Chocolates, flowers and procrastination. For many Americans, Valentine’s Day is a last-minute affair

UNDATED (AP)- Valentine’s Day is meant to celebrate romance and the depths of feeling we have for loved ones. So it may be surprising how much Valentine’s shopping is done at the last minute. Nearly half of U.S. spending on Valentine’s Day flowers, candy and cards occurred between Feb. 11 and Feb. 14 in 2022 and 2023, according to Numerator, a market research company. Walmart says around 75% of its Valentine’s Day sales happen on Feb. 13 and 14. OpenTable says last year, 30% of Valentine’s Day dinner reservations were made the day before and 18% were made on the holiday itself.