Every year, offices send out gifts that end up in a drawer: another diary, another pen, another water bottle with a logo. They are useful, and they are quickly forgotten. A gift that is kept says something different about the organisation that gave it. It says that someone thought about the person receiving it.
Start with the relationship. The right gift depends on who it is for. A long-standing client, a board member retiring after years of service, a visiting delegation and a team that has just delivered a difficult project each call for something different. Decide what the gift should say before deciding what it should be.
Gifts with a story travel further. More and more organisations want gifts that reflect their values as well as their brand, and heritage art does both. Every piece in our heritage collections is hand-stitched by artisans trained through our partner workshops, which work with women, youth, persons with disabilities and individuals in recovery. The recipient receives a one of one work, and a story to tell whenever someone asks about it.
Choose the theme with care. The heritage collections lend themselves to particular messages. Works from The Wild Kingdom speak of strength and leadership, and The Zebra of Integrity is a natural choice for a partner whose trust you value. Heart and Hearth, with its homes and cottages, suits a colleague moving into a new home or a client in property. The Botanical Collection's themes of growth and renewal suit a new venture or an anniversary.
Porcelain for the table they host at. A porcelain tea set is a generous and practical gift for a senior client or partner, and it appears every time they receive guests. Sets finished in 24k gold, such as the Empress tea set, are formal enough for executive and diplomatic gifting.
Plan quantities early. Corporate gifting often means many gifts at once, and a one of one artwork cannot be duplicated. For a larger list, consider a mix: statement heritage pieces for the most senior recipients and porcelain for the wider group. Share the number of gifts and the date you need them as early as you can.
Think about delivery and the message. Decide whether gifts should come to your office for you to hand over, or go directly to each recipient, and whether a personal message should travel with each one. These details make a gift feel personal rather than procedural, and they are part of every gift enquiry we receive.
Brand lightly, if at all. A message card from the chairperson or chief executive often carries more weight than a logo on the gift itself. If branding matters for a particular occasion, raise it at the start so a curator can advise what is possible for the pieces you are considering.
Mind the rules. Many organisations, particularly in the public sector and the diplomatic service, have policies on the value of gifts their people may accept. Check them before you choose, so that a thoughtful gift never becomes an awkward one.
Our Gifting Atelier brings together the occasions we are asked about most, from executive and diplomatic gifts to hospitality and milestone celebrations. Start a gift enquiry with the occasion, the number of gifts and the date you need them, and a curator will be in touch.