Author: Brian Becker

Love Knows No Bounds

Love Knows No Bounds

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused massive upheavals in consumer spending. As people change the way they gift and spend, our State of Gifting report gives you a look into the changing patterns of consumers during these turbulent times.

Season of Love Gifting Behavior: 2020 vs 2021

Although our lives drastically changed in 2020, we discovered that love is still very much in the air in 2021. Some people sent more gifts this year to more recipients compared with Valentine’s Day last year.

Others planned to ensure their loved ones would receive gifts in time: We saw a 12% increase in early orders. And most notably, we discovered a little extra gifting went a long way — with a 74% increase in 100 premium long-stem roses orders and a 31% increase in add-on-cart items like chocolates and balloons.

We also found that people were very interested in engaging in dialogue and joining the conversations prompted by our brands about how to share appreciation and affection during 2021’s season of love. Plus, we saw a tremendous increase in social media engagement on the topic of love compared with last year.

Love is a Verb

Expressing Our Love Language

Love was top of mind this year.

People sent thoughtful deliveries in all shapes and sizes to show how much they care — many with heart-warming messages to match. These word callouts represent the most popular sentiments delivered with gifts during this and last year’s season of love.

Reinterpreting Love

~6x↑

Increase in eCards sent compared with 2020*

180%↑

Increase in social media engagement compared with 2020

*Here are the most popular sentiments from eCards people chose: “Will you be my Valentine,” “Not-so-secret admirer,” “I love you.”
TAKEAWAY

When couples, families, and friends couldn’t celebrate together, our online community offered opportunities to engage in uplifting conversations about romantic and platonic love. And online gifting provided people creative ways to show how much they care.

Expanding Recipient Lists

People Shared More Love

People celebrated with friends and family — not just their partner.

This year, people celebrated the season of love by increasingly sending gifts to recipients beyond their significant other, including family, friends, classmates, and colleagues. Not to mention we also saw a double-digit rise in first-time 1-800-Flowers gift-givers.

105%↑

Increase in Galentine’s gifts*

70%↑

Increase in Kids Valentine’s gifts**

* Increase in sales with product name “Galentine”.
** Increase in sales of products offered under the “Kids” filter for Valentine’s Day.
TAKEAWAY

More than ever, people uplifted one another and celebrated relationships they may have taken for granted in the past. That’s why this year, people leveled up their gifting game by sending their partner, friends, and family gifts through our brands.

Finding Ways to Celebrate

Gifts Created Experiences

This year, more people had to create their desired outings at home.

We asked our Instagram community to weigh in on what way they would make their Valentine’s Day special this year. With choices ranging from a day out trekking, throwing a big celebration, and sending more gifts, the majority chose to spend it cozy at home (79%).

With limited ways to celebrate, people designed their ideal romantic settings at home. Some recreated restaurant moods, others treated their partner to a personalized gift, and some invested in long-term love-inspired décor.

Compared with 2020

~268%↑

Increase in orders of wine gift packages*

50%↑

Increase in personalized robe sales**

50%↑

Increase in personalized home décor items***

*Harry & David wine gift packages offered under the Valentine’s Day category.
**Orders made via Personalization Mall.
***Increase in orders of “LOVE shelf blocks” via Personalization Mall.
TAKEAWAY

Restaurants and spas may not have been as accessible as usual, but that didn’t stop couples from getting creative and enjoying a romantic night together at home. Proving you can celebrate love anywhere; all it takes is a little planning and creativity.

There are #NoLimitsOnLove in 2021

The data confirms what we always believed. There are #NoLimitsOnLove, even during a global pandemic. This season, we received an overwhelming amount of responses around redefining love. Not to mention over 102,000 combined likes and views on our #NoLimitsOnLove Instagram posts. People made new connections, shared their personal love stories, and exchanged thoughts on the building blocks of a long-lasting relationship.

From grand gestures to cozy nights at home, singles and couples stopped at nothing to show their loved ones how much they care. As we move forward into the future, we hope this trend continues even after things return to normal.

Together, we can put more love into the world.

All data unless otherwise noted is from the 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. family of brands.

Wrapping Up the 2020 Holiday Season

Wrapping Up the 2020 Holiday Season

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused massive upheavals in consumer spending. As people change the way they gift and spend, our State of Gifting report gives you a look into the changing patterns of consumers during these turbulent times.

This word cloud represents the most popular sentiments delivered with gifts during the 2020 holiday season compared to 2019. The bigger the word or phrase, the more it was mentioned in 2020!

Holiday Shopping Behavior:
2020 vs. 2019

With more distance between loved ones and less traffic inside stores, the 2020 holiday season kicked off earlier than ever with a surge in online shopping.

After analyzing more than 70 million online transactions across all our brands-including 1—800 Flowers, Harry & David, Cheryl’s Cookies, and more—we discovered the motivation behind all those extra gifts:

People didn’t just give more gifts to nurture existing relationships, they also did it to make new connections, support those who struggled, and thank those who went beyond the call of duty.

