Valentine’s Day spending is expected to see a double-digit surge - FNB

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During this popular period, past trends have indicated that FNB card holders spend more each year on categories such as chocolates, flowers, general gifts and jewellery. Overall, Valentine’s Day spend in these categories increased by 11% year-on-year (YoY) in 2024 and is expected to double in digit growth this year.

In the week of Valentine’s Day, the bank saw a 60% week-on-week increase in spend on chocolates in 2023 and 54% in 2024. Spend on flowers also reportedly increased by 83% in 2023 and by 91% in 2024. General gifts also noted a 10% spend increase in 2023 and 9% in 2024, while jewellery equally saw a 10% spend uptick in 2023 and 9% in 2024.

Valentine’s spending trends

Senzo Nsibande, credit card chief executive officer at FNB says, “Our data shows that Valentine’s Day drives a significant amount of card spend by consumers to celebrate and spoil their loved ones. In addition, we’re also pleased to see the transitioning split between online and in-store purchases, showcasing the convenience and safety presented by our card payment options.”

Interestingly, data also shows that men spend more than women on this day with the majority spent on restaurants and jewellery in 2024. This is 12% more than what they had spent in 2023 for these categories, with a similar increase expected on Valentines Day in 2025.

“Our customers are adopting convenient ways to shop and pay, with security remaining a critical factor for all purchases. We have witnessed a greater migration to online purchases than ever before, and we believe that the world-class security and convenience of offerings such as our Virtual Card will continue to be a preferable transactional method for customers over this time.

One of the key security features on our Virtual Card is a dynamic Card Verification Value (CVV) security number that changes every hour to help customers minimise the risk of fraud when shopping online,” says Nsibande.

While consumers might have more disposable income based on the recent interest rate cut cycle, with a bit more flexibility to spend, FNB encourages consumers to prioritise money management by spending responsibly within their budgets and transacting on safe platforms.

“We encourage customers to use our broad range of payment options and use trusted platforms when shopping online. In addition, they should always keep information such as PINs and passwords safe and to only authenticate transactions they have initiated.

"Although we encourage consumers to celebrate their loved ones this Valentine’s Day, planning and budgeting for purchases remains important over this time,” concludes Nsibande.