Valentine's Day Tech Tuesday

In what year did Hallmark's Valentine's Day cards first appear on store shelves?

• 1906

• 1916

• 1926

• 1936

Answer explanation

1916 — The year that Hallmark’s Valentine’s Day greeting cards first appeared on store shelves. (The company’s founder, J.C. Hall, began selling Valentine’s Day postcards earlier, in 1910.)

Approximately how many American households give Valentine's Day presents to their dogs?

• 28 billion

• 28 million

• 2.8 million

• 280,000

Answer explanation

Hey, furry friends need love, too! In fact, around 27.6 million American households gave Valentine's Day presents to their pet dogs in 2020, and more than 17.1 million picked up gifts for their cats. All in all, American households spent an estimated $751.3 million on gifts for their pets on Valentine’s Day.

Before their popularity as Valentine's Day candy, converstaion hearts got their start as.....

• throat lozenges

• pencil erasers

• classroom manipulatives

Answer explanation

Weirdly enough, the story of conversation hearts first began when a Bostom pharmacist named Oliver Chase invented a machine that simplified the way medical lozenges - used for sore throats and other illnesses - could be made!

Approximately how much money did Americans spend on Valentine's Day gifts in 2021?

• $200,000

• $2.2 Million

• $22 Million

• $22 Billion

Answer explanation

$21.8 billion (yes, billion) — The total amount last year that Americans spent on Valentine’s Day gifts for partners, friends, kids, pets, and more, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF).

Valentine's Day is the largest card-giving holiday.

• True
• False

Answer explanation

Top 8 holidays for card giving

1. Christmas

2. Valentine's Day

3. Mother's Day

4. Father's Day

5. Easter

6. Halloween

7. Thanksgiving

8. St. Patrick's Day

The first Valentine's Day celebration took place in which city?

• New York City

• Copley

• Rome

• Paris

Answer explanation

The first known official celebration of Saint Valentine’s Day took place in Paris on February 14, 1400. On this date, King Charles VI of France established La cour amoureuse, or the High Court of Love.

True or False:

On average, men and women prefer flowers over candy.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

Both men and women prefer to receive chocolate over flowers, according to the National Confectioners Association. The survey also found that chocolate sales represent 75% or more of Valentine's Day candy purchases.

Of the following types of chocolates, which is the most popular in a box of chocolates?

• chocolate covered nuts

• caramels

• coconut

• cream filled

Answer explanation

According to the National Confectioners Association, caramels are the most popular flavor in chocolate boxes!

In order from most to least popular:

1. Caramels

2. Chocolate-covered nuts

3. Cream-filled

4. Coconut

Which state has the largest number of chocolate makers?

• Florida

• Ohio

• California

• Pennsylvania

Answer explanation

California is the state with the largest number of chocolate makers, which means those heart-shaped goody boxes you're gifting your loved one this Valentine's Day probably came from the West Coast. The state has 139 chocolate makers, according to the U.S. census. Pennsylvania comes in second, with 120 chocolate artisans.

True or false:

The majority of Valentine's Day roses are imported.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

California produces 60% of American roses, but interestingly enough, the vast number of roses sold on Valentine's Day in the U.S. are imported, mostly from South America.