Of course there are always exceptions, but ask most people who they find it most difficult to gift for and you will often hear that it’s their Father, or another male loved one!
With a father and a husband who are both notoriously difficult to buy for, I feel your pain if this is you. What’s more, my father and husband will both let you know in no uncertain terms if what they have received has in any way not hit the mark! You want to gift thoughtfully and make them feel special. However, despite good intentions and hours of researching and considering options, I have had plenty of gifting fails with my father - many a voucher has gone unused, many an item is collecting dust, many a book unread.
These days, I have a much higher success rate by following a few key principles.
Gifts that are practical but luxurious
Buying practical items is my number one principle for both shopping for challenging recipients and for shopping and gifting sustainably. We find that items such as our Coffee Gift Boxes and Shave and Beard Gift Boxes are popular gifts for men for just this reason - items that the giver knows are used daily by the recipient, but which are taken to the next level in terms of quality, luxuriousness or novelty as a gift.
Often recipients are introduced to new favourites (we have had comments to this affect in relation to many of our items including our coffee and natural skincare products that we stock) and regardless they at least get to enjoy a little extra luxury at shave time or during their morning coffee.
Experiences
Vouchers and experiences are great, but if the person that you are buying for has very particular tastes or is prone to procrastination in booking in to spend said voucher, perhaps consider taking them in person for an experience that you can do together. It's often more fun creating memories with the person who has gifted you the item (and you can also give them the encouragement needed if they're not quite sure about a new experience!)
Encourage a hobby
Considering interests and hobbies is not a new concept when it comes to gifting and it can still be tricky because, really, how many items do you need to keep many hobbies rolling? We are all about sustainable gifting and helping you to share eco-friendly gifts so the last thing we would want to do is advocate for gifting gimmicks that are not actually that essential or useful in relation to the hobby of interest.
But … I’ve found with gifting for fathers and men it is still a great option to consider. My father, for example, loves the outdoors and while he may not climb or mountain bike or continue with many of the activities from his younger days, he still loves walking. And some of the gifts I’ve given that relate to this have been very successful - including a voucher for his local outdoors shop and also the gorgeous Sweet Bamboo Reusable Coffee Cup that is available in our Coffee Lover’s Gift Boxes. Items such as the muscle rub and natural sunscreen available alongside a reusable coffee cup or flask and other treats in our Outdoorsy Gift Box is a great example of encouraging a passion with a thoughtful gift that is also practical and sustainable.
We hope that we might have inspired some ideas for your own gifting. As always we love to hear from you so please reach out if you’d like to chat through any ideas to create a bespoke gift box for your loved one.