Survey: St. Patrick's Day will boost retail spending

WASHINGTON — A popular Irish holiday may give retailers some luck.

Total spending on St. Patrick’s Day festivities is expected to hit $4.14 billion this year, with 52.4% of Americans intending to celebrate the Irish holiday — up 7.2% from last year — according to the National Retail Federation's 2011 St. Patrick’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions survey, conducted by BIGresearch. In the survey's eight-year history, the number of consumers that reported plans to celebrate St. Patrick's Day is at an all-time high, NRF and BIGresearch noted.

The survey found that young adults ages 18 to 24 years will be the biggest group attending private parties this year (33.9%), while adults ages 25 to 34 years will spend the most ($41.30 per person).

“March is typically one of the slower months of the year in terms of consumer spending, but we expect this year’s celebration to provide a nice boost for companies who are in the business of promoting the holiday,” said Phil Rist, EVP strategic initiatives at BIGresearch.