Local businesses feel the stress instead of the love on Feb. 14. It’s a day for extra inventory and long hours, almost always resulting in a substantially larger payoff than the year’s other 364 days.

Here’s a look at how four local businesses prepare for the most romantic day of the year.

Carol Morgan, Russell Stover Candies manager

While sticking price tags to displays holding the famous boxes of chocolate, Carol Morgan looked tired.

The crew at Russell Stover Candies, 1300 W. 23rd St., ordered its Valentine’s Day inventory in October and has been preparing for its busiest day of the year ever since.

“If you’re prepared and you know what’s coming, you get your help lined up, your products lined up, and I’d like to say it goes smoothly.” Morgan said. “Well, it goes smoother.”

Of course, the candy industry does a great deal of business during the month of February. Morgan gave numbers that even the most extreme chocolate lover would have trouble digesting.

In the five days leading up to the big day, her store does 20 to 25 percent of its business for the entire year, Morgan said.

Although Wal-Mart and other discount chains sell Russell Stover products, this store sells all the Russell Stover candies on the market. Morgan’s crew makes its own sweets, too, such as chocolate-dipped fruit and nut clusters.

Already approaching 60 hours this week in the kitchen, Steve Agnew, Atchison senior, said that his Valentine’s Day would start at 6 a.m. in the store.

Carol Morgan’s ideal Valentine’s Day gift?

“I’m hoping to get flowers this year. My husband’s pretty good about knowing that I don’t even want to see that stuff, although chocolate used to be my favorite gift.”

Susan Engle, Englewood Florist owner

Peeking into a freezer in the basement, known by employees as the dungeon, one could see cut and arranged flowers lining the chilly shelves. Each holding a card addressed to the apple of some Lawrencian’s eye; they waited in vases to be delivered.

“It’s a little bit like a play,” said Susan Engle, owner of Englewood Florist, of Valentine’s Day in her shop. “You work so hard at rehearsals, fight at the dress rehearsal and somebody is going to be yelling at somebody else. Sure, it’s going to get a little tense, but then you get to the show and realize this is why we do this. It’s all about the applause.”

Today is Engle’s 13th Valentine’s Day as a florist at 1101 Massachusetts St. She and Cary, her husband and co-owner of the store, start their Valentine’s Day preparation on February 15th of the previous year.

“What other businesses will do in a month, we’ll do in one day,” Engle said.

On a typical day, Englewood Florist will deliver anywhere between 30 to 50 orders. Today, however, Engle said that they already had more than 200 deliveries planned and 40 to 45 extra drivers who are temporarily hired.

Not that everyone is organized enough to have their flowers picked out in an orderly, timely manner. Engle said that until they implemented a new computer-based system to organize orders and deliveries, it was those latecomers that contributed to their 2 to 3 a.m. Valentine’s Day eves.

Susan Engle’s ideal Valentine’s Day gift?

“It might be that chair massage,” she said of the treat she’s bringing in to thank her employees. “But even though you work with flowers all the time, you just can’t not enjoy them.”

Robert Osburn, Naughty But Nice co-owner

His bigger sales are to couples.

Osburn and his brother, Richard, opened Naughty But Nice, 1741 Massachusetts St., together in December of 1999. It has been a Valentine’s Day hot spot ever since. Typically just one worker can take care of the store and handle the customers without help. But close to Valentine’s Day, they bring four people out at a time for extra help, Osburn said.

“It’s the one day of the year that there are no excuses,” Osburn said. “You have to be here.”

To accommodate the demands of his customers, Osburn bulks up his inventory for February. Items such as lingerie and high-heeled “dancer” shoes both sell at a much higher rate around Valentine’s Day.

“The shoes go up because that’s the time the average gal may want to wear some of the dancer shoes for what they call porn star sex,” Osburn said.

Osburn said he catered to students, but not nearly to the same extent as who he called the typical “9-to-5-ers.” But when it comes to the pinnacle of romance, it’s the couples that seek his advice.

“They’ll come in for something they both like and they both can have fun with,” Osburn said. “It’s kind of like going to the grocery store — he likes this, she likes this and they settle on that.”

Robert Osburn’s ideal Valentine’s Day gift?

“The Kama Sutra bed and bath product — strawberries and champagne scented warming massage oil.”

Jennifer Hoyt, Teller’s server

Jennifer Hoyt has worked every Valentine’s Day for the past five years, but the Topeka senior doesn’t even argue about it.

“You make a lot of money on Valentine’s Day,” she said. “I’m pretty used to it by now.”

Restaurants such as Teller’s, 746 Massachusetts St., are notorious for being packed on the big day. Hoyt said that the money was good, but a lot harder to come by than usual because of the increased number of two-person parties.

“That just means you have to work a lot harder for your money,” Hoyt said.

Serving food to so many deters Hoyt and her boyfriend from wanting to go out when it is finally their turn to celebrate, but she isn’t looking past her work ahead just yet.

“I just come to work, get dressed and make sure to get lots of rest the night before, because it’s going to be crazy busy,” Hoyt said.

Jennifer Hoyt’s Ideal Valentine’s Day gift?

“Probably just hanging out with my boyfriend and making some dinner at home.”