A report by SBM Intelligence, a research firm, has shown that many Nigerians are splurging more on gifts for 2025 Valentine’s Day celebrations than they did in 2024.

This is despite the country’s rising inflation.
Valentine’s Day is celebrated annually on February 14 all over the world. It was initially set out to honor a martyr called Valentine, but has become an annual celebration of romantic love and friendship.

Globally, many people often purchase gifts to celebrate their loved ones and Nigerians are no exception.

The report by SBM Intelligence however noted that the country’s rising inflation has affected Valentine’s Day celebrations in recent years.

“Despite rising inflation, Nigerians are spending more on Valentine’s Day, with about 5% of our respondents intending to splurge N501,000 or more this year, up from 2% last year.”

Since 2015, Nigeria has been experiencing an increase in inflation rate. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), inflation rate was 9%. Nine years later, in 2024, the figure sat at a whooping average of 33.2%.

As the price of essential commodities and services rise, the prices of Valentine’s Day gifts, such as chocolates, flowers and fine dining are not left out.

“Prices for popular gifts such as flowers, chocolates and dining out have surged, making celebrations more expensive,” the report read in part.

Hence, causing Nigerians to spend more on these goods than they did in previous years.

“Rising inflation in Africa’s most populous country has increased Valentine’s Day spending. This year 33% of respondents plan to spend between N51,000 and N100,000, compared to 32.4% last year who spent N10,000 and N50,000,” the report read in part.

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To arrive at these figures, the research firm surveyed a sample of respondents between the ages of 18 and 65 in the commercial hubs of Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja.

Among this sampled population, 54.8% of them were males while 45.2% were males. More than half of the respondents earn between N101,000 to N500,000 monthly, 14% earn less than N50,000 while 10% earn above N500,000.

These survey saw an increase from that of the previous year.

“Last year, 32.4% spent within the range of N10,000-N50,000 followed by 25.5% (N51,000-N100,000, 14.8% (N101,000-N200,000), 6.4% (N201,000-N500,000) and 1.59% (N501,000-above).

For next year’s Valentine’s Day, more than half of the surveyed sample intend to spend more than they did this year, 16% intend to spend less, 25.3% intend to spend the exact amount they spent this year while 25% intend to spend nothing at all.