Member Article

SMEs still profiting from Valentine's

Just under half of small and medium sized companies that depend on Valentine’s Day as a main source of revenue have expressed confidence that business over the weekend will have been at the same level as last year or will increase.

A survey by Visa Commercial found that 49% of small firms directly connected to Valentine’s Day for major revenue were confident that this year would not see a decrease in profits.

The survey of gift shops, jewellers, florists, card shops and chocolatiers found that 30% of these small firms look to generate at least 10% of their annual sales during this period - highlighting its importance.

Despite this optimism regarding sales, small firms are concerned about late payments, with 74% rating prompt payment as being critically importance during peak sales periods such as Valentine’s Day.

Nigel Eaton, vice president of Visa Europe, said: “These results are broadly welcoming news for SMEs hoping for a good Valentine’s period. However, payment for goods and services remains damagingly slow throughout the SME supply chain and it is important that all sides continue to work towards ensuring faster, more efficient payments to SMEs.

“Matching the Government’s October pledge to pay its suppliers within 10 days would therefore be a welcome and achievable step by the wider private sector.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .