Mother’s Day!
By Conner Neustadt
Mothers Day! The one day out of the year were you give gifts for your mother because of all the things that you put her through over your life time. Or the day you forget Mother’s Day and quickly make something homemade in your room because you don’t want to be that horriable son or daughter that forgot Mother’s Day. But from a 2013 statsic from the website The Week, 36% of moms who would prefer to receive something homemade.
On to the economics of Mother’s Day, the average revenue of Mother’s Day is be about $20.7 billion, will be the amount Americans will spend this Mother's Day, according to the National Retail Federation's Mother's Day spending survey. With the gifts of Mother’s Day coming from flowers, candy, or something personal the opportunity cost of the gifts will be the deciding factor of Mother’s Day.
Flowers being the top gift in Mother’s Day consumers will be more willing to buy flowers in May because it’s the perfect season too. Causing the supply of flowers to go up, and the price to go up also. From the economics of flowers on Mother’s Day from Smartassets.com, “Mother’s Day, which command 25% of the holiday market share each with close to $1.9 billion worth of cut flowers sold.”
So, with the main markets of Mother’s Day producers will increase their surplus of cards, flowers, candy’s and products. In fact, About 133 million Mother’s Day cards are exchanged annually, according to Hallmark.
"The economics of Mother's Day: By the numbers." The Week - All you need to know about everything that matters. The Week Magazine, 08 May 2013. Web. 02 May 2017.
Silady, Alex. "The Economics of Flowers: A Mother’s Day Must?" SmartAsset. Alex Silady , 03 May 2016. Web. 02 May 2017.
"The Incredible Economics of Mother’s Day." The Incredible Economics of Mother’s Day | Democratic Party of DuPage County. DuPage County, 17 Apr. 2016. Web. 02 May 2017.
Mother's day definitely has an impact on the economy. Whether it is a little more paper and glue being purchased or flowers, as mentioned, or even jewelry or cards. By increasing the demand for these products, the price is driven up which helps suppliers to bring in even more money. Almost everyone sees the opportunity cost of a few dollars minimal in comparison to making their mom happy.
ReplyDeleteFrom experience I've noticed that Mothers do prefer something that is homemade rather than bought that the store. But what I have also noticed is they Mothers tend to like when you actually put thought into a gift that you have gotten. I feel the opportunity cost is either, use your own time to figure out a gift or go to the store and buy something. I believe that much of these statistics are correct but I also feel it varies depending on the Mother.
ReplyDeleteI never realized that the average revenue for Mother's Day was $20.7 billion. I think that you also have to think about mom's with young kids and no money. The mom gives the kid her money and they buy her a watch or something. I also think that the percentage of mom's who want homemade gifts should be higher especially if they are the ones paying for their gifts. For flower shops Mother's day is a great way to bring in revenue and it's the perfect season for it. Also the cards is a different topic in itself. People start to send less and less cards as the tech. increases. Now people send shutout's and just say happy mother's day on Facebook.
ReplyDeleteIt makes sense that the price of flowers rises tremendously as the demand for them is so great. Why do people continue to buy flowers on Mother's Day even though the prices soar so high? Giving flowers has been a way of showing appreciation/love for as long as anyone can remember. Even though there is no way to replicate the beauty of the women you are giving them to, flowers are as close as it gets. The benefit of showing appreciation for everything your mother has done for you outweighs the cost of the stretched price you pay for them.
ReplyDeleteThe cost of flowers doesn't really matter around this day. I feel like no matter how high the price gets, it will not change consumer taste as it is a norm to purchase flowers upon Mother's Day. However, I am surprised the price has not dropped for flowers if mothers prefer homemade gifts in the first place. With all the upcoming creativity, the future may change as homemade gifts become more of a norm rather than the typical flowers.
ReplyDeleteMother's Day is an ideal time of year for suppliers. They essentially can increase prices as much as they want, and customers will still purchase their goods because the opportunity cost of paying a little extra is worth it for a loved one. Flowers are definitely a staple, but lately I have seen a lot of jewelry adds and promotions around town and on the radio. If you have young kids, I think you generally spend less money on Mother's Day because the kids can create crafts and make their Mother breakfast in bed, where as when you get older and you might not be in town on Mother's Day, you're more likely to send her jewelry or flowers or something with more substantial cost.
ReplyDeleteMother’s Day, like any other Hallmark holiday, seems like a time for people to buy cards and flowers to celebrate their mothers. And while this is true, like you mentioned, more mothers prefer homemade cards and gifts (at least when their child is young) to store bought gifts. With this as a known truth, I don’t think the revenue from Mother’s Day can really be that much, because people are making their own gifts. I would say that the flower industry sees the largest gain from Mother’s day, as it is hard to make your own flowers. This is why even when the price gets really high for flowers, people still buy them because of the high demand for the holiday.
