Commercialization of Valentine’s Day 

When February approaches many stores turn a bright shade of red. This is because there will be a ton of items for sale that are strongly related to the holiday of Valentine’s Day. There will be a great variety of greeting cards, chocolates, flowers and a ton of other products that are associated with the Valentine’s Day season. The stores love this holiday because it can often provide a huge financial windfall for these shops. Now, while the stores love the influx of cash that Valentine’s Day brings in there will be those traditionalists who feel that the commercialization of Valentine’s Day is abhorrent. But is the commercialization truly a bad thing or does it bring certain positives with it? 

There is a somewhat interesting question that needs to be posed when it comes to the commercialization of Valentine’s Day and this is, is the commercialization of a holiday really all that bad. Now, this question may seem like an odd question because most people have long since been hardwired to believe that the commercialization of anything is a negative. Well, there is a certain truth to this sentiment as commercialization can often replace the true history, tradition and purpose of the holiday. However, there is a certain aspect about the commercialization of holidays that people often overlook and that is that there are a number of significant positives associated with commercialization that provide a number of valuable aspects. 

The commercialization of Valentine’s Day is not, however, a new phenomenon. In fact, the commercialization of Valentine’s Day started long before there was a singular established holiday. In the early 1800’s – a full century before the establishment of the official February 14th holiday – a woman named Esther Howland who was the individual who first came up with the concept of a Valentine’s Day card. It is unknown how much she earned from her idea, but it is doubtful she earned billions even though that is what the greeting card companies have earned over the years from the enormous sales of these cards over the years. 

Now, some may feel that this type of commercialization is one that detracts from the true meaning of the holiday and takes advantage of the holiday for commercial gain. Now, this is a somewhat cynical approach to all the publicity and interest the commercialization of the Valentine’s Day industry offers. In reality, by providing a number of items and products associated with Valentine’s Day and prominently displaying these items in public the holiday stays alive and does not pass off into the oblivion of forgotten holidays. Additionally, by commercializing the holiday the holiday has become more inclusive. Instead of being a holiday celebrated exclusively in the Catholic tradition it has become a holiday that is universal and not exclusive and that is ultimately a good thing. 

Yes, there can be certain problems associated with over commercialization, but the holiday exists within a free market society and as such commercialization is a given. That is not, however, automatically, a bad thing.