For decades, a birthday celebration in the family was a fairly well-established process – someone was given the task of ordering a cake, rounding up some candles, order in some samosas or namkeen, and get out those disposable plates to serve it all in!

The birthday boy (or girl) could expect to receive some gifts, wrapped in gaudy cellophane paper, embarrassedly handed over by friends and relatives (after all, we were not really used to gift-giving!). Relatives in other cities would mail in some cash or clothes, accompanied by greeting cards with an armload of graffiti.

However, with the rise of corporate culture in India, exposure to the western way of living, and trips abroad; this well-established rigmarole seems to have undergone a dramatic change in last few years. So here’s what’s changed, when one compares current Birthday Celebrations with that of even a decade back:

a) Cakes: The Indian palate has moved on beyond the ever-popular black forest or the chocolate variants, which had adorned the Birthday table for decades on end. Now we demand (and get!) an infinite array of goodies like Truffles, theme based cakes, photo-printed cakes, and even a range of delectable cupcakes! Truly, presentation and elaboration has taken center stage, when it comes to the humble Birthday Cake.

b) Greeting Cards: The Birthday card, a cornerstone of celebrations, has now become somewhat of a novelty for many of us. In the age of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, we unfortunately lose out on the nostalgia aspect of old preserved greeting cards, collected over many years. Here’s where the discerning gift-giver can actually take efforts to send her message on a greeting card, and stand out from the jumble of e-greetings.

c) Snacks: Well, samosas and namkeen are so passé – we now tend to order in, from our favourite pizza chain, or the friendly neighborhood food joint! Some of us have even started opting for catering services from the latest restaurants, depending on the scale of celebrations.

d) Venue: For college age kids and the yuppies, the birthday venue has moved on from the drawing room of the home to the hippest pub or discotheque. After all, someone’s got to capture the perfect shot for our social networking friends!

It’s clear that Birthdays are no longer a simple home-affair, in part due to our need to do a “keeping-up-with-the-Jones”, made all the easier thanks to social networking.

Online Gifting has given wings to this need, helping people send birthday gifts in the span of a few hours, with no physical shopping, gift wrapping or mailing – one can expect to send even elaborate cakes and goodies online from any corner of the world.

Detractors do point out that such finger-tip conveniences take away from the care and personalization in doing things the old way; but there is no doubt that this helps keep relationships fresh, when there is a physical distance between friends or loved ones.

So the next time when your favorite social networking site reminds you of an important upcoming birthday, and you choose to send online gifts; do remember to put in a lot of attention in making your gifts and messages as personalized as possible, and enjoy the best of both worlds!

Visit us at : http://www.gujaratgifts.com/birthday-gifts-to-india.html

All of us love to occasionally go all out and splurge for our loved ones, with a “money-is-no-object” attitude. However, there are times, when one wants to simply enjoy the pleasures of gift-giving, without putting too much strain on the wallet! The problem is that one needs to get appreciation for all the effort, without secretly getting labeled as stingy!

For all these times and more, we, at GujaratGifts.com come to your rescue. We have put together the following guide to help you navigate the tricky waters of budget-gift giving! All suggestions below will cost you a mere Rs. 500 (around Eight dollars). What’s even better is that these ideas have Free Shipping, plus they come with a Free Greeting Card, so you can lend just the perfect words to your gift!

a)  For the Husband / Wife: A clock personalized with a photo of the two of you, with a wooden stand, is sure to reduce your significant other to mush! You even get to write a few words to be inscribed on the clock. Price: A mere Rs. 485 / $ 7.95. So go ahead and make his / her day, and wow your significant other with your thoughtfulness.

http://www.gujaratgifts.com/wooden-stand-clock.html

b) For the Fiancee / Girlfriend / Boyfriend: We suggest a 7 day pack of fine Belgian chocolates, to shower them with sweetness on all days of the week. Before you worry too much about the price, let us tell you that this gift costs just Rs. 425 / $ 6.97. If you are feeling adventurous, you can choose a beautiful love-birds piece, which is vaastu-friendly too, at a mere Rs. 356 / $ 5.98!

http://www.gujaratgifts.com/7-day-chocolate-pack-and-card.html
http://www.gujaratgifts.com/love-birds.html

c) For Parents: An oxidized metal hexagonal pen stand is sure to find a place of pride on the desk of your father. And at just Rs. 365 / $ 5.98, it’s pretty economical too. For mom, you can select a box of sonpapdi, which is just Rs. 335 / $ 5.49 as a way of appreciating her sweet nature and goodness.

http://www.gujaratgifts.com/pen-stand.html
http://www.gujaratgifts.com/sonpapdi.html

d) For Kids: Give them a rubik’s cube, we say, and keep them busy and entertained for days! Available for just Rs. 485 / $ 7.95 at http://www.gujaratgifts.com/rubiks-cube.html . Another good option is a cuddly soft brown teddy at just Rs. 455 / $ 7.46 at http://www.gujaratgifts.com/soft-brown-teddy.html

e) All Others: Even if you need to get a gift for your boss, neighbor, friend, or that lovable co-worker; we have just the things, despite the tight budget.