ReplyDeleteThe price of flowers increasing is no surprise also sellers can get away with the rise in price on this day because no matter what people are going to buy flowers if that was their plan. What did surprise me what the amount of money that people put into Mothers day especially if mothers would rather be getting homemade things. It how make sense for flower prices to drop though if more and more people make gifts because then the sellers market is small making sellers do what they have to to get people to purchase their flowers.
ReplyDeleteI feel like Mother's day does contribute to the rising flower costs, but also the good weather that we have in May. Nurseries are starting to reopen again for the summer season which will also contribute to the flower increase. I liked the statistic about 36% of moms want something homemade. I always make my mom a homemade card and now in the past couple of years I have been able to buy her something with the money I earn from my job. I feel like making something homemade is more personal and sentimental than buying something.
ReplyDeleteNot only are purchasable items including candy, flowers or cards is high demand, the restaurant business must be in high demand for employees. When I worked at a restaurant, this was one of the only Sundays the restaurant was open because of how much business there was on Mother’s Day. Like all holidays, Mother’s Day involves spending which is great for the overall economy if consumers are buying and producers are selling. Even though homemade things aren’t as expensive as store bought items, supplies could still be bought to make these types of things. From my experience, many families celebrate Mother’s Day by going out that weekend. This too will boost the economy.
ReplyDeleteI never thought about how much the economy gains when Mother's Day or even Father's Day come around. I think if the prices for Mother's Day flowers increase, it won't change the consumer decisions to getting flowers for their mother. I didn't realize that 36% of moms would prefer having a homemade gift. I thought the percentage would be lower. During this time a lot of businesses profits increase at a faster rate due to all the men taking their kids out to get their mom a gift, but I guess it kind of makes you wonder how many people do get their moms something homemade instead of purchasing something at the store. Just imagine how much more revenue Mother's Day would create to the businesses around the country.
ReplyDeleteFlowers are something that people buy occasionally and for special occasions, so if the price is high they either won't notice it or won't mind. Sellers could definitely get away with boosting prices of flowers on Mother's Day because no matter the price kids and husbands are going to want to bring them home for their mother or wife. What does matter is the quality of the flower and the demand for the type of flower. For example, if sellers were to put out a bunch of roses and expect high sales they'd be out a lot of money because children are wanting to buy colorful flowers like lilies and tulips for their mom. Flowers like roses are romantic and not as appealing to children who are most likely the ones picking out the flowers.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting to me how we have so many hallmark holidays such as mothers day, fathers day, valentines day etc... which people are so willing to give up time and money and buy into the idea there is some significant value with them. Not only have the hallmark holidays grown out of proportion, but many real holidays are also becoming more and more commercialized. Examples of these hare Christmas, Easter, Independence day, all of which have turned from simple celebrations with friends and family towards buying each other gifts and spending absurd amounts of money. Mothers day is no exception to this. The holiday made up not too long ago is nice in nature, but it is needless to say it is utterly pointless to buy expensive gifts and flowers. Simply spending time with family should be sufficient to celebrate mothers day.
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It is awesome to see how much the United States spends on mothers Day it shows that people care about their mothers. Mothers is a key part of life they bring us all into this world and that is huge they raise us and teach us so that we can be very successful. Without a mother it is hard to learn and get through life. I am not surprised by the number of money spent on flowers because that is a big gift to give mother and mothers day and probably every mother gets at least one set of flowers maybe even more.
ReplyDeleteI can see how cards, chocolates and flowers are in such high demand around Mother's Day, but I bet restaurants and jewelry stores also get an increase in revenue from Mother's Day. A lot of families get together to go out for a Mother's Day brunch or dinner, and that brings a lot of business to restaurants and causes them to need to be fully staffed and prepared. Also, jewelry can be a common gift on Mother's Day, so I'm sure that jewelry stores are very busy in the week or two leading up to Mother's Day and must therefore have a large staff prepared for all the business they will receive. I agree that cards, chocolate and flowers would be in high demand, due to their popularity around Mother's Day and for the flowers the May weather contributes a lot, but in addition restaurants and jewelry stores get an increase in revenue.
ReplyDeleteStores are definitely stocking up for the holiday, with a large amount of profit coming from last minute shoppers. Producers of flowers and cards will definitely see an increase in sales, especially from older consumers, as they are less likely to home make their gifts. I agree that this is an optimal time of year for this holiday due to the surplus of flowers available.
