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Father's Day - Eating Out & Gift Certificates Top Gift Lists

	Books or CDs 22.3% Clothing 32.0% Electronics or computer-related accessories 15% Gift certificates 27% Greeting Cards 69% Home improvement or gardening tools 10.9% Special meals or outings 38.1% Sporting goods or leisure items 9.1% Tools or appliances 11.2%

Gone are the days of ties and after shave cologne as the standard gifts for Father's Day.

Retailers everywhere are gearing up for the only holiday in which wacky 'World's Greatest Dad' neckties, golf clubs and barbeque sets prove to be thoughtful gifts.

According to the NRF 2006 Father's Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by BIGresearch, spending on Father's Day in 2006 climbed to $9.0 billion, up from $8.2 billion in 2005 .

What Gifts Are Most Popular?
Almost 69 percent of consumers are expected to purchase at least one card for Father's Day. Dinners, brunches and other special outings will be the way that 38% of dads are feted.

While clothing–the ever popular shirts, ties, sock and underwear–will be chosen by 32% as gifts to give dad, gift certificates that let him pick his own gift are growing in popularity.

Which Men Get Gifts?
Although the groups overlap, the researchers did manage to get a breakdown of which guys will be on the receiving end of Father's Day gift giving. Fathers and Step-dads head the list with about 60% of the gifts. Husbands get about 34% and sons 7.5%. Grandfathers, brothers and friends all are close with a little more than 4% of the gifts. Other relatives will be the focus of the rest of the Father's Day shopping.

When it comes to price tags on Father's Day, the average person is expected to spend $88.80, compared to the $122.16 spent this year on Mom. Women are the lead spenders for this holiday, with average per-person spending anticipated to reach $90.41, about the same as 2005. Men will spend approximately $87.07 for dad this year, slightly higher than the $79.42 last year.

NRF President and CEO, Tracy Mullin, said, "In spite of higher gas prices, lower consumer confidence, and inflation concerns, shoppers are still opening their wallets for what's really important."