1. Our 12 Red Roses bouquet is currently at just Rs. 475 / $ 7.79 inclusive of all charges, and delivery available all India. Find it at : http://www.gujaratgifts.com/love-of-life.html 
2. A sweet surprise can be gifted for just Rs. 365 / $ 5.98 – we are talking about the ever popular combo of 2 Dairy Milk Chocolates and 2 Fruit & Nut Chocolates. This is one heck of a sweet surprise for sure! Available at : http://www.gujaratgifts.com/cadbury-treat.html 
3. An elegant wooden 2 tone roller pen with the name hand-inscribed may be just the thing to cover all occasions and recipients. And at just Rs. 395 / $ 6.48 inclusive of all charges, it may be just the perfect steal. Find it at : http://www.gujaratgifts.com/elegant-wooden-2-tone-roller-hand-crafted-pen.html

So there you have it. Who says gifting ain’t cheap? We hope you enjoyed our suggestions, and look forward to serving you soon!

We Indians are well known for our sweet tooth – after all, we do love to gorge on mithai, citing one excuse or another! We need our sweet fix on all festive occasions, celebrations, and even the humble dinner as dessert. No wonder we are a nation of almost 50 million diabetics, in part due to our fascination with anything sweet.

On the positive side though, our range of mithai can give a run for the money to the best dessert and pastry chefs in the world – each state and region contributes to the ever growing list of these delicacies, loaded with sugar, ghee and a little bit of magic!

However, as the younger generation grows more health-conscious, there is a realization that the unabated hunger for mithai does lead to expanding waistlines and worse, if abused, given their rich ingredients. Chocolate companies in India and overseas have quietly picked up on this small but growing need, and are now marketing their products as a substitute for the firmly entrenched mithai. Here’s what we, at Gujarat Gifts feel about the chocolate vs mithai debate:

1)      Standardization: Popular chocolate brands by companies like Cadbury or Ferrero Rocher give a fairly consistent taste over the years, something which even the best mithai shops in India struggle to do, especially during peak occasions. So buying a pack of chocolates doesn’t quite need the skills needed to hunt for just the perfect sandesh!
Advantage : Chocolates

2)      Flavors & Texture: There’s no denying the fact that Chocolates come in a wide range of flavors – bitter, sweet, fruit-filled and lots more. However, when it comes to the sheer range of aromas, texture and flavors, mithai is simply too hard to beat – just walk into any decent mithai shop, and prepare to get dazzled by the visual and olfactory delight! This is on top of the heavenly taste which leaves you wanting ‘one more’.
Advantage : Mithai

3)      Diet friendly: While mithai shops have bucked to the trend, and started offering low-sugar, or sugerfree mithai, giving some relief to the dieters and diabetics; chocolates have the huge advantage of giving exact nutritional information on the packaging, allowing the consumer to see the exact ingredients, as well as calories, fat content, carbohydrates and more. There’s no denying that while there are chocolates loaded with calories, the mandatory nutrition label does allow the discerning consumer to know exactly what she is consuming. While some pre-packaged mithai offer these attributes now, the majority of mithai sold by the kilo cannot match this convenience.
Advantage : Chocolates

4)      Cultural Significance: Mithai is deeply embedded in the Indian culture and ethos, and is a must for important milestones like weddings, promotions, festive celebrations and more. Moreover, there is a certain romance in traveling to different corners of the country, and experiencing the cultural difference by consuming the local sweets made there; or getting a box for people back home. This aspect cannot be matched by the Chocolates produced in gleaming factories, and available wherever one might be.
Advantage : Mithai

So there you have it – it seems to be a draw between these two favorites! While chocolatiers make a strong case for substituting mithai with their products, the ever popular mithai continues to hold onto its glory. Why choose when you can have both, we say, and leave the final decision to you. Check both these out, and decide for yourself!

Mithai: http://www.gujaratgifts.com/sweets-and-dryfruits/sweets.html

Chocolates: http://www.gujaratgifts.com/chocolates.html

Bon Appetit!

Dear Visitor

We are deeply grateful to you, our esteemed patrons, both new and old. Gujarat Gifts exists based on your support, all the way from 1998, when we were operating this service via phones and emails.

To enable our site to handle the next phase of growth, and to keep up with the needs of our patrons, we have relaunched our site and services early this year, after careful user feedback and testing. Here’s what’s changed with the latest update:

1)      Cleaner, wider site with more products and information: A large majority of our customers now browse Gujarat Gifts from devices with ever higher resolutions, when browsing from non-mobile devices. Thus, we have increased the horizontal size of our website to 1025 pixels, and thereby accommodate more products and information per screen.

