Here’s some promising news to start your summer: In the coming months, most Americans believe they will purchase flowers and/or plants for others (59 percent) and themselves (54 percent) with the same frequency as in the past. That’s according to an Ipsos consumer poll, commissioned by the Society of American Florists and the Floral Marketing Research Fund (FMRF). The findings from that poll, combined with other economic indicators, could help floral industry members chart a sustainable path forward after the first crisis-filled months of the global pandemic, according to industry economist Charlie Hall, PhD, of Texas A&M University, who will dig deeper into the data and share insight on how to plan more successfully for the future, next month during SAF’s Reinvention Summit.
The poll, conducted after Mother’s Day, found only a slight decrease in the number of American adults buying Mother’s Day flowers and plants this year (28 percent) — and a slight increase in their median and average spending per gift ($45, compared to $35 in 2019 and 2018).
The results help give industry-specific context to information released last week from the Commerce Department, which showed that overall retail sales rose 17.7 percent in May — a significant increase that far exceeded most economists’ predictions — but one that is tempered by the nation’s record high unemployment rate of 13.3 percent, with 20 million jobs lost since February. (Retail spending is still down nearly 8 percent compared to February.)