Windsor businesses prepare for Valentine’s Day rush

Love is in the air, and that means businesses are stocking up on the top gifts for the holiday. 

Valentine’s Day is the one designated day a year where everyone around the world takes time to show their love and appreciation to those special loved ones. The most common way of celebrating this holiday is by giving and receiving sweet and meaningful gifts on February 14. 

There is a variety of gifts to purchase for this holiday, but the most common are things like flowers, chocolates, candies and cards. This may seem like an easy task to go out and purchase these treats but with around three hundred forty thousand residents in the Windsor area alone, stores must prepare well in advance for the specific demand and rush of this holiday. 

Rob Obeid is the current manager of Walker’s Candies in Windsor, he said that to keep up with the rush of Valentine’s Day purchases, his business must start preparing their products and stock before February hits. 

“We start getting ready in early January,” said Obeid. “We have to get our molds out, start making shells and create molds for things like our roses. For our truffles we have to start making the mixtures because it’s a big process since it’s all done by scratch.” 

Retail stores prepare for weeks in advance to make sure they are fully stocked for Valentine’s Day, as the holiday can bring in unexpected waves of customers at any time. 

Kevin Jones, owner of Speaking Roses Windsor, said that Valentine’s Day and even the weeks building up to the holiday are some of the most chaotic days of the year. Even now, with Valentine’s Day being a week away, Jones says the store has already received around 28 orders. 

“(Our business is) non-stop from 10 a.m. until about 10 p.m.,” Jones said. “The phone doesn’t stop ringing with people wanting to place orders, customers are picking up their orders, we’re constantly sending orders out to be delivered. It’s absolutely crazy in here.” 

With each day getting closer to Valentine’s Day, make sure to plan and get your gift shopping done so you can beat the rush that stores spend months preparing for.