New Homepage vs Old Homepage

2)      Quick View Feature: You can now view and buy products directly from the category pages, without the need to go into product-level pages, thereby reducing the need to jump back and forth. However, if you need to, product pages are available, with the full set of details

3)      Better Top-Navigation Menu: The new drop-down menu now allows you to directly access categories even 2-levels-deep directly from one spot, without cluttering your navigation.

New Top Navigation

4)      Contextual Left Menu navigation: Once you are in a category, there is now a handy left navigation, which shows the current category and its subcategories. With this, one can easily browse for options without referring back and forth.

5)      Facebook 1-Click Login: In addition to “Guest” checkout, we now offer a facebook 1-Click Login, so you can checkout without the hassles of creating an account or entering your email ID. We have ensured that if you already have an account setup (during your previous purchases), you can still go ahead and use the FB Login – both sets of logins would continue to work, even if the email ID is the same! Coming soon : Login via Google Account.

6) Better Category and Product Pages : These now show bigger product images in an uncluttered easy-to-browse manner. You can choose from a wide range of sorting options, and choose how many products you want to view per page, in list or grid fashion.

New vs Old category & product pages

7) More Product Filters: We wanted to put product-filters which helped the visitor find what she is looking for quickly; rather than cookie-cutter sitewide options. So we now have “Shapes” as a filter in Cakes, “Brand” as a filter in Chocolates and more.

These are in addition to a number of under-the-hood changes, which should help us serve you better and more efficiently. We will of-course continue to add newer products and categories to meet and exceed our customer expectations.

Please feel free to email us at service@gujaratgifts.com for your valuable feedback and suggestions. If you need any assistance, you can touch base with us at our Customer Support page.

Warm Regards
Team Gujarat Gifts

Raksha Bandhan is on 21st August this year, and for Indians living abroad, the occasion does present a challenge on how one can celebrate the occasion, despite living at a distance from one’s sibling. Here’s where Internet comes as a great savior and allows them to send Rakhi Gifts quickly and conveniently through online portals.

In recent years, a large number of such portals have sprung into existence, with many opening and closing shop each year. With attractive design and a professional look easy to achieve, the customer is left confused on how to choose a good website to send Rakhi. We present some pointers to help the first time buyers as well as those who are undecided.

Tip # 5 : Years in Service

Do check on how many years the service has been around. If a website has been around for quite some time, you can be assured that they must be doing something right, to allow them to survive in the marketplace littered with fly-by-night operators. They also have a long term reputation to protect, so they have a better incentive to give the best deal and service to customers.

Tip # 4 : Testimonials

Do check if the website has customer testimonials prominently displayed. Another aspect is to check the frequency and the natural-ness of the testimonials, as some services actually go as far as to display self-engineered words of praise!

Tip # 3 : Online Reviews

This one is a double edged sword. Online reviews tend to be negatively-biased, as certain studies show that consumers with a negative experience are 10 times more likely to complain in online reviews as compared to customers with a positive experience. That is to say, online reviews on their own present a narrow view of the true feedback. However, they do have value, specially if one compares feedback across websites to see which has a higher percentage of complaints.

Tip # 2 : Social Media

Always check the Facebook and or the Twitter page of the service to see how the company is engaging with it’s customers and fan-base, as well as what the customers are saying about the service. Caveat Emptor : Not every service with a large “Like” base is trustworthy and not every service with limited Social Media presence sucks – the latter just may be a bit low tech, which is not to say they don’t have great service! You have to take a judgement call on your own, and not just a simple formula of “More Likes = Better Service”!

Tip # 1 : Prices, Partner and Payment Options

This one is really an eye-opener! Do check if the Prices displayed are rational or are too-good-to-be-true! Very low prices sometimes are an indicator that the service may not ship at all, or may resort to the classic  bait-and-switch philosophy.

Another aspect to check is the kind of Partners the service chooses. Good reliable logistics partners, fulfillment partners etc with logos displayed clearly indicates that the service means business, and will deliver on its customer promise.

Lastly, but very critically, do check the Payment Options available on the website, and the checkout partner. Most e-commerce players provide checkout on external payment gateway services (like Paypal, CCAvenue, EBS etc). If they have such known payment gateway provider, you should be reassured on multiple counts : Not only are you assured that your credit card / banking details will not be misused (as such services typically do not provide your payment details even to the e-commerce website owners), but you know that there is an impartial 3rd party involved in the transaction.

So there you are! Team Gujarat Gifts provides you the above tips to help you choose wisely this Rakhi season. We also invite you to visit our Raksha Bandhan special at:

Visit: http://www.gujaratgifts.com/send-rakhi-to-india.html