Our guide to great gifting
The festive shopping period brings opportunities for independent gift retailers, but also pressure to offer an inspiring range that will connect with customers.
We asked some of our team to reflect on what makes a great gift and share the books they’d most like to give and receive.
Adam
What makes a great gift?
A gift that you never knew you needed. I receive the most thoughtful gifts from a certain friend who always seems to find the perfect gifts for me based on nothing more than day-to-day conversations. They seemingly read between the lines of everyday chat and finds the most fitting and considerate gifts that always hit the mark.
Best book to give this year
Eating good food doesn’t need to be intimidating or complicated. Ottolenghi distils this so well in this book. This book has led me to try dishes I would never have dreamed of making. To be able to give something that can change someone else’s life and perceptions is special.
Book I’d love to receive this year
What can I say? I’m a big fan of Alan’s work. His black and white photographs and high-contrast approach, which combine clever shadow and highlight play, have always been a favourite of mine. I thoroughly enjoy seeing other people’s viewpoints of the world.
Adam Mays, Finance Administration Assistant
Kelly
What makes a great gift?
Gifts that show someone has noticed and remembered the things that interest you are always appreciated.
Best book to give this year
I bought the original edition of this cookbook when it first came out and enthusiastically recommend it to anyone with a garden, an allotment, or even a veg box subscription ever since. There are plenty of ideas for fruit and veg that you don’t often see on the supermarket shelves (like tayberries and chard) or what to do with a glut of marrow (try the Edwardian-inspired marrow and ginger jam).
Book I’d love to receive this year
This looks like the perfect antidote to Pinterest-worthy crafting aspirations. What could be better than inviting a group of friends around for an afternoon of channelling our inner 8-year-old crafting selves? I can already smell the hot glue and hear the 80’s classics playing in the background.
Kelly Bartholet, Bibliographic Database Coordinator
Chris
What makes a great gift?
The best gift reflects the thoughtfulness that went into choosing it. It should speak to the interests of the receiver, but also show that the giver knows and cares for them enough to find the appropriate token. Those are the kind of gifts that make everyone involved happy, and books are great for finding just the right thing to make that joy happen.
Best book to give this year
One book I will be giving this year is the latest edition of The Almanac: a Seasonal Guide. It’s perfect for anyone who loves the natural world and being in tune with the changing seasons, and the almanac format means it’s a gift that can stay with them week-by-week and month-by-month through the whole year.
Book I’d love to receive this year
At Christmas I like to settle in with a whodunit and some gentle sleuthing (think Poirot repeats on TV). In book form, this little gift edition of Classic Christmas Crime Stories from the Collector’s Library series is the ideal thing to while away the evening while digesting the Christmas dinner. That’s my hoped-for gift!
Chris Barker, Key Account Manager
Willa
What makes a great gift?
In my opinion, experiences make the best gifts, be it a rock-climbing gift certificate, a cinema card, etc. Experiences are usually unforgettable and they don’t clutter things up. Books are an experience you can have over and over or pass on to someone else when you’re done so in this way they’re perfect gifts.
Best book to give this year
Scabby Queen by Kirstin Innes. I’m taking a bit of a risk here as I’m only on page 36 but so far it’s riveting. It a novel exploring activism in a Scotland struggling to breathe under Thatcher’s regime. It does so by following the life of a fictional political activist/rising star on the Scottish music scene, beginning with her death on the eve of her 51st birthday. At this point in my reading I would happily gift this to many people I know.
Book I’d love to receive this year
Time Shelter by Georgi Gospodinov, translated by Angela Rodel. Because I’m very intrigued by the premise and other authors I’ve enjoyed have spoken well of it.
Willa Bews, Sales Support
Rebecca
What makes a great gift?
I prefer an experience that creates memories rather than anything materialistic.
Best book to give this year
The Midnight Library! I could read it again and again and would like to spread the important message.
Book I’d love to receive this year
I am still a sucker for a paper diary, so the Hebridean 2024 Pocket Diary would be my choice.
Rebecca Mackay, HR Manager
