On the eve of Valentine’s Day, men outnumbered women when it comes to V-Day gifting. According to a survey across the country by IGP, India’s leading D2C gifting site, the average order value for gifts in 2022 was Rs 1,000, a significant rise from pre-Covid days when it was Rs 890.
The survey showed that the non-binary segment is also making its presence felt, 1 per cent of all customers. IGP survey showed that during Valentine’s week in 2022, about 5 lakh flower stems were sold, with roses being the most popular, constituting 70 per cent of the total stems. In addition to flowers, people also preferred gifting chocolates and teddy bears.
The most popular hamper consisted of a combination of flowers and chocolates, constituting 40 per cent of total orders, hampers with teddies constituted 30 per cent, and other categories made up the rest of the 30 per cent.
“Even though Valentine’s Day is a relatively new addition to the calendar of events in India when compared to a plethora of festivals and occasions celebrated throughout the year, the festival has caught on like wildfire, and people in India have embraced the day as an opportunity to express love and affection to their partners, and the same is reflected in our analysis,” said Tarun Joshi, founder and CEO, IGP.
IGP recorded a record traffic of 50 lakh visitors looking to buy gifts on Valentine’s Week 2022.
The Indian market has seen Valentine’s grow into a multi-million dollar industry, with people spending lavishly on gifts and experiences to show their love and Metro cities, especially are taking the lead. Additional analysis stated that customers in metros cities such as Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Chennai purchased nearly 200 per cent more gifts than in 2019.
Among metro cities, residents of Delhi-NCR shop the maximum number of Valentine’s Day gifts. According to the latest data for 2022 by IGP, Delhi buys twice as many gifts as Mumbai or Bengaluru. Delhi is not just the capital of online gifts but also of flowers. People buy as many flowers as Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad combined, the survey pointed out.
IGP also revealed that 80 per cent of custoners book their Valentine’s gifts on the same day or a day prior. This has prompted the platform to introduce a new range of personalised products with a same-day delivery guarantee as part of Valentine’s collection 2023.