Retailers are gearing up to help shoppers celebrate Father’s Day in the UK on Sunday 21 June 2015, according to new research. However, there is still far more interest in Mother’s Day, and children spend twice as much on their Mum on her special day versus their Dad.
Retail and shopper marketing agency Savvy has found UK shoppers’ interest in celebrating Father’s Day is up 3% on 2014 figures and now stands at 57%. In comparison, 65% of UK shoppers planned to celebrate Mother’s Day earlier this year.
According to Savvy, retailers need to acknowledge this increased interest in-store.
Alastair Lockhart, insight director at Savvy Marketing, said:“With many families across the UK having two working parents, tasks from childcare, doing the school drop off and cooking the evening meal are increasingly shared between Mum and Dad. In light of this, and a long-term rise in the celebration of Father’s Day, retailers and brands need to ensure their ranges reflect the needs of modern Dad.”
Savvy found 59% of all shoppers planning to get involved agree that Father’s day is a special event (compared with 68% felling the same about Mother’s day) and 40% are looking forward to the day.
A quarter of shoppers said they tend to trade up to buy more expensive food and drinks on the day.
In terms of what Fathers hope to receive, the most popular 'gift' was time with their family, 53%; while a shop-bought card was in second place, 34%. Beers came in third place with 21% of men hoping for this treat.
Savvy found shoppers have high expectations of retailers too. More than half, 55%, would like ideas for presents and 43% expect a good range. A dedicated aisle for the event was also appealing to 35% of shoppers.
Lockhart said: “Similar to the findings of our Mother’s Day research earlier in the year, Dads are more interested in thoughtful gifts and signs of appreciation, rather than any expectation of more expensive presents. It’s a day when families get together – often with multiple generations spending time with each other.
“But are sales opportunities being missed? In-store, we found activity this year fairly uninspiring on the whole. This is a shame as there is more interest from shoppers – especially women – in celebrating the occasion with their Dads this year, compared to 2014, and we expect to see the commercial opportunity grow over the
However, while doting Dads are looking forward to being lavished with presents this Sunday, research has also revealed that children spend almost double on Mother’s Day.
Hermes - who delivers parcels on behalf of many of the UK’s leading retailers such as John Lewis, Debenhams and
But, despite the cut backs, Dads up and down the UK are in line for a makeover after clothes topped the list of intended gifts this Father’s Day (39%), Hermes found.
Aftershave came in joint-second with a voucher (26%), whilst 15% of Dads will be able to beat the Sunday night blues by enjoying a glass of their favourite tipple. However, when asked what they would buy their Dads ‘if money was no object’, 44% of people said they’d treat their fathers to a holiday. Next up was a house (25%), closely followed by a car (23%).
Mark Pettit, sales & marketing director at Hermes, said: “When it comes to spoiling your parents, our research tells us that Mums remain number one. We all know that Dads are notoriously hard to buy for, but I’m sure our couriers will be delivering lots of thoughtful gifts this week – whatever the cost.”
Meanwhile, Father’s Day is reported to be the second biggest selling occasion for the experience day brand, Red Letter Days. As a result, the company is garnering insights from
Rakuten Attribution found an increased interest in adventure experiences as Father’s Day approaches. Throughout May and June interest in these adventurous experiences has risen from 35% in 2013 to 39% in 2015.
Based on the data, Red Letter Days predicts the most popular products for Father’s Day 2015 will include driving experiences; flying and helicopter lessons and hot air ballooning. Other popular, but less adventurous, experiences are dining and visits to London’s landmark, The Shard.
