Contents:

Scope and Themes What you need to know Definition Data sources Consumer survey data Abbreviations and terms Executive Summary Registries: A key part of how consumers celebrate Gift cards, cash and equivalent gifts are strong competitors A severe recession hits registries hard New trends in marriage, birth drive registries Bed Bath & Beyond, Macy’s and Target leading registry choices In-store promotions can make the difference Core 25-44 age group dominates registry usage Growing interest in hobbies, charitable donations Stores still lead registries, but web is growing For alternative events, housewarmings have greatest potential Market Overview Overview Wide variety of options, but offline still dominates Competitive Context Gift cards—more thoughtful than cash? Non-gift registries—a rising trend Market Drivers A deep recession inspires a new austerity Figure 1: Disposable personal income, consumption and savings rates, 2006-09 Figure 2: Average spending on weddings, 2007-09 Figure 3: U.S. holiday spending, 2004-09 New transitions in the institution of marriage Figure 4: U.S. number of marriages and marriage rate, 2004-08 Figure 5: U.S. trends in marriage, divorce and cohabitation, 1990-2008 New opportunities with same-sex couples Baby showers and related events remain an opportunity Figure 6: U.S. number of births and fertility rate, 2004-08 Target the growing Hispanic population Figure 7: U.S. number of births, by race/Hispanic origin of mother, 2002-06 Leading Companies Bed Bath & Beyond Macy’s Target The Knot Innovation and Innovators Michael C. Fina Myregistry.com Wisheo Advertising Print advertising In-store displays and collateral Collateral material Promotions and contests In-store events Online advertising and marketing Usage Patterns Younger adult, upper-income respondents drive registry creation Figure 8: Gift registry creation, by gender, age and HH income, January 2010 Respondents cut back on wedding registries during tough times Figure 9: Registry creation, by event, trended, 2008 and 2010 Figure 10: Registry creation, by event, by gender, January 2010 Figure 11: Registry creation, by event, by age, January 2010 Figure 12: Registry creation, by event, by household income, January 2010 Types of Gifts Selected for Registry Hobbies, charity gifts raise in interest Figure 13: Types of gifts registered for, trended, 2008 and 2010 Figure 14: Types of gifts registered for, by gender, January 2010 Figure 15: Types of gifts registered for, by age, January 2010 Figure 16: Types of gifts registered for, by household income, January 2010 Charity and travel gifts are of strong interest Figure 17: Types of gifts interested in registering for, by gender, January 2010 Figure 18: Types of gifts interested in registering for, by age, January 2010 General Attitudes and Motivations Primary goals—guest convenience, registrant control Figure 19: Reasons for registry creation, 2008 and 2010 Figure 20: Reasons for registry creation, by age, January 2010 Figure 21: Reasons for registry creation, by household income, January 2010 Respondents who haven’t registered still seem open to registries Figure 22: Reasons for not creating gift registries, 2008 and 2010 Figure 23: Reasons for not creating gift registries, by gender, January 2010 Figure 24: Reasons for not creating gift registries, by age, January 2010 Figure 25: Reasons for not creating gift registries, by household income, January 2010 Registry Location and Choice Retail stores remain most popular, but interest in web is growing fast Figure 26: Location of registry, 2008 and 2010 Figure 27: Location of registry, by gender, January 2010 Figure 28: Location of registry, by age, January 2010 Figure 29: Location of registry, by household income, January 2010 Products drive registry location choice Figure 30: Factors impacting registry location choice, 2008 and 2010 Figure 31: Factors impacting registry location choice, by gender, January 2010 Figure 32: Factors impacting registry location choice, by age, January 2010 Satisfaction with Registries Satisfaction levels for registries still high, but declining Figure 33: Attitudes on registry used, 2008 and 2010 Figure 34: Attitudes on registry used, by gender, January 2010 Figure 35: Attitudes on registry used, by age, January 2010 Figure 36: Attitudes on registry used, by household income, January 2010 Attitudes on Registries for Alternative Events Respondents open to creating registries for alternative events Figure 37: Alternative registries—would consider, by gender, January 2010 Figure 38: Alternative registries—would consider, by age, January 2010 Graduations, religious events could be leveraged to drive registries Figure 39: Alternative registries—approve but would not register, by gender, January 2010 Figure 40: Alternative registries—approve but would not register, by age, January 2010 Figure 41: Alternative registries—approve but would not register, by household income, January 2010 High levels of negative feelings on registries for pet birthdays Figure 42: Alternative registries—registry not needed, by gender, January 2010 Figure 43: Alternative registries—registry not needed, by age, January 2010 Figure 44: Alternative registries—registry not needed, by household income, January 2010 Impact of the Recession Recession impacts gift choice Figure 45: Recession and gift registry planning, by gender, January 2010 Figure 46: Recession and gift registry planning, by age, January 2010 Figure 47: Recession and gift registry planning, by household income, January 2010 Impact of Race/Hispanic Origin Asians, Hispanics drive registry creation Figure 48: Registry creation, by event, by race/Hispanic origin, January 2010 Figure 49: Types of gifts registered for, by race/Hispanic origin, January 2010 Blacks more interested in charitable donations, home improvement Figure 50: Types of gifts interested in registering for, by race/ethnicity, January 2010 Strong opportunity to market registries to blacks Figure 51: Reasons for not creating a registry, by race/ethnicity, January 2010 Figure 52: Location of registry, by race/Hispanic origin. January 2008 Appendix: Other Useful Consumer Tables Figure 67: Types of gifts interested in registering for, by household income, January 2010 Figure 68: Reasons for registry creation, by gender, January 2010 Figure 69: Factors impacting registry location choice, by household income. January 2008 Appendix: Trade Associations

Companies Mentioned

- Association of Bridal Consultants - Bed Bath & Beyond Inc - Bloomingdale's - Bureau of Economic Analysis - Crate & Barrel - Direct Marketing Association, Inc. - Electronic Retailing Association - Facebook, Inc. - Google, Inc. - Greenfield Online - Macy's, Inc. - MySpace.com - National Retail Federation (NRF) - Target Corporation - Tiffany & Co. - TowerGroup - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics - Walmart Stores (USA)