Contrary to popular belief, Hallmark did not invent Valentine’s Day. Initially, Hallmark’s founder, J.C. Hall, began selling Valentine’s Day postcards in 1910. As greeting cards gained popularity, Hallmark began printing its very own greeting cards. By 1916, the very first Hallmark Valentine’s Day cards appeared on store shelves. "Valentine's Day is a holiday invented by greeting card companies to make people feel like crap," Carrey's character, Hallmark didn't burst onto the scene until 1910, Valentine’s Day is fast approaching, and it’s often said that the greetings card company Hallmark invented the celebration in a ploy to sell cards. But is this really true? And if not, why do we celebrate romance on the 14th of February and who was Saint Valentine? Saint Valentine. Saint Valentine was a real person. Hallmark didn't even get into the act until 1913. If you're wondering, Valentine's Day is actually the 2nd biggest day of the year for sending greeting cards behind Christmas. Mother's Day is 3rd. Valentines were added to the company’s inventory in 1913. Hallmark began printing its own greeting card designs in 1915. The company’s first Valentine’s Day cards appeared on store shelves in 1916. Hallmark’s first greeting cards in 1915 were printed text and line images made from steel die engravings. Hallmark first offered Valentine’s Day cards in 1913 and began producing them in 1916. According to the National Retail Federation, the average person celebrating Valentine’s Day spent $185 in 2024. Valentine's Day is a time to celebrate romance and love and kissy-face fealty. But the ancient Romans had bloodier, drunker and more naked notions to mark the occasion. And in 1913, Hallmark By the early 1910s, an American company that would one day become Hallmark began distributing its more official "Valentine's Day cards." Universal Images Group / Getty Images A Valentine’s Day postcard from 1910. Valentine’s Day has a well-deserved reputation for being excessively commercial; it’s not actually a so-called “Hallmark holiday,” invented merely to move merchandise. Its roots as a Hallmark, which began offering Valentine's Day cards in 1913, estimates that today, 145 million Valentine’s Day cards are exchanged annually, not including the kids’ valentines popular for In the United States (and elsewhere), a Hallmark holiday is a holiday that is perceived to exist primarily for commercial purposes rather than to commemorate a traditionally or historically significant event. Pope Gelasius I technically invented Valentine’s Day in AD 496 to Christianize the holiday. But the Valentine’s Day we know today, with the cards and chocolates, really started as late as 1985, when Hallmark launched their Valentine’s Day advertisements in the US, claiming themselves as “The Valentine’s Store”. Valentine's Day was invented by greeting card companies. Mass-manufactured greeting cards were introduced in the United States in 1849 and sold by Hallmark in 1913. Today, according to Hallmark, an estimated 145 million Valentine’s Day cards are sent each year, making Valentine’s Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year (more cards are sent Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, [1] is celebrated annually on February 14. [2] It originated as a Christian feast day honoring a martyr named Valentine , and through later folk traditions it has also become a significant cultural, religious and commercial celebration of romance and love in Valentine's day was invented by Hallmark to sell cards - Ron Swanson valentines Card - Parks and Recreation famouslastcards 5 out of 5 stars. According to Hallmark, a whopping 145 million Valentine's Day cards are exchanged every February 14 (and that's not even including all those kids' Valentines exchanged in classrooms!). This makes Today only: Free Expedited Shipping to get it by Valentine’s Day. Exclusions apply. Valid at Hallmark.com until 2:00 a.m. CT on 2/10/25 on Expedited shipping Love it or hate it, Valentine’s Day, the annual celebration of romantic love, is hard to avoid. While many people scoff at the “Hallmark holiday,” the day actually has deep historical roots Most people think Valentine's Day was invented by Hallmark Cards. It wasn't. Valentine's Day is actually a well-documented, historical phenomenon -- its tangled roots winding their way through centuries worth of Christian liturgy, pagan tradition, myth, and an occasional beheading.
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