DALLAS, Apr 19, 2005/ FW/ --- Rising gas prices cannot stop Mother’s Day as the average person plans to spend $104.63 on Mother's Day this year, up from $98.64 in 2004, according to the National Retail Federation.

In a survey conducted by BIGresearch, Mother’s Day spending is expected to climb up to $11.43 billion, up 9.5% from $10.43 billion in 2004.

"Consumers see Mother's Day as a way to show the women in their lives how important they are," said Tracy Mullin, President and CEO of the National Retail Federation. "While the types of gifts may vary, the intentions remain the same-- to honor the special women who impact our lives all year long."

And men are going all out to celebrate the women in their lives. According to the survey, 85% of men plan to buy gifts for Mother’s Day, compared to 81.1% of women, with an average of 83% for both genders.

And what would they give to Mom?

Flowers and greeting cards remain holiday favorites, with more than half of consumers polled planning to buy flowers (50.7%) and nearly three-fourths (73.6%) of them purchasing a Mother's Day card.

Moms will also be receiving more gift certificates this year, as more than a quarter (25.5%) of consumers plan to give gift certificates, up almost 10 percent from last year.

And shoppers aren't only showering attention on mom. While about two thirds of consumers (65.2%) plan to purchase a Mother's Day gift for their mother or stepmother, others plan to purchase gifts for daughters (8.4%), grandmothers (7.4%), and friends (5.7%). In addition, 39.8 percent of men plan to purchase a gift for their wife.

Men will lead the pack, spending $139.02 on average this Mother's Day, almost twice as much as the average woman ($74.28).

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