We are rounding the corner on February and on Valentine's Day at Sweet Tooth.  After working 20 Valentine's Days at our store, I do have a few observations which I am willing to share.
Number One Observation:  no matter what, men wait until the last minute to shop for Valentine's Day.  If there is any truth to retail, it is this observation.  And strangely so, because Valentine's Day on the calendar is always February 14.  I can't say that I know why men wait until February 13 or 14 to shop, but I just know it is true. 
Number Two Observation:  when men wait til the last minute to shop they will spend any amount of money to impress their sweethearts.  One might think that some men consider the amount they spend gets them out of some fantasy dog house they are in.  Or one might be more generous and say that some men just want to show their sweethearts that they are worth their weight in gold (or chocolate or jewelry!).
Number Three Observation:  the word "LOVE' is to be avoided at all costs.  This particular truth is really puzzling.  On a holiday where LOVE is the goal, fewer and fewer people want to buy anything with that word on it.  Just like witches on Halloween, we try to avoid buying very much Valentine merchandise or candy with LOVE spelled out.
Number Four Observation:  less and less people each year tell us that they are buying a gift for their children.  I remember that my Mom always bought us a chocolate heart or a box of chocolate covered cherries.We really looked forward to that.  Now this doesn't mean that people are loving their kids less.  It might just be that a tradition like my Mom had for us is not so much a tradition for others these days.  Thank goodness for the grandparents...they always want to treat their grandkids!!
Number Five Observation:  although Valentine candy features the colors red, pink and white, pink Valentine boxes of chocolate don't sell near as well as red boxes.  In the earlier days of Sweet Tooth, we'd always have a smaller pink heart shaped box of chocolate, assuming dads especially would buy that box for their daughters.  Nowadays, we pretty much avoid pink boxes...they just sit on the shelf.
Number Six Observation:  chocolate manufacturers are not using heart shaped boxes as much as they used to.  I suppose it is because the cost of making that box is greater than a square or rectangular box and shoppers don't want to spend the extra money to have a heart.
I'll probably have a few more Valentine Observations as the days go forward in February.  There are always surprises each year, new people, new attitudes, new shopping truths.  I look forward to seeing just what will show up this year.