by Lilly Calman isn’t in the mood this Valentine’s Day for flowers, chocolates, or a romantic dinner for two, especially after a recent breakup.
“I’m very angry,” said Calman, 26, adding that it had been painful to see all the Christmas paraphernalia in the store aisles.
This year he found a more appropriate outlet for his mood: a fundraising for the San Antonio Zoo that will symbolically name a cockroach or rodent after an ex and feed it to one of the zoo’s animals.
“The visual image of him being eaten by a Komodo dragon is quite satisfying,” said Calman, who donated $25 for the rat option. He hopes the zoo will send him a video so he can host a screening with a friend. “I love reptiles. I think it’s cool.”
The annual campaign has raised more than $235,000 since the zoo first ran it in 2020, underscoring the appeal of alternative Valentine’s Day rituals for people who aren’t interested in the couple.
Valentine’s Day traditions bring strong feelings, both for and against. Do you appreciate a nice tradition? Or do you dismiss it as a consumerist scam? Critics have blamed him for advocating a narrow model of relationships as heterosexual and monogamous.
But the vacation and its expenses are not going anywhere; Most people in the United States plan to celebrate or mark the day this year, according to this year’s version of an annual survey by the National Retail Federationa pressure group for the industry.
However, those celebrations have expanded to include friends and family, pets, and even yourself. Marketers are taking note and trying to find more avenues that resonate even with the naysayers.
“Valentine’s Day is a holiday that has basically changed over time,” said Barbara Bickart, associate professor of marketing at Boston University’s Questrom School of Business. “Marketers are discovering ways to be more inclusive and responsive.”
The candy brand Sweethearts, for example, launched this year a “situations”edition with blurry writing for those in indefinite relationships. (They sold out quickly, said Evan Brock, vice president of marketing for Spangler Candy Company in a statement.)
What to do on Valentine’s Day itself, when couples with roses fill restaurant tables? Marco Di Pinto has organized a comedy show “Anti-Valentine’s Day” in London in recent years.
Comedians will encourage singles to share their terrible stories about dating and relationships, he said. Couples, for fun, will be roasted. “I think this celebration is nonsense,” she said. “If we do a program like this, maybe people will feel more included.”
João Pedro Santos, 41, has attended the comedy show in recent years, with his girlfriend. “That was one of the things that brought us together,” he said. “It’s about disrupting the whole concept of Valentine’s Day.”
Spending on romantic relationships still dominates the holidays, but demographics offer insight into a sector that’s growing. About 30 percent of Americans are singleaccording to a 2022 survey from the Pew Research Center, and more than half of them say they are not looking to date.
“Marketers alienating entire groups of consumers is not only bad for society, it’s bad business overall,” said Angeline Close Scheinbaum, associate professor of marketing at the Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business at Clemson University.
“This is the best time to reach out to people,” said Peter McGraw, a behavioral economist at the University of Colorado Boulder and author of “Solo: Building a Remarkable Life of Your Own,” adding that companies could do more to serve to the people. a large group. He pointed to wasteful spending on Alibaba’s Singles’ Day on Nov. 11, a lucrative day for online shopping in China. “It’s very easy to do in your messages.”
Even the personal care market, which has become a multi-billion dollar industry, is now taking advantage of the holidays. Etsy searches for “self-gift” ahead of Valentine’s Day are up 12 percent this year compared to last year, the company said.
“Learning to love myself is a big task right now,” said Kim McCoy, a speech therapist in Oregon. This year, after a breakup, McCoy is taking some time to fall in love. She bought herself some flowers and plans to attend an “ecstatic dance” event with a friend.
Naming a rat after her ex made Ms. Calman feel better, but it also helped her connect with friends and family while sharing a funny story. “Maybe platonic love is more important,” she said. “I get to spend it with people I love and care about, and do things we enjoy.”
Marketing around the day can ultimately obscure the truth about why the holiday has persisted over time. “The goal of the day is pure,” Dr. Scheinbaum said. “It’s celebrating and recognizing love, and that will never go away.”
