7 Gift Store Success Stories [2024]

Updated: November 19th, 2023
Start A Gift Store

Running a gift store business involves selecting and selling unique, personalized products suitable for both special events and everyday celebrations.

As a business owner, you have the opportunity to source and showcase festive home decorations, gourmet delicacies, and handmade crafts that cater to different seasons and occasions throughout the year.

With the flexibility to offer various items and services driven by creativity and location, building a thriving local gift store allows owners to shape the shopping experience and create a sense of nostalgia in their community.

For aspiring entrepreneurs who possess a talent for adding special touches, opening a gift shop provides an opportunity to turn their passion into profit while designing cheerful and memorable experiences for their customers.

Here are some real life success stories of starting a gift store:

1. Passport 4 Change ($96K/year)

The Traveling Tooth Fairy started her business after realizing the lack of exposure children had to the world. Inspired by her niece's desire to go to Target, she created educational tooth fairy kits that include real foreign coins, a world map, and a passport book. With approximately $8,000 in monthly sales and a growing customer base, she hopes to expand her business and be a part of every child's tooth fairy adventure.

How much they make: $96K/year
Current team size: 2

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How This Flight Attendant Started An E-Commerce Business On The Side

This case study features a flight attendant who started an e-commerce business selling educational tooth fairy kits that include real foreign coins, which now generates around $8,000 per month in sales.

About
Tiffany started Passport 4 Change over 10 years ago
Revenue
Tiffany grew the business to $8K/month
Read by 6,145 founders

2. Tohfabd ($60K/year)

After successfully launching Tohfabd, Iqbal Anwar and his team focused on attracting and retaining customers. They utilized Facebook Ads campaigns and email marketing to generate leads and spread awareness about their online gift delivery service. Additionally, they offered regular discounts on gift items to incentivize customers and ensure top-notch service.

How much they make: $60K/year
How much did it cost to start: $10K
Current team size: 10

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I Started A 5K/Month Side Hustle Sending Gifts for Expats [Bangladesh]

Tohfabd is an online gift delivery business serving Bangladeshi expats, with over 500 logistics agents covering all of Bangladesh's districts and more than 8000 orders successfully delivered within six months, with a focus on cakes, flowers, and gifts to celebrate special occasions.

About
Iqbal started Tohfabd almost 3 years ago
Revenue
Iqbal grew the business to $5K/month
Costs
It cost Iqbal $10000 to start the business
Read by 3,061 founders

So... can you actually make money with a gift store?

Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.

But how?

  1. Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
  2. Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
  3. Take action, because now you have the roadmap.

Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:

Start Now

3. OffiNeeds ($9M/year)

Srikanth Acharya, the founder of OffiNeeds, came up with the idea for his corporate gifting business after a prank where he jokingly told people he was going to start a corporate gifting company. However, while answering questions about the business, he realized that there was a market for it and created a business plan. He resigned from his job and launched OffiNeeds, which has now almost doubled its revenues year-on-year and is on track to achieve INR 100 crore in revenue this year.

How much they make: $9M/year
How much did it cost to start: $1K
Current team size: 100

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An April Fool’s Prank, Led Me To Start My Corporate Gifting Company

Offineeds, a leading corporate gifting and custom merchandise company that has doubled its revenues year on year over the last 3-4 years through the use of technology, offers solutions including Official BrandStores, New Joinee Welcome Kits, GiftKart, and Gift Voucher solutions serving over 2,000 large corporate clients.

About
Srikanth started OffiNeeds about 19 years ago
Revenue
Srikanth grew the business to $750K/month
Costs
It cost Srikanth $1000 to start the business
Read by 3,641 founders

4. Well Told Design ($4.99M/year)

How much they make: $4.99M/year
Current team size: 7

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Passing $5 Million Revenue as a CPG and D2C Startup with NO Investors - Brian Johnson (Well Told)

Well Told Design, a retail company founded by Brian Johnson, has landed on the Inc. 5000 list of America's fastest-growing private companies for the second year in a row, ranking 5th in the state of New Hampshire and 90th overall.

About
Brian started Well Told Design over 15 years ago
Revenue
Brian grew the business to $416K/month
Read by 1,381 founders

So... can you actually make money with a gift store?

Of course. There are millions to be made in this industry.

But how?

  1. Research real, profitable businesses and see exactly how much money they make.
  2. Study exactly what works, and what doesn’t.
  3. Take action, because now you have the roadmap.

Join Starter Story and build your next big thing:

Start Now