Valentine’s Day & half-term boost spend on hotels, dining and entertainment to record levels

Kevin Jenkins, UK & Ireland Managing Director at Visa Europe commented:

“February is always a key bounce-back month for retailers and 2016 has been no exception. Solid spending growth by consumers, especially on life’s luxuries, was responsible for a 2.2% annual growth figure. Face-to-face and online spending both grew, though the latter was stronger, suggesting retailers continue to forge ahead in this sphere.

“Hospitality and leisure sectors recorded stellar performance, as consumers treated loved ones to special dinners and romantic breaks on Valentine’s Day, while families enjoyed trips out during half-term. Hotels, restaurants and pubs owners saw spend reach the highest level for several years, up 13.6%. This was accompanied by a near 10% increase in spend on recreation and culture activities, the strongest performance for the sector over a year and a half.

“Valentine’s Day falling on a Sunday this year also saw people spend more on food and drinks for a cosy night in, with the sector reporting the best performance since January 2015.”

What UK businesses are saying:

Visa is tracking the sentiment of several small businesses across the UK on a monthly basis, asking about their views on the economy, business conditions and forecasts for the month ahead.

Josh Beer, The Illustrious Pub Company, Cambridgeshire

For us, February is always the unknown month as the Christmas parties and catering contracts wind down, but the past month has been very good for us with revenue up 8.5% compared to last year. Valentine’s day led to a boost in trade as people took to their local to make a day of it and the fact that we didn’t see any snowfall also helped. At the moment our customers are treating themselves more and we’ve noticed that people are happy to spend more providing the quality meets their expectations.

Imogen Hawthorne, Paisley Immy Cakes, Birmingham

We’ve seen a steady flow of business this February, both the number of orders and the amount being spent on the various cakes remains consistent with last year. We took advantage of having more free time after the Christmas period and ahead of wedding season by showcasing our cakes at a wedding fair, and we’re overwhelmed by the amount of interest it generated. The fair itself was bustling compared to last year and we’re optimistic that this will convert into orders in the coming months.

Wendy Dalton, Blush Boutique, Oldham

This month wasn’t as hectic for us. With that said we did see a rise in prom dress orders over the half-term period, as school goers maximised their free time and started planning ahead for their leaver’s balls. We’ve also got many fittings booked in for the coming months, and we expect next month will be busier with orders from people who received proposals over the Valentines period and also the women that seized their opportunity and popped the question on the 29^th.