Survey: Father's Day spending to increase slightly Print
Written by Eric Tiansay   
Tuesday, 11 June 2013 02:54 PM America/New_York

DuckCommander-MardelAmericans will spend slightly more on the most important men in their lives this Father's Day, Sunday, June 16.

“Never expecting more than a nice day out or a special family dinner, dads are usually easy to shop for,” said National Retail Federation President and CEO Matthew Shay. “From patio sets and grills to ties and gardening tools, retailers will offer specials and promotions in the coming days for families as they scour retailers’ websites and stores for something they know dad will love.”

According to the survey, those celebrating Father’s Day will spend $2.5 billion collectively on special outings such as a sporting event or dinner; $1.7 billion on electronic gadgets such as a tablet or GPS system; and $1.8 billion on clothing.

Others will shell out $1.8 billion on gift cards; $755 million on home improvement or gardening tools; $710 million on sporting goods; $707 million on personal care items; and $592 million on automotive accessories.

Four in 10 (40.6%) will look for dad’s gift at department stores. Others will shop at discount stores (31.5%); specialty stores such as greeting card/gift and electronics stores (27.3%); and specialty clothing stores (9.9%). Online retailers will see a slight increase in traffic this year—29.8% will shop online, up from 28.4% last year.

More than half of those surveyed (53%) will buy for their father or stepfather this holiday, but others will treat their husband (29.1%), son (9.7%), brother (6.4%) and grandfather (4.9%) to something nice, according to the survey.

Several Christian retail stores conducted giveaways for dads in light of the holiday.

The Mardel Christian & Education chain held a Happy, Happy, Happy Father's Day Giveaway tied to A&E TV’s popular reality show Duck Dynasty. The grand prize included Duck Commander products from New Day Christian Distributors, Duck Dynasty DVDs from Thomas Nelson and Howard Books’ Happy, Happy, Happy by Phil Robertson and The Duck Commander Family by Willie and Korie Robertson.