Then we took a deeper look into our database and gleaned the most popular words from 40+ million personal messages that accompanied gifts. We found that, compared with 2019, almost every little note delivered in 2020 expressed bigger sentiments of heartfelt compassion, newfound appreciation, and a desire to reunite with the recipient in 2021.

Presents Replaced Presence

Online gifting increased

Mail-order gifts replaced in-person hugs

Our first report noted a 50% increase in total gifts sent in 2020 prior to the holidays. In early November, that continued. With no office parties, white elephant exchanges, or shared holiday meals in sight, many people sent gifts to stay close with one another and keep the holiday cheer alive virtually.

Compared with 2019…

~11x↑

Increase in gifts sent related to happy hour *

~4x↑

Increase in surprise gifts delivered **

3x↑

Increase in gifts sent to loved ones ***

* Messages that include “Happy hour”
** Messages that include “Surprise you”
*** Messages that include “To my wonderful wife,” “To the best Grandma,” “You are my person,” “Know you are loved,” “I love u so”
TAKEAWAY

When in-person interactions were few and far between, gifts gave people a new way to connect with one another.

Santa’s Longer List

People gifted with us more than ever

The limitations of lockdowns and social distancing helped people gain a new appreciation for others. And come holiday time, it showed.

The challenges of 2020 inspired people to send gifts from us to essential workers, colleagues and clients.

Spreading the love to…

When it came time to give holiday gifts, some people were clearly top of mind.

1.25x↑

Increase in gifts sent to essential workers *

~9x↑

Increase in gifts sent to colleagues and clients **

* Combined percentage-increase in messages for “teacher,” “nanny,” and “nurse”
** Gift type: “business gifts”
TAKEAWAY

2020 helped people value essential workers and colleagues in a new way, so they sent them gifts to say, “Thank you for your hard work!”

Finding Perfect Gifts

The search for gifts began online

With people staying safe at home, window-browsing took place through browser windows.

People searched our brands’ social media posts for ideas, browsed our websites and gift guides, and used our search engines to find the “just right” gift.

People found inspiration on…

~2x↑

We saw nearly twice as many monthly visits and visitors to our Pinterest pages *

85%↑

An increase in website traffic across our brands **

4x↑

And an increase in searches for “Christmas cookie delivery” ***

* Combined Pinterest traffic November-December 2019 to 2020 on 1-800-Flowers and Harry & David Pinterest accounts
** Growth in website traffic across 1-800 Flowers brands in November-December 2019 and 2020
*** A 380% increase in traffic from the search term “Christmas Cookie Delivery” for November-December 2019 and 2020
TAKEAWAY

This year, finding and giving gifts that expressed a specific sentiment was equally as important as the actual gift itself.

Holiday Cheer WFH

People said “goodbye” to office parties and “hello!” to more company gifting

We combed through personal messages and sales data to understand how colleagues and businesses wrapped up the year when celebrating the holidays together wasn’t possible.

Companies and employees gave to…

~4x↑

In messages that talk about being “together again” next year *

~9x↑

In messages saying the sender “can’t wait” to see the recipient **

* Combined percentage increase of messages including: “Thanks for your dedication,” “your leadership this year,” “work and dedication,” “incredible work,” “great boss”
** Percentage increase of messages including: “Wonderful clients like you”
TAKEAWAY

The office may have closed, but the work didn’t stop. Businesses and employees still managed to find ways to keep things moving (Thanks, Zoom!) and show appreciation for all their employees’ extra effort (Thanks, online gifting!).

Comfort Went Virtual

People sent gifts to comfort one another

Holiday traditions and family gatherings bring feelings of comfort and nostalgia. But in 2020, public health regulations didn’t allow large groups to be together, so instead people sent gifts to comfort their friends and loved ones.

‘Tis the season to be comfortable…

We saw a big rise in gifts from the comfort category, including delicious meals, scented lotions, soft blankets, calming candles, and other comfy gifts.

~3x↑

Increase in gifts sent containing comfort food *

~9x↑

Increase in gifts labeled as “comfort” gifts **

* Messages that included “some comfort food”
** Increase in gifts labeled with the word “comfort” at 1-800-Flowers.com.
TAKEAWAY

In 2020, it was clear that people found comfort in gifts. That means, when we can finally be together again, we’ll feel a new level of comfy cozy we’ve never experienced before.

Looking Forward

We all hope 2021 will be a year of reunion

While 2020 was hard, it gave us time to look within ourselves and ask not what we can take, but what we can give. If 2021 turns into the year of reunion we hope it will be, we can expect everyone to come back with more expressions of gratitude, stronger connections, and bigger celebrations.

This word cloud represents sentiments of togetherness delivered with gifts during the 2020 holiday season. The bigger the word or phrase, the more it was mentioned!
TAKEAWAY

This past year revealed that the greatest gift we can give in 2021 goes beyond a bouquet of flowers or a box of chocolates. What people truly want to give are the sentiments behind the gifts — the feelings of togetherness they missed because of the pandemic.

All data unless otherwise noted is from the 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. family of brands.

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