- Gifting overall penetration, 2023, 2024 & 2025
- Retailers shopped at for gifts, 2024 & 2025
- What’s driving gifts retailer selection 2025, and change on 2024
- Consumers using each channel for gifts, 2025
- Consumers using each physical store type for gifts, 2025
- Consumers using each device for gifts purchases, 2025
- Consumers using each fulfilment option for gifts, 2024 & 2025
- Valentine's Day gifts average spend 2025, and change on 2024
- Food & drink gifts penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Flowers & plants penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Fine jewellery & watches penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Clothing penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Health & beauty penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Accessories & footwear penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Soft toys penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Experience gifts penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Homewares penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Stationery penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Entertainment penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Vouchers & money penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Electricals penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Books penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Sports penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Planned/impulse purchases, gifts, 2025
- Personalised products, gifts, 2024 & 2025
- Cards & gift wrap penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Retailers shopped at for cards & gift wrap, 2024 & 2025
- What's driving cards and gift wrap retailer selection 2025, and change on 2024
- Consumers using each channel for cards & gift wrap, 2025
- Consumers using each physical store type for cards & gift wrap, 2025
- Consumers using each device for cards & gift wrap purchases, 2025
- Consumers using each fulfilment option for cards & gift wrap, 2024 & 2025
- Cards penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Gift wrap penetration, 2025 (by demographic) and 2023 & 2024 penetration
- Planned/impulse purchases, cards & gift wrap, 2025
- Proportion of consumers that personalised cards, 2024 & 2025
Companies Mentioned (Partial List)
A selection of companies mentioned in this report includes, but is not limited to:
- Adidas
- Aldi
- Amazon
- Apple
- Argos
- ASDA
- ASOS
- B&M
- Beauty Bay
- Boots
- Card Factory
- Clintons
- Co-op
- Costco
- Currys
- Dunelm
- Flying Tiger
- GAME
- Goldsmiths
- H&M
- H. Samuel
- HMV
- Hobbycraft
- Home Bargains
- IKEA
- JD Sports
- John Lewis & Partners
- Lidl
- Marks & Spencer
- Matalan
- Moonpig
- Morrisons
- Mountain Warehouse
- New Balance
- Nike
- Pandora
- Poundland
- Primark
- Sainsbury's
- SHEIN
- Space NK
- Superdrug
- Swarovski
- Tesco
- The Body Shop
- The Book People
- The Fragrance Shop
- The Perfume Shop
- The Range
- The Works
- Tiffany & co.
- TK Maxx
- Very
- Victoria's Secret
- Waitrose & Partners
- Warren James
- Waterstones
- WH Smith
- Zara
- Zavvi
