Your guide to themed corporate gifting

We like to say that gift giving is an art form here at The Artsy Box because we believe that statement encompasses how difficult the act can actually be. A lot of people stress when it comes to picking out the perfect gift for someone and feel they aren’t very good at it. This can be even more difficult when you are a company attempting to get a gift that makes sense for several of your employees. 

Corporate gifting can at times feel stale and end up frustrating employees more than make them feel special or appreciated. They are sick of the stale cheese and cracker gift baskets they see all the time and don’t want cheap items that will break quickly. You want to appeal to a wide group of people, but you also don’t want your corporate gifts to feel generic. We have a little tip for you to make it easier: come up with a gift theme. 

Themed gifts aren’t anything new - we’ve all seen the different themed gift baskets that you can buy at those kiosks at the mall during the holidays and there are plenty of curated themed gift baskets you can find online. Over the years these themed gift baskets have become impersonal and a bit stale, though, so we can understand why you might initially be turned off at the thought of a themed gift. 

But that’s where we can come in and work with you to come up with a themed gift that is fun, unique and fits your personality as well as the recipient’s. 

Of course the holidays are a popular time to turn to themed gift boxes or themed gift baskets, so we’ll illustrate what we mean with an example from our most recent holiday season in 2020. Last year was strange for everyone, so a company approached us wanting to provide a unique themed gift box for their employees in lieu of a holiday party. 

This company wanted to go beyond a typical “holiday” theme and include some commentary on 2020 as well. They asked us to come up with a pitch that included a little comedic relief and was memorable. 

We created a gift box that played into the holiday theme as well as an overall “2020” theme. We included cozy, holiday-scented candles, a seasonal mug, and some sweet treats you might typically find in our curated holiday gift boxes. But we also included a funny toilet paper roll, a 2020 souvenir ornament, a holiday face mask and tech cleansing wipes.

The client loved all the ideas and followed up with us to tell us their employees thought the box was fun and hilarious. They said we went above and beyond to make their general idea even better than they hoped. The themed gift box included useful items, things they really enjoyed and fun mementos from a very strange year. We were really able to take their idea and run with it.

Corporate themed gifts are popular during the holiday season at the end of December, but they can be a great option to show your appreciation for your employees, clients or customers all year round. Sending home care packages for your employees working from home can be a great way to remind them you are thinking of them and appreciate all they do. For example, Valentine’s Day is right around the corner. Perhaps in lieu of your annual Valentine’s Day office party or cocktail hour, you can send your employees a themed gift box that shows them some love but also incorporates another theme beyond your generic Valentine’s Day gift baskets. 

The pandemic has made it more difficult than ever to celebrate employees in the traditional ways we have in the past. It’s unlikely we’ll be able to get together for our typical annual banquets or celebratory lunches. Many companies cannot give out the local sports games tickets or invite top employees to special events as a reward for their hard work. At the same time, the work employees are doing deserve to be celebrated more than ever as they are facing unprecedented challenges. 

Another example of our themed gifts for corporate events comes from last year, when a company approached us because they were unable to bring their top employees to an annual golf tournament that is typically held. Rather than do nothing at all, they asked us to come up with a golf-themed gift box to show appreciation for the employees in a high-end, unique way compared to attending the golf event. 

Themed corporate gift boxes can be a great way to celebrate longtime clients and vendors as well, or a way to welcome new clients. You can choose a theme based on a current event or upcoming holiday, a mutual interest, the line of work they are in, or the line of work you are in. 

The possibilities are endless and can be daunting, but that’s where we come in. You can come to us with a general idea (or a few of them!) and we can come up with a solution that will work for you and go above and beyond what you expect from traditional corporate gifting.