GREEN IS THE COLOR OF LOVE VALENTINE'S SPENDING EXPECTED TO REACH $16.9 BILLION.Byline: JULIA M. SCOTT Staff Writer Showing your affection often means spending some green, a color local retailers are seeing plenty of as the love-struck scramble for Valentine's Day Valentine's Day: see Saint Valentine's Day. Valentine's Day Lovers' holiday celebrated on February 14, the feast day of St. Valentine, one of two 3rd-century Roman martyrs of the same name. St. gifts. With the average consumer shelling out $119 to please their sweetheart, the holiday amounts to a windfall for certain retailers. Total spending for the holiday is expected to hit $16.9 billion, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. the National Retail Federation. Chocolatier choc·o·la·tier n. 1. One who makes or sells chocolate. 2. A place where chocolate is made or sold. [French, from chocolat, chocolate, from Spanish chocolate Jamie Wilson Jamie Wilson is a beauty queen from Minden, Louisiana who has competed in the Miss America pageant. Competing as Miss Louisiana Watermelon Festival, Wilson won the Miss Louisiana 2006 title in a state pageant held in Monroe, Louisiana in June 2006. , who owns Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (NASDAQ: RMCF) is a chocolate company retailer and manufacturer based in Durango, Colorado. It manufactures chocolate and other confections at its Durango factory, though some products are made at individual stores. in Woodland Hills, expects to sell 1,000 chocolate-covered strawberries today . On Wednesday, Wilson was preparing for the crowds. "Tomorrow they'll be lined up out the door," Wilson said Tuesday. "Tomorrow is my biggest day of the year." Wilson sells a pound of the berries for $18.95, plus other treats such as caramel-dipped apples and sweets in heart-shape boxes. The buzz for online retailers has mostly passed unless stores can guarantee Feb. 14 delivery, according to a survey of 250,000 online shoppers conducted by the marketing firm Oneupweb. Online sales peaked Feb. 6, which left more than a week for packing and shipping, the survey showed. Shopping online midweek may have been popular for two reasons. "Using the office broadband may be more convenient or consumers may be trying to keep their purchases a secret," said Oneupweb President Lisa Wehr. Online browsing traffic spiked Feb. 12, boosted by beaus searching for last-minute gift ideas. Those who couldn't find the perfect way to say "I love you," or who pushed off the task will keep brick-and-mortar stores busy today. Lamya Mogri's floral shop will be a frenzy of activity. She owns Woodland Warner Flowers on Ventura Boulevard Ventura Boulevard is one of the primary east-west thouroughfares in the San Fernando Valley; as it was originally a part of the El Camino Real (the trail between Spanish missions), Ventura Boulevard is the oldest route in the San Fernando Valley. It was also U.S. in Woodland Hills and plans on delivering more than 200 bouquets today. With the average tab coming in at $100, Valentine's Day provides a sales boost that ranks up there with Mother's Day and Christmas. "Sixty percent of our orders come in the last two days," said Mogri, who brings on 15 extra workers and uses 9 vans to handle the floral blitz. This year, exotic flowers such as orchids, gingers and anthurium anthurium Any plant of the genus Anthurium, comprising about 600 tropical herbaceous species in the arum family, many of which are popular foliage plants. A few species are widely grown for the florist trade for their showy, long-lasting blossoms; these include the flamingo are popular, as well as the romantic staple, red roses. julia.scott(at)dailynews.com (818) 713-3735 |
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