Flowers remained a sought-after gift choice among consumers this Mother’s Day — and proved especially popular among adults aged 54 and younger, Americans with higher incomes and households with children.
Those are just some of the findings from a new consumer poll commissioned last month by Ipsos on behalf of the Society of American Florists. The poll found that about one in three American adults bought cut flowers or plants as a Mother’s Day gift this year.
That percentage is similar to results in 2018 (33 percent), and a slight decrease from 2017 (35 percent) and 2015 (35 percent). The survey also found that the median amount spent on flowers as gifts for Mother’s Day in 2019 was $35, similar to 2018 at $35.
Other highlights from the survey include:
MVP Customers: Families, Affluent Households, College-Educated Buyers
Adults aged 54 or younger were more likely to buy flowers for Mother’s Day (36 percent) than their counterparts 55 or older (21 percent). In addition, households with incomes of $50,000 or more (36 percent) were more likely to have bought flowers than those with incomes under $50,000 (23 percent). Households with children were more likely to have bought flowers for Mother’s Day than those without children (49 percent and 24 percent respectively).
Americans with a college degree were more likely to purchase cut flowers than non-grads (85 percent and 76 percent respectively), while those without a college degree were more likely to purchase container plants than their college educated peers (45 percent and 35 percent respectively).
Overall, about two in three Americans who purchased flowers for Mother’s Day in 2019 said they purchased the flowers for the mother (64 percent) and about three in 10 purchased the flowers for their spouse (27 percent). Those numbers are in line with 2018 findings.
Popular Selections: Cut Flowers Reign
Eighty percent of the flowers or plants purchased as a gift for Mother’s Day were cut flowers. Other popular floral gifts include outdoor bedding, garden, or container plants (40 percent) and flowering household plants (37 percent).
The types of flowers purchased in 2019 follow a similar trend to that in 2018 and earlier years. Cut flowers have continued to be the most popular type of floral product purchase; purchased by eight in 10 floral purchasers in 2018 (83 percent). Outdoor bedding, garden, or container plants continues to be the second most popular floral purchase, purchased by four in 10 floral purchasers in 2018 (43 percent).
Looking at the data by demographics, cut flowers were the most popular floral gift for Mother’s Day for both men (84 percent) and women (77 percent).
Venues of Choice: Supermarkets Still Lead, Wholesale Clubs Gain Ground
Supermarkets and grocery stores continue to be the leading outlet for purchasing Mother’s Day floral gifts, used by nearly two in five Americans who purchased flowers; that percentage is significantly lower than 2018 (48 percent). Meanwhile, wholesale clubs (19 percent) were significantly more popular than in 2018 (13 percent).
Twenty-three percent purchased floral products from a garden center, greenhouse, or nursery, which is slightly higher than in 2018 (20 percent). Fifteen percent said they bought from a local retail florist, compared to 21 percent in 2018.
In a separate survey of its retail florist members, the Society of American Florists found that 62 percent of respondents experienced a sales increase this Mother’s Day. Read more.
Mary Westbrook is the editor in chief of Floral Management
