Commentary

Fueling Father's Day

So I was watching TV one day this weekend, as it was cold and rainy in Boston. Not knowing what the heck was playing on a Saturday afternoon, I did a lot of channel surfing. Almost every show had ads dedicated to Father's Day. There was a range from funny singing  greeting cards from Hallmark, to local sporting goods stores to department stores all promoting the holiday next Sunday.

Not to bum you out on a Monday, but I try to avoid these ads. (My dad passed away very young a few years ago.) No matter where I looked -- inserts in the paper, TV, the radio, even in my inbox -- every media seemed dedicated to dads.

Brand Keys conducted a consumer survey and found that 77% of all respondents will be celebrating the occasion (Celebrated in the U.K., Ireland and Canada as well as the U.S.)

So I figured I'd hold my chin up high and do a little research. I wondered if this holiday was a profitable one or not. Surprisingly, much of the information I found was dated back to 2000. Then I found a study from National Retail Federation conducted by BIG Research, the 2007 Father's Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey. According to the study, the average person will spend $98.34 on the holiday, up from $88.80 last year.  

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Of course greeting cards rank high among popular gifts, with nearly 70% of consumers saying they'll mail their dads a card. Father's Day is the fourth-largest day in the greeting card business, following Christmas, Valentine's Day, and Mother's Day.

Other popular items include: apparel (chosen by 37.1%), a gift certificate or gift card (29.9%), consumer electronics or computer-related accessories (17.8%) sporting goods or leisure items (13.9%), tools or appliances (13.6%), and home improvement or gardening tools (12.4%). 

Only 18.7% of survey respondents plan to shop online for Father's Day gifts this year.  More will shop at a department store (34.2%), discount store (28.7%), and specialty stores such as electronics or greeting card stores (29.6%), while 7.3% will shop at a specialty clothing stores.

The majority of shoppers will buy gifts for their father or stepfather (50.1%) this year, but buying for other family members and friends is also popular. More than a fourth of consumers (28%) will buy a gift for their husband, and 7.7%  will splurge on their son. Consumers will also spend on their grandfathers (3.8%), brothers (4.6%) and godfathers (1.1%).   

Based on a recent national survey, Comdata expects Father's Day to represent another great time of year for gift card sales, with 21% more consumers purchasing gift cards for their dads in 2007 than 2006. Packaging is also important, with gift givers stating that while they usually send gift cards in a gift card envelope, unique packaging (like placing a gift card in a toolbox) is unexpected and well-received.

One-quarter of purchasers bought one or more gift cards online. Of those, approximately one-third indicated that this was the first time they had purchased a gift card through the Internet. And one-third of respondents are interested in a gift card that allows them to record a personal message.

Have a Happy Father's Day.

 

 

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