Valentine’s Releases

This week, I appear to have been time travelling. No sooner had the truffled Brie disappeared from the fridge and the Christmas decorations been taken down, than it’s Valentine’s Day – or so it would seem, judging from my inbox. I know that PRs like to pitch their stories early, but this early? Really? 

As a journalist who works for monthly magazines, weekly supplements and daily newspapers, I appreciate that PRs have to consider different lead times – not least because I operate on three. But this avalanche of Valentine releases is perplexing. The magazines’ February issues are already on the shelves, and it’s too early for newspapers, so who are they serving? Weekly supplements? They’re even too early for those. 

The problem with being too previous is that you run the risk of vexing the recipient, particularly if the link to Valentine’s Day is spurious. So full is my inbox with amorous emails that I’m beginning to wonder whether there’s any product on earth that can’t be shoe-horned into a love heart. The “Why X Is The Most Romantic City On Earth And You Must Visit Immediately” pitches are to be expected. So too are the pitches for chocolate, body oil, lingerie and pink gin. But casserole dishes and rucksacks? Not so much.

Is it love that’s in the air, or just a marketing ploy? Sometimes I wonder.