(Guest Post)
Mums do a lot for us throughout our lives, whether we’re still living at home or have long since moved out. So they always deserve an extra special treat on Mother’s Day. If you’re looking for that perfect gift, what should you be buying and how much are we spending as a nation?
A bit of a splurge
Mums definitely win out in the battle of the parents. According to the Infographic, Cost of Celebrations, from financial specialists Baines & Ernst, overall for Mother’s Day we’ll spend £1.5 billion. However, dads only get £1 billion spent on them for Father’s Day.
The perfect gift
One of the most popular traditions for most occasions is giving cards. Mother’s Day is the next most popular card giving holiday after Christmas, with 30 million cards given in the UK. Father’s Day is still very popular, with 7 million cards being given.
When it comes to Mother’s Day, the UK’s cut flower industry certainly takes advantage of this celebration, as it’s their largest event of the year. They see sales increase by 40% as we lavish our mothers with 7 million bouquets.
Time for a pamper
Mums spend their lives looking after the rest of the family, so they deserve to have a bit of a rest and some pampering on their special day. That’s why we’ll spend £250 million on luxury food and drink hampers.
Another indulgence is Chocolate as we spend £60 million on these delicious treats for our sweet-toothed mums.
In total we’ll buy 4 million boxes and probably help her get through them. This isn’t surprising when the World Atlas of Chocolate ranks the UK at number seven in the world chocolate consumption rankings. This celebration, though, doesn’t come top of the list of chocolate holidays. We spend £95 million over Valentine’s Day and 10% of all sales are made during Easter.
They might not get much time to themselves, but when they do, mums love to have a bit of a pampering session or a long soak in the bath. And this Mother’s Day, 9 million mums will be treated to a beautiful selection of health and beauty gifts that will help them feel relaxed and revitalised in no time!
Mother’s Day on a budget
Many people worry about paying for the additional extravagances of Mother’s Day, so if you’re on a budget and still want to treat your mum, here are some ideas…
For adults: Your mum probably wouldn’t be too thrilled if you spent lots of money on a gift you couldn’t afford, so get creative! Photo albums, framed pictured, a specially selected playlist, a picnic in the park, afternoon tea with cake in the garden – there are so many fun and lovely things you could do without spending a fortune.
Young children: If you have young children, help them to give their mum a precious day she’ll cherish forever. Treat your special lady to breakfast in bed, help the kids make cards and cakes (from an easy-to-follow cake mix kit!), choose a special family favourite film to watch together, go for a walk in the park and run her a bubble bath. She’ll absolutely love being worshiped and made to feel like a million dollars, without you having even a tenner!