Valentine’s Day shoppers in the UK and around the globe prefer to pick out presents in-store, according to MasterCard research. This shows that consumer spending in the build-up to Valentine’s Day by Brits has increased by 15 per cent over the last three years.

“It is interesting to see that when it comes to Valentine’s Day and spending on romance, more of us prefer experiences over material gifts. Even though the ongoing shift to online shows no sign of waning for the British shopper, this time of year is an exception, rather than trusting our gestures of love to the digital world it appears we still need the reassurance of choosing our purchases in person or enjoying romantic experiences together,” says Mark Barnett, President of MasterCard UK and Ireland.

The MasterCard Love Index covers 200-plus countries and was created by analysing credit, debit and prepaid card transactions over a three-year period between 11-14 February in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Eighty per cent of UK shoppers made purchases in-person, whereas only 12 per cent preferred to go online. Europeans were into buying online with over 21 per cent of transactions taking place via the internet. Globally, 90 per cent of purchases were made in-person.

Share Story: