04 May NZ: Forget the chocolates, mums are craving hugs and flowers this Mother’s Day

Mums across New Zealand should get ready to feel loved on Sunday, 13 May, as 30 percent of children reveal ‘a hug or personal acknowledgement’ is their top gift choice, followed by flowers (21 percent), according to a new Pureprofile survey.

New Zealand mothers will be satisfied, as the majority of people (35 percent) who responded to the survey said that spending time with their mum, or giving her a personal acknowledgement, would be their number one gift.

The survey also revealed a list of mums’ most loathed and loved gifts, however, overall most mothers (44 percent) said they are always happy with their gifts.

No matter what you do this Mother’s Day, make sure you don’t forget! Almost a third of mums (31 percent) said that their biggest disappointment would be to be forgotten and receive no gift or acknowledgement on the day.

Mothers aged 18-24 and 45+ value hugs and acknowledgements as their number one desired gift, and those aged 25 – 44 crave a handmade gift from their kids.

For those who are considering a last-minute shop, here are mums’ top 5 likes, dislikes … and the top 5 most planned presents:

Mum loves:
(1) Spending time with the family or a personal acknowledgement (35%)
(2) A handmade gift (22%)
(3) Breakfast or another home cooked meal (22%)
(4) Flowers (17%)
(5) Gift vouchers (16%)

Mum loathes:
(1) Being forgotten, no gift and/or no acknowledgement (31%)
(2) Chocolates/confectionery (8%)
(3) Beauty products (4%)
(4) Flowers (4%)
(5) Alcohol (4%)

What children are planning to give this year:
(1) No presents; just a hug or other personal acknowledgement (30%)
(2) Flowers (21%)
(3) Chocolates /confectionery (20%)
(4) Gift vouchers (13%)
(5) Breakfast or another home cooked meal (12%)

Methodology – Results are from a survey of 1,002 New Zealanders in April, 2018.