Can you afford to ignore Valentine’s Day?

“Only boys who save their pennies make my rainy day” sang Madonna back in 1985. Today, in 2024, we’re here to tell you that the same rules still apply – you can make someone’s Valentine’s Month without spending your whole salary.

Of course, there’s always pressure to spend at this time of the year, and many of the traditional gifts don’t necessarily come cheap. If you are looking for a great deal on perfume or jewellery, Bob Shop is a great place to start.

Image courtesy of cottonbro studio. Published on: February 6th, 2020. Source: Pexel.com

Experiences, not things

An alternative approach could be to focus on giving your true love an experience to remember, rather than yet another object. After all, with decluttering a major trend for this year, what many people want is the chance to make more memories.

Saving money doesn’t mean you love somebody any less – instead, when they see you being responsible with your finances, they’ll know they can also trust you to take care of their heart.

Let them choose

They chose you, so you know they have excellent taste! If you can’t decide what to get your beloved, you can trust their judgement and give them a voucher that lets them buy more music, movies or games – a no-clutter way to gift them an experience that they can design themselves.

From preloved to re-loved

Bob Shop has always been a great place to find preloved items, giving you the opportunity to save money with deals on treasures that someone else no longer needs. Antique jewellery and vintage watches each come with a wonderful back story – and represent an opportunity to add new chapters, often for much less than the cost of an equivalent new item.

Image courtesy of Criativithy. Published on: January 16th, 2019. Source: Pexel.com

The garden of love

Perhaps our favourite Valentine’s Month idea is a romantic picnic. We’re lucky that Valentine’s Month falls during summer here in South Africa, which makes outdoor moments much easier to organise, and much more enjoyable. With the sunshine and warm weather practically guaranteed – and for free – you can concentrate on making the moment as lovely as possible, and all without overspending your budget.

Image courtesy ofThe Lazy Artist Gallery. Published on: January 10th, 2019. Source: Pexel.com

Making it count

It’s hard to feel romantic if you’re not comfortable, so you’ll need to start with a picnic blanket. Once you’ve got that, you can move on to the other important details, like how will you get the delicious drinks and snacks you’ve chosen to the picnic spot?

This is where a traditional picnic basket comes in handy – and because it looks old-fashioned, it adds to the sense of class and elegance you’re going for. You’ll also need to pack some crockery and cutlery – no, this is not an occasion for paper plates and plastic knives and forks!

We’re all for saving money, but don’t forget you’re trying to impress the love of your life here. Another way to reduce your Valentine’s Month spending but still hit all the right romantic notes is to do the catering yourself. For that, you’ll need our Kitchen category – and remember, the way to anyone’s heart is through their tummy…

Happy Valentine’s Month – we hope our money saving tips will save the day!