St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner and consumers are both wearing and spending plenty of green to make it special. Consumers plan to spend a record $7.2 billion — or an average of $44.40 per person — on the holiday this year and, perhaps unsurprisingly, their top spending categories are food and beverages. So, follow their lead: Fix a plate of bangers and mash and read on for more insights from the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics into how shoppers are enjoying the luckiest holiday of the year.
Not just for the Irish
Consumers are coming out in full force for St. Patrick’s Day, with a record 62% or 162 million Americans planning to celebrate. (That’s more than 20 times the population of Ireland itself!) Given the holiday’s broad appeal, it’s no surprise that consumers of all heritages and backgrounds say that they’re willing to don some green on March 17.
Regardless of if they have Irish heritage, consumers here in the United States are all-in on St. Patrick’s Day, with Hispanic Americans as the group most likely to celebrate the holiday. Whether they’re toasting with a Guinness or a Shamrock Shake, it seems everyone is ready to raise a glass to the luck of the Irish.
Sham-rocking the weekend
With St. Patrick’s Day falling on a weekend this year, it’s no surprise consumers are spreading Irish cheer at record levels. Since NRF first started tracking the holiday in 2007, consumers have been more likely to celebrate on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, while participation dips when it falls on a weekday.
It’s easy being green
No matter which day of the week the holiday lands on, consumers embrace the spirit of the Emerald Isle in much the same way each year: Whether it’s a Tuesday or a Friday, no St. Patrick’s Day celebration is complete without sporting green, fixing a plate of corned beef and cabbage, or enjoying the sound of bagpipes at a parade.
Wearing St. Patrick’s Day’s signature color is by far the most popular way to celebrate the holiday, and younger consumers are the most likely to don green clothes and accessories with 87% of 18- to 24-year-olds planning to do so. Meanwhile, at 38%, consumers aged 65 and up are most likely to celebrate by preparing a special dinner, the second-most popular way consumers get a taste of Irish cheer on the luckiest holiday of the year.
About the survey: The 2024 survey of 8,724 U.S. adults 18 and older was conducted Feb. 1-6 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.1 percentage points.
