Love may be priceless, but Valentine’s Day suggests otherwise. Each year, billions of dollars are spent in the name of affection, making it clear that capitalism is the real winner of this romantic holiday.
Once a celebration rooted in love and romance, Valentine’s Day has been hijacked by consumerism and turned into one of the most commercialized holidays in the world. What was once a heartfelt occasion now stands as a monument to how deeply capitalism warps traditions, dictating that love must be expressed through spending rather than genuine emotion and affection.
Over decades, the holiday has evolved into a money-making machine, driven by capitalism and consumer culture. According to the National Retail Federation, in 2023, Americans spent nearly $25.9 billion on Valentine’s Day gifts. From chocolates to flowers and pricey jewelry, the holiday has become a corporate feeding frenzy. Retailers flood stores with themed merchandise months in advance, exploiting societal pressures and convincing people that love is best expressed through expensive and tangible tokens. This narrative isn’t just manipulative–it’s dehumanizing.
This consumerist approach places undue pressure on individuals, forcing them to equate spending money with demonstrating love. Social norms encourage the toxic idea that failing to purchase gifts for loved ones is the same as failure to demonstrate love. This is absurd.
Love should be about genuine connection, not commodities, yet businesses understand and exploit this pressure to their advantage, ensuring that Valentine’s Day remains a financial goldmine. No wonder it ranks as one of the most lucrative holidays of the year, right behind Black Friday and Cyber Monday, as stated by Glowtify.
The sheer scale of spending is hard to ignore. Statista reported that nearly $6.5 billion was spent on jewelry for Valentine’s Day in 2024, making it one of the holiday’s most profitable categories. Experience gifts like expensive dinners and trips are also on the rise, further perpetuating the myth that love must be costly to matter.
Valentine’s Day may still hold emotional value for some, but its transformation into a billion-dollar industry reveals the striking truth: capitalism has stolen it. Behind the heart-shaped chocolates and glittery diamonds is a system that commodifies human emotion, turning love into a product that can be bought, sold and marketed. This is not love.
Instead of allowing corporations to dictate how we express our feelings, it’s time to reclaim Valentine’s Day. Love doesn’t need a price tag, and it certainly doesn’t need a gimmicky holiday to feel valid. Love should be shown through actions, not through the contents of one’s wallet. Let’s reject the capitalist narrative that love must be performed with a receipt in hand. Genuine connection–free of pressure and free of price–deserves to be celebrated, not commodified.
