FT.com / Style - Why gift concierges are thriving
12/12/2009 09:18
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Why gift concierges are thriving
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By Lucie Greene Published: December 12 2009 00:41 | Last updated: December 12 2009 00:41
Happy Holidays honey, here is this wonderful personalised gift that I spent hours scouring international territories for in the exact colour and style that you love ... except, well, actually my gift concierge found it.” Last month a flurry of gift concierges, experiential gift companies and services launched, all aiming to help the cash-rich and time-poor find poignant gifts for loved ones. While there’s nothing particularly new about the gift adviser, the level of product, and the help available, has increased exponentially. These aren’t mere gift-recommending services that offer suggestions but still put the onus on the gifter to pick; these are gift-getting services. Bokks (www.bokks.com), the new London-based experiential gifting company that offers everything from private planes (Edése Doret Boeing Business Jet for a cool £85m) to intimate live performances by Lenny Kravitz, opened its Mayfair store last month with an accompanying online retail site and plans to roll out the concept globally; Net-a-porter.com has launched a gift-finder service with same-day delivery (for residents in London) and gift-wrapping in addition to its existing fashion advisory service; the personal concierge service, Quintessentially, has introduced Quintessentially Bespoke (www.quintessentially.com), a collection of luxury limited edition products from brands including Richard James, Michael Kors and Matthew Williamson; and stores, from Selfridges in London to Barneys in New York, are expanding their customer concierge services for the busy holiday period. As to why, consider the fact that Quintessentially’s gifting arm grew 30-40 per cent last year. There is money in solving other people’s problems. But aren’t such time-saving services kind of cheating? “Au contraire!” says Simon Doonan, creative director at Barneys (www.barneys.com). “Our customers are obsessed with finding nifty gifts. If that means using a service, then so what? Personal shoppers help them get it right. Cheating is when you re-gift and just shove last year’s freebie bottle of cheap sherry in a bag.” “People usually default to a boring choice when they’re giving gifts. It takes a lot of time to find something different and special. We just do that for you,” says Walter Bugno, chief executive at Bokks. The company has tapped Karl Lagerfeld and Dustin Hoffman to curate luxury gift ranges, and collaborated with designers including Tom Ford and Neil Barrett on limited edition pieces. Bokks’ USP, it says, is the price, the service and the theatrical delivery. (All gifts are presented by special Bokks bellhops and service and delivery is included in the price.) Lee Coleman, Quintessentially Gifts’ managing director, sees no shame in getting help to buy the perfect present (in the past this has included popcorn machines with personalised popcorn bags and watches with the world bezel altered to a person’s country). “It’s very easy to buy generic gifts so, in a way, using these services proves that you care,” she says. “Lots of people have family in different places, and it’s hard for them to get good presents to their loved ones. Often they’re very involved too – we’re just the facilitators.” Many gifting services are aimed primarily at men; executives whose busy lifestyle leaves little time for gift sourcing. Should they be blamed for thinking laterally? “I work an 80-hour week, and on my days off I don’t want to trawl around the shops,” says chef Tom Aiken, who has used Net-a-Porter’s advisory service for several years to buy gifts for his wife. He adds: “I also think men find it harder, as quite a lot of them get fashion very wrong. This way I get someone who understands what I want, it comes gift-wrapped, and there’s no stress.” That may be so, but there are some sticklers who believe the effort – and, indeed, the stress – is all part of showing you care. “When you buy a gift you should do it with pleasure. It shouldn’t be an imposition,” says shoe designer Manolo Blahnik. “I love to touch and see gifts; there’s no point in giving me something divine if you haven’t done it yourself.”
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Anya Hindmarch is a fellow gifting enthusiast, and launched Anya Hindmarch Bespoke (www.anyahindmarch.com) this month in part because of her desire to personalise gifts such as leather goods and trinkets. “I think it’s possibly the most uncommercial venture I’ve ever worked on, but I had to do it,” she says. “We’re all busy, and of course, everything has its place. I would make the gifts you give much more personalised, about shared jokes or personal memories. It’s more special that way.” Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2009. You may share using our article tools. Please don't cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web. Print article
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FT.com / Style - Why gift concierges are thriving
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