ReplyDeleteLike valentines day and Easter, Mothers day is catered to a specific market. Although 36% of moms prefer a homemade gift many children or dads don't know this and feel like their gift wont be good enough if it is homemade. This is one of the reasons the revenue of mothers day is so large. The other is that everyone has a mom, in one way shape or form. This is different from valentines day or Easter because not everyone has a significant other or are Christians.
ReplyDeleteHallmark holidays are a really smart idea. I've never though of why hallmarks are a thing because some of them are kinda dumb so some people. Hallmark Holidays are a total grower of the economy, so many people calibrate and buy things for themselves or others on these days. When holidays come around they get smart and raise prices on the items sold on that special day, and them dropping the prices after the holiday is really smart to because a lot of people go for the deals. You used the vocabulary in a very creative way and it flowed very well.
ReplyDeleteObviously people will spend money on things for Mother's Day, that's nothing new. And stores have every right to push this holiday cause they know they'll make good money around this time selling things like flowers and jewelry. I can definitely see how mom's would want something homemade rather than store bought. It's very easy to go out and just buy something cause it's pretty. But putting thought and love into a gift is harder, thus why mother's like homemade things--it's unique to them and shows how much their child appreciates them. I've always just made my mom something so that way I don't have to spend money for it and it's a more caring way of doing things. In the end though it really just depends on the person and their preference of doing things. But in the end stores will continue to sell things targeted to Mother's Day cause it's easy to make money off it cause there will always be people who buy into it.
ReplyDeleteOne thing you mentioned was the increase of flower purchases during this time. Adding on to that, people buy flowers mainly for special occasions. So since mother's day has such a high demand for flowers, I think producers could get away with increases the prices of flowers around this time. Reason being, most people don't pay attention to the price. They go to the store to buy flowers and even if the price is high they still are going to buy the flowers because people like to participate in traditions.
ReplyDeleteAs some have mentioned above, the price of flowers is more inelastic. With mother's day around the corner, the prices can increase without to be of a decrease in demand. With this, chocolate and cards will also have a large increase in demand. I think it would be very interesting to see how the sales of these good increase during mother's day and how it compares to other holidays.
ReplyDeleteThere is no question flower shops love mothers day. Flowers and chocolate are the go to to buy for your mom. I honestly have no idea what else I would get my mom, and i'm sure a lot of other guys are the same way, I mean we have no idea what to get girls, but flowers always seem to go well.
ReplyDeleteI am no expert on the topic, but it is my belief that flower shops would not exist if Mother's day was not a holiday. On Mother's day, the flower shops see an overall increase in prices, as well as an increase in revenues. The revenue attained by flower shops over the week before Mother's day is probably their black Friday, except instead of lowered prices the cost of flowers increases dramatically.
ReplyDeleteMoms love receiving homemade gifts but flowers are always a plus. I think it would of been interesting if you added a chart of the impact that flowers and others good have on the economy on this special day.It also would of been interesting to see how it compares to other hallmark holidays to see and compare to which holiday people buy more supplies on.
ReplyDeleteI was actually surprised that only 36 percent of moms want homemade gifts. That it would be more than that, however I'm not surprised that flowers are bought so much since it's one of the easiest to gifts to buy. It's clear how much of a boost mother's day gives to flower shops most likely similar to Valentine's day.
ReplyDeleteUntil now, I never really thought about how much flower prices go up during this time and why. Previously, I always thought they would be more expensive during the winter seasons because they are less available. However, seeing how much people spend on mothers day, it makes sense that the suppliers would up their prices in the spring, especially when people are getting excited about the warm weather and fresh air. It would be interesting to compare the difference in the amount of flowers bought for Valentine's Day and Mother's Day because I would assume the number is very high for both these holidays.
ReplyDeleteI am shocked that only 36% of mother's like to receive homemade gifts as you would think those are the gifts they appreciate the most I do understand why people spend so much when it comes to mother's day as mom do so much for not only their kids but for everyone. I was not surprised to see that flowers are the most commonly bought gift considering mother's day always is in the spring and flowers always give a nice gesture.
ReplyDeleteIt's weird that all mothers wouldn't want something homemade. Only 36% would want something made by hand. I wonder what drives them to want something not made by their own children. Besides that fact 20.7 billion dollars is a lot of money in just a short amount of time. I wonder what holiday has the most cards and candy purchased.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting that Mother's day brings in this much revenue because it is more popular statistically than father's day. Apparently people are willing to spend 40% more on Mother's day than Father's day. This might be due to the goods available for Mother's day like expensive Jewelry.
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