Father’s Day shoppers trade physical gifts for experiences

Consumers are changing the way they approach Father’s Day, starting with the most important part of any holiday: the gifts.

According to PwC’s latest consumer poll, 72% of consumers planned to spend an average of $93 on physical gifts such as clothing and shoes, while 7 in 10 expected to spend about $60 on dining experiences.

That focus on experiences may be driven in part by dads themselves; 70% of those surveyed thought fathers would prefer experiences and quality time over traditional gifts, while 51% of shoppers planned to purchase an experience to mark the occasion.

But does a subscription count as an experience? It does to the 45% of respondents planning to buy at least one subscription gift for Father’s Day. The most popular categories were food and beverage (22%), video streaming (16%), and gaming (16%).

Still, while consumers across generations were planning to celebrate Father’s Day, the holiday continued to trail Mother’s Day in both participation and spending.

Only 56% of consumers said they planned to celebrate Father’s Day this year, compared to 71% who celebrated Mother’s Day.

A 2024 NRF survey underscored the disparity. US consumers were expected to spend roughly $33.5 billion on Mother’s Day that year, Retail Brew previously reported.

Father’s Day spending, meanwhile, was projected to reach $22.4 billion, according to NRF.

The figures suggest that while Father’s Day remains a major retail event, it has yet to achieve the same cultural and commercial weight as Mother’s Day.