Canadian Mothers Say Receiving No Gift is the Worst Mothers Day Gift of All

Toronto, ON - Finding the perfect gift for the best mother on earth can be a daunting task, but it's the thought that counts, according to a new Ipsos Reid poll of mothers, conducted on behalf of the Christian Children's Fund of Canada. When asked what the worst Mother's Day gift they've ever received was, 14% of mothers say that receiving no gift at all was the worst gift they've received, while another 2% say forgetting altogether that it was Mother's Day was the worst gift they've ever received.

While a majority (51%) of mothers say that they've never received a bad gift and they've liked everything they've ever received for Mother's Day, some mothers have received a few admittedly terrible gifts.

From among the 527 mothers who completed the survey, some of the worst gifts include: breakfast in bed with undercooked eggs and terrible coffee, a chocolate bar and a magazine from the corner store, a vacuum cleaner attachment, gardening tools, an electric broom, a toaster, an old sewing machine, fast food delivery (fried chicken), a clock with the price tag still left on the bottom, dish cloths, a promise that was never fulfilled, an ironing board, extra-extra-large track pants, a bad DVD, a frying pan, a soccer ball, plus-sized pyjamas, and a card that said "you're just like a mother".

Giving a gift that helps those who are less fortunate is becoming a more popular form of gift giving and solves the problem of trying to get a perfect gift for someone who has everything they need or want. In fact, eight in ten (80%) mothers say they'd be `pleased' (35% very/45% somewhat) if someone bought them a gift in their name from a charitable gift catalogue for Mother's Day, with mothers living in Atlantic Canada (89%) and Alberta (87%) being the most likely to say so. Just two in ten (20%) mothers, overall, say they would not be pleased (6% not at all/14% not very) to receive a gift of this nature.

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between February 18-24, 2011, on behalf of the Christian Children's Fund of Canada. For this survey, a sample of 527 mothers from Ipsos' Canadian online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics and ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. A survey with an unweighted probability sample of this size and a 100% response rate would have an estimated margin of error of +/-4.3 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what the results would have been had the entire population of mothers in Canada been polled.

For more information on this news release, please contact:

Sean Simpson
Associate Vice President
Ipsos Reid
416.572.4474
[email protected]

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