PPB July 2021

by Kristina Valdez Gi f t ab l e Pr oduc t s Giving Joy When restrictions were placed on in-person socialization in 2020, people turned to gifts to connect and maintain relationships. After a year of using gifts to replace in-person celebrations, establish and maintain relationships and make up for missed milestones, the culture of gift- giving has been forever altered—in a good way. G ifts are relationship investments. Whether we are dropping off a hot meal to a neighbor, treating a loyal employee or making something special for Mother’s Day, we use gifts to not only show our love and appreciation but to strengthen the bonds we already have with others. While in lockdown, consumers used gifts to fill the gap created by the social-distancing requirements. Gifts sent just to say “thinking of you” were a favorite way that people and businesses checked in on loved ones and customers alike. According to a gifting market report from Ask Wonder, the gifting market soared in 2020, reaching an estimated $250 billion in the U.S. In comparison, in 2019, the same market had an estimated worth of $170 billion. Gift-giving requires time, money and thought, as gift-givers must carefully choose an item that sends the intended message to recipients. Gifts also validate our relationships as tangible examples of care and attention. According to the National Retail Federation, gift-givers are expected to increase their average spending from $205 in 2020 to $221 this year, an eight-percent increase. More significantly, young consumers, aged 25-34 years old, will spend $367 on average, which is $99 more than last year. Although holiday gift-giving is the centerpiece, the culture of gifting has slowly become a prominent facet of our everyday lives. A Unity Marketing study found that about 45 percent of gift spending goes towards holiday gift-buying which suggests that 55 percent of gift spending occurs outside of the holiday season. In the case of business giving, this could include new customer generation, customer appreciation, gift with purchase and similar ways to say thank you. With the shift from brick-and-mortar retail to digital commerce in the early 2000s, the gift market had a period of rejuvenation as the internet enabled consumers to peruse products across an endless number of sources. For shoppers, research and reviews have nrey / Jag_cz / OCTOGRAPHERS / phive / Shutterstock.com. 50 | JULY 2021 | GROW