Gift options on Latvian market
Not a long time ago there weren't many possibilities to present dear ones with gifts; normally a gift choice was either a box of candies, or a bar of chocolate (in rear cases these could be supplied with a bottle of cognac).
In case a little initiative could be undertaken, to go out of the circle of stereotypes, all that could be done was to present banknotes in an envelope.
A couple of months ago I needed to congratulate mu cousin on her 20 yrs anniversary, so I went to one of the beauty shops selling perfume, and for about $40.00 I purchased a electronic card (similar to Visa Electron in shape or any other classic debit or credit card) which was easy to send via snail mail. The coolest thing about such a gift is that it can be used to buy anything in a network of shops, so my cousin could choose from hundreds of perfume names & brands.
Gift certificate is more personal, than plain money, and way more usable. Today presenting a person with cash is obsolete and reminds of the centuries gone buy. But electronic wire transfer to a bank account loses any personal attitude. So my choice heads over to gift certificates.
To add still more, some e-based shops (even Latvian based) offer to potential customers a variety of gift certificates available for ordering online; typically a gift certificate can be a coupon code, or a voucher which does not need to be delivered to the customer. It is very cool and modern to make a gift as a password to some night club; it's stylish and fun. If a plastic card is implied, than a courier can deliver it within 24 hours (because Latvia is very small in territory, any location can be reached in under a day). This makes the gift certificates choices quite multiple; I believe European or North American countries have a more developed tradition with wider spread networks or chains of stores offering customers various ways to make a gift, it is still very pleasant to note that this tradition has established itself in our market conditions, too.
In case a little initiative could be undertaken, to go out of the circle of stereotypes, all that could be done was to present banknotes in an envelope.
A couple of months ago I needed to congratulate mu cousin on her 20 yrs anniversary, so I went to one of the beauty shops selling perfume, and for about $40.00 I purchased a electronic card (similar to Visa Electron in shape or any other classic debit or credit card) which was easy to send via snail mail. The coolest thing about such a gift is that it can be used to buy anything in a network of shops, so my cousin could choose from hundreds of perfume names & brands.
Gift certificate is more personal, than plain money, and way more usable. Today presenting a person with cash is obsolete and reminds of the centuries gone buy. But electronic wire transfer to a bank account loses any personal attitude. So my choice heads over to gift certificates.
To add still more, some e-based shops (even Latvian based) offer to potential customers a variety of gift certificates available for ordering online; typically a gift certificate can be a coupon code, or a voucher which does not need to be delivered to the customer. It is very cool and modern to make a gift as a password to some night club; it's stylish and fun. If a plastic card is implied, than a courier can deliver it within 24 hours (because Latvia is very small in territory, any location can be reached in under a day). This makes the gift certificates choices quite multiple; I believe European or North American countries have a more developed tradition with wider spread networks or chains of stores offering customers various ways to make a gift, it is still very pleasant to note that this tradition has established itself in our market conditions, too.
posted by Kelly Wright at
12:54 PM
