Mother’s Day: Are you a last-minute Larry or a competitive sibling?

When Mother’s Day rolls around, it’s not too dramatic to say that the country divides into those who are ultra-prepared and buy their mama’s card weeks in advance, or those who completely forget, and panic buy at the last minute. We were curious to find out exactly which areas of the country are proper mama’s boys, and which parts of the country are leaving their mothers questioning whether they’ll get a card at all, so we decided to create the ultimate award ceremony for best and worst children, to see who comes out on top of the podium.

We used our internal data on card sales to find out which cities can be crowned as having the most early-bird Mother’s Day card shoppers, and which come last in the rankings to make for the cities with the most last-minute lazybones. We also wanted to find out which areas had the most competitive siblings, to know which city ranked top for buying the most ‘#1 child’ cards for their mummies.

Who are the early bird shoppers?

It’s always easy to spot the early bird shoppers out there – swanning into the office with their smug grins and proclaiming that they had sent their heartfelt Mother’s Day card WEEKS ago when you cry out in panic at seeing the date looming. After scouring the nation’s card-buying habits, we found that these five areas were the most likely to want to keep their dearest mamas happy:

  1. Westminster – 95.79%

Coming in at first place for the entirety of the UK, over 95% of the population of Westminster in London are suck-ups.

  1. Skegness – 95.04%

Skegness came for silver in this title race, with a stunning 95% of the population buying their cards ahead of time when they go for a day trip to the ‘big shops’.

  1. Slough – 94.42%

The humble people of Slough slid into third on the podium, with just shy of 95% of the population admitting that they were able to grab a card on their way home from tea at Windsor Castle.

  1. Anglesey – 94.31%

Living in a holiday town, these people have nothing but time to saunter down to the shops and deliberate over the perfect Mother’s Day card to send.

  1. Redditch – 94.18%

In fifth place, we have Redditch, which is filled to the brim with young folks who respect their mothers and don’t have much else to occupy their time.

Who are the last-minute Larrys?

We’ve probably all been a last-minute Larry at some point in our lives – unless you live in Westminster of course – so it’s not uncommon to see panicked people scouring the shelves in the local supermarket on the day itself, stuck between a rude Mother’s Day card with a crude joke, and a traditional Mother’s Day card covered in flowers. It turns out that these five areas make for the shoddiest sons and dastardly daughters who can’t get their act together enough to buy their sweet mothers a card on time:

  1. Faversham – 93.82%

Clearly, life in Faversham is so fast-paced and hectic that only 6% of people can get to the shops more than a day ahead of time to pick up a Mother’s Day card… They take the #1 position on our podium!

  1. Eastleigh – 92.56%

Our second-place silver goes to the laid-back town of Eastleigh – down on the coast, nearly 93% of those who send Mother’s Day cards from Eastleigh are too busy surfing and going to vegan cafes to get to the shops on time!

  1. Mansfield – 92.26%

Bronze goes to the ever-humble area of Mansfield in Nottinghamshire, another city that takes the biscuit for leaving it to the last minute.

  1. Watford – 92.22%

Coming in hot on the heels of Mansfield are the Watford crowd – over 90% of them are too busy at the Warner Brother Studios Tour to head over to the giant Asda to get their mams a card.

  1. Stoke-on-Trent – 92.03%

The lovely people of Stoke-on-Trent are obviously too busy making handmade pottery for their mums rather than prioritising getting them a card, what a shame.

Who are the competitive siblings?

Now that we’re figured out who the early birds and last-minute Larrys are, we wanted to dig a little deeper into the psyche of the British public and find out just how competitive we are with our own siblings – put plainly, how many of us boast that we are the ‘number 1 child’ in our beloved mothers’ eyes, by buying a Mother’s Day card from her favourite? Here are the cities which have brothers and sisters at war with one another:

1. Gloucester – 5.81%

It makes sense that there isn’t much else to keep you entertained in the Cotswolds than a good old-fashioned sibling rivalry – Gloucester takes the top spot for most ‘#1 child’ cards bought in the UK.

2. Barrow-in-Furness – 4.32%

Sandwiched between two gorgeous national parks, it’s little wonder Barrow-in-Furness has ‘middle-child’ syndrome and needs some extra love – they slide into second with just shy of 5%. 

3. Redditch – 4.05%

Not only are the people of Redditch desperate to please their mum, but they also really want to be Mummy’s Favourite – what are Redditch mums doing so right over there?

4. Anglesey – 3.97%

Another pitcher from our top five early birds, Anglesey kids are clearly not winning their mothers affection with their poor surfing skills, so are going for the ‘#1 child’ Mother’s Day card bid instead.

5. Boston – 3.89%

With just shy of 3% of Bostonians (not the cool American kind, the Lincolnshire kind) buying their mums ‘#1 child’ Mother’s Day cards, we can only assume that they need some extra loving right now!

Whether you’re a mama’s boy who catches the early worm, or you’re a lazy sod who leaves it to the last minute, you can get your Mother’s Day cards delivered straight to her door for whatever day you like, thanks to our super speedy delivery service. You should also definitely tag on a gift if you’re running late, like our gorgeous handpicked flowers or chocolates