What’s that old saying? When it has to be done right, you do it yourself. That line predates computers, but nonetheless, there is something special about work done by hand. Most of the time, we rely on consistent precision of computerized machinery. But in many cases, despite the inevitable fallacy of human hands, handcrafted goods garner higher prices than their manufactured counterparts.

Why? How have handcrafted goods even managed to survive?

There are many possible reasons, but the one at the root of them is that they are more personal. Someone else created them with their own hands.

The personal impact that can be made with gifts is what this industry is all about, and so Custom Gift Retailer decided to write an article focusing not on the hand crafting, but the hand personalization of gifts. What gifts are personalized? Are they profitable? These are just a couple of the questions we asked a handful of the industry’s top suppliers.

Read on to see what they had to say.

THE GIFTS

Let’s start with the goodies. There are a number of different companies that offer a number of gifts to be personalized by hand.

If you feel your customer-base has an interest in piggybanks, then you may want to start with Gift Giant, says Julia Chapman, of the supplier in Deerpark, New York.

“Our number-one best seller is our line of piggybanks. We have those in many different sizes, but of course, we have one particular size, our large piggybank, that sells the best. It is a classically styled piggybank that has an appeal for those who like the old-fashioned. Every child needs a piggybank, and these sell in the stores really well,” says Chatham. She adds that, “Another item we have that sells very well is our Flipstool. It’s a child’s wooden footstool that flips over to create a little chair.”

Debi Allison of Deb & Co. in Buena Vista, Virginia, notes that her company offers a complete line of ornaments and collectibles for all occasions, including sports, baby and wedding ornaments.

Tony Espinosa of Christmas Cove in Atlanta, Georgia, says that they offer a wide selection of handcrafted Christmas ornaments to personalize by hand. “Our selection includes themes such as Baby’s 1st Christmas, teacher gifts, family, pets, sports, hobbies, occupations, angels and a variety of traditional Christmas favorites.”

Mark Beaulieu of Anaconda Sports in Kingston, New York, has a line of gifts for hand personalization called Special Day Sports Balls. “They are baseballs, footballs, basketballs and soccer balls, and we have approximately twelve different styles of each item. We have It’s A Boy Baseballs and It’s A Boy Footballs. Instead of buying just a card, they get a football, and they put the child’s name, weight, length, etc. It is also packaged with a certificate of authenticity and an envelope. It actually has a card with the product itself. A man or woman goes into a shop looking for a gift for a baby shower and they come away with this,” says Beaulieu.

Jim Casey, of Ornament Central in Pepperell, Massachusetts, makes ornaments that can be personalized for children. He notes that, “It is increasingly popular for families to collect ornaments for their children every year. Many retail customers buy each of their kids an ornament denoting a memorable occasion of that year. Their plan is to give each child their collection of personalized ornaments one day, when they leave home for good.”

Casey says that Ornament Central designs their gifts with those collectors in mind.

“We have dozens of sports and profession ornaments, and we also make ornaments for young children. We have several Baby’s First Christmas designs: toddlers in pajamas with a book, a child mailing a letter to Santa, etc. We design ornaments for special occasions as well as fun gifts, and we also make professions such as nurse, doctor, chef, teachers and the U.S. Armed Services.”

WHY BOTHER?

Having covered the gifts and the romantic aspect of hand personalization, the practical aspect must be covered. With the ease of use and precision possible with computerized equipment, why bother with hand personalization?

To begin with, when it comes to learning a new machine and its software, ease of use is a relative term.

Allison points out that with hand personalization, “No equipment is necessary, and employees don’t have to be trained on equipment. For our gifts, all they need to know how to use is a 95-cent Sharpie and a bottle of nail polish remover. It is also a quick fix for the customer. They can have it almost immediately.”

Espinosa adds that, “Hand-personalized products can significantly increase a retailer’s sales revenue and requires no additional equipment or cost other than that of a pen. Many consumers have a difficult time finding that special gift for a friend or family member. When they see Christmas ornaments or other gifts personalized by hand, the impulse to buy is very strong.”

HAND PERSONALIZATION PROFITABLE?

If part of the reasoning for bringing in gifts to be personalized by hand is that there are no equipment costs to worry about, then it is only reasonable to ask about their potential profitability.

According to Allison, “Gifts personalized by hand are very profitable, and because mistakes can be removed (for most gifts), there is almost no ruined product. The customer also feels that they are getting more bang for their buck since it is done by hand and the items to be personalized cost no more than items you would buy that aren’t designed to be personalized.”

Chapham concurs, “They are definitely profitable. With gifts such as our piggybanks, when they are personalized, retailers are able to markup more than keystone.”

Beaulieu says the same is true of his gifts, “Our sports balls are designed to be profitable for the retailer; they’re marked up by at least 120 percent.”

Espinosa notes that many retailers overlook the potential to increase Christmas revenues by offering their customers hand-personalized ornaments or some other type of hand-personalized gift. He says that, “Depending on the type of venue and the product, retailers can enjoy a three- to five-time markup over the wholesale price.”

Espinosa adds that, “If you really want to increase sales this Christmas, experienced retailers and entrepreneurs alike may want to consider leasing a cart or kiosk at a nearby mall for the 2005 Christmas season. Sales for the six-to-eight-week season can range from $40,000 to $80,000.”

DO YOU NEED TO BE AN ARTIST?

Knowing that gifts personalized by hand are profitable is great, and the fact that they don’t require an investment in machinery is an added bonus. But there are good reasons to invest money in personalization equipment: they do great work.

Once someone can efficiently use an engraver or sublimation, the variety of personalization they can offer is almost unlimited. And it is done with computer precision. Most of us are not artists, and we rely on that precision.

However, according to Allison, you don’t need to be an artist to do hand personalization. She says anybody can do it, although, “It helps if you have neat and legible handwriting, but since it is done with a pen and not a brush, anyone can get the hang of it in a matter of minutes. We also include a personalization kit with first-time purchases. It gives the store a little bit of an edge and makes their handwriting look a little more professional.”

Espinosa agrees that hand personalization is something we can all do, and says that with a little bit of training and some practice, most people can be personalizing like a pro in just a few hours. He adds that, “Women tend to be particularly good at hand personalization.”

Casey says that, “Our ornaments do not take artistic talent to personalize. We have been showing our employees how to personalize for many years. Once they have had a bit of practice and have gained some confidence, even those who said, ‘I could never do that!’ are proudly personalizing every purchase. We have a section on our website (for our wholesale customers) that gives them personalizing hints. We also print that out and send it to them if they want us to.”

Casey adds that he is conscientious about reminding his customers that with few exceptions, most ornaments have been designed to be sold with or without personalization—for those re-sellers who are intimidated by the thought of personalizing. But, he does stress that if they are willing to give it a try, they will find that it increases sales and customer satisfaction. That results in customers returning every year to add to their ornament collections.

Beaulieu says that you do not need great penmanship or artistic skill to personalize his gifts. “It’s like signing a card. In a sense, it is a card. We also have Happy Birthday Baseballs which are given away at parties and signed by everyone there. They personalize the Special Day Sports Ball with a specialized permanent pen, and the pen comes with it.”

Chapham says that, “Basically, if you can do neat printing like you learned when you were in kindergarten, you can do this. The part that people have the most difficulty with when they are first learning is the spacing, not the actual lettering.”

She explains that, “We use a ball-and-stick style of lettering. You make your letters, and then you go back and add the balls on the end of the letters. We supply a booklet, DVD and a starter kit (which is sent out with the first order) that will give customers everything they need to learn, including the remover, in case a mistake is made.”

Because mistakes will inevitably be made, Chapham suggests that retailers learn on ceramic gifts. “It’s easier to remove the paint from ceramic, but you can still remove it from the wood gifts. We have different products that we recommend which will remove the personalization if a mistake is made.”

Chapham adds that, “Most people will tell us, ‘I can’t do this,’ and that’s the one big hurdle that we have to get over with our customers. Once I convince them to give it a try on paper, they usually need only a couple of dozen tries before they get the hang of it. I just tell people to take a couple of sheets of heavy paper (the paint pens are actual paint and will bleed through regular paper), and start writing. We also have some tricks we teach to get the spacing right. After that, they’re ready to try their hand on products.”

DISPLAY AND MARKETING

How do you display gifts personalized by hand? For the most part, the same techniques that help sell your other forms of personalization will help sell gifts done by hand.

Allison says that, “We recommend that retailers display plenty of samples with names already on them. For some reason, people can’t visualize what it would look like personalized, so they need to see it before they buy.”

Chapham agrees, saying, “I recommend that they always have some products out there with sample names on them. We have a list of the 15 most popular boy and girl names in the nation right now. Retailers can take those names and put them on product so their customers can see what they look like when finished. Also, it is important to have some point-of-purchase signage explaining that the store will hand-personalize names and messages onto gifts while