Ask The Gift Basket Expert » Startup Help

Which Gift Basket Products Do I Buy?

Shirley George Frazier — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 02:31:29 +0000

Ashley asks:

“I’m trying to decide what products to buy for my business, and I can’t make up my mind. There are so many choices. How can I choose the best products to offer my customers?”

Before you buy one product, you must thoroughly understand the people who will be buying your gift baskets. What are their likes and dislikes? Popcorn, nuts and chocolates are products that regularly appear in baskets, but plush animals are a specialty item.

If customers aren’t the plush-loving type, the decision to buy such a product will be a waste of your inventory money.

Many designers start their businesses by buying enough inventory to make 12 designs. Your decision will depend on the amount of investment money available and the initial size of your business.

Try not to buy products that you think are cute. Chances are that if it’s too unique, customers won’t want it in their baskets, and that case of product will become yours alone. Good luck!

© 2008-2010 Shirley George Frazier. All rights reserved. Shirley George Frazier is recognized as the leading authority on the gift basket industry. She is author of How to Start a Home-Based Gift Basket Business, The Gift Basket Design Book, and Marketing Strategies for the Home-Based Business. Visit GiftBasketBusiness.com for videos, CDs, reports, tips, online newsletter, and much more to learn, grow, and profit with gift baskets.

Gift Baskets are Stressing Me Out. What Do I Do?

Shirley George Frazier — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 22:20:44 +0000

Maria asks:

“I’m having a tough time not feeling overwhelmed. I’m trying to take baby steps, but it seems that everything I do rolls over into another task (design a brochure, take pictures, make baskets, buy products, etc.). It’s all jumbled together, and I can’t focus. Any suggestions?”

All new designers experience similar stress, and experienced designers also go through this situation.

The best way to control it is to find a quiet spot and conduct your own, no-rush brainstorming session. Have paper and pen with you to create a list of steps required to accomplishing your goals.

Don’t worry about the order; you’ll be able to re-structure the steps after listing the most-important tasks.

If working on a computer is better, do that. The technology’s not important; completing the project is.

The steps include a timetable for completion, similar to the business plan shown in How to Start a Home-Based Gift Basket Business.

Each task becomes manageable when you separate everything into small steps. Yes, there’s lots to do, but you’d also complete this mission for someone else who would keep all the profits while you make a small salary.

Many designers have faced and conquered this challenge. So will you.

Unemployed and Starting a Gift Basket Business

Shirley George Frazier — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 18:50:53 +0000

Penny asks:

“I’ve just lost my job and want to start a gift basket business. I have a mortgage to pay and children to feed. Tell me how to get up and running quickly.”

No matter how much a business wants to push their fee-based books and materials on you, it would be cruel of that business owner, including me, to encourage you to start a business in your present circumstances.

The decision to make and sell gift baskets is best done when you have access to monies not set aside for food, clothing, and shelter, especially where the well being of families is concerned.

This business requires products, equipment, and training to ensure that your gift baskets sell steadily and at the highest possible profit.

Starting your business now will be frustrating and unwise. Investment money, concentration, and persistence are required to succeed. You’ll find more information about the traits of highly-successful gift basket designers in the frequently-asked questions section of GiftBasketBusiness.com.

When you’re truly ready, financially and otherwise, the gift basket industry will be here for you.

Selling Gift Baskets with No Foods

Shirley George Frazier — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 14:30:33 +0000

Anna asks:

“I want to make baskets with gifts rather than with just food. Can I make money with that?”

Absolutely. When I began my business in 1990, I started by including all gift items. The only edible product in my baskets was a handful of lollipops with my business name pre-printed on the candy.

I launched with all gifts because I wasn’t sure, at the time, if my city’s laws allowed me to store and sell pre-packaged foods from my home base.

Some of my most-popular items included:

Plush animals (these sold very well for Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day)

Tea pots, tea cups and saucers (everyone loved the patterns)

Soaps and spa accessories (grooming products are still very popular)

Baby items (difficult to keep in stock because they sold fast)

Corporate desk gifts (paperweights, frames, and specialty Post-its were favorites)

As with food baskets, the marketing you choose to promote your all-gift baskets must be positioned to help you reach the intended audience.

That’s what I did, and my baskets sold quickly.

I constantly reminded customers that the gifts would last a lifetime. That’s what worked for me. Perhaps that same type of message will also work for you.

Are the Holidays a Good Time to Open for Business?

Shirley George Frazier — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 12:17:42 +0000

Ruby asks:

“I’m thinking of starting a gift basket business next year, but I want to make money now so that I have some extra cash to officially start making baskets. So are the holidays a good time to jump into this business?”

Wally Amos, the man who put Famous Amos Cookies on the map, once said something similar to, “If you don’t start your business now, when will you?”

The way your question is posed makes me think that there is some underlying reason why you’re hesitant, but if you have enough capital (cash) to buy inventory and enough contacts who will buy, why not start business by selling holiday gift baskets?

You wouldn’t be the first. In 2002, I worked with a designer who started business on November 12. She was confident that her business would make $5,000 gross (income before expenses are deducted) because of her business connections.

We crunched numbers, determined the inventory, and she started marketing a few days before Thanksgiving. On December 31, we checked her financials. Her gross sales were $4,893.78, and she continues to thrive today.

Some of the marketing tactics in her plan are documented in 101 Ways to Market Gift Baskets.

If your research convinces you to start now, do it without hesitation. Or wait. The choice is up to you.