Jewellers, perfumeries and other businesses traditionally associated with Valentine’s Day all noted a drop in sales this time round, mainly due to the fact the ‘feast of love’ fell on a Monday. According to Abigail Mamo, CEO of the Malta Chamber of SMEs, Valentine’s Day for businesses was slower than previous years for two main reasons. “Apart from Valentine’s Day falling on a Monday, most people would have celebrated during the weekend, which also happened to be a long one due to Thursday’s public holiday, so we saw people spending more on entertainment, rather than shopping,” she said. Despite originating as a Christian feast day, Valentine’s Day, celebrated annually on February 14, has become increasingly commercialised and is the fifth largest spending event in the United States, according to the US National Retail Federation. The long weekend saw hundreds of people waiting for hours to cross to Gozo on Wednesday evening. “This year, Valentine’s was not a standalone celebration, with many bridging the holidays and spending on a long weekend, which means they would be more careful with other spending,” Mamo added. She said this reinforced certain consumer consumption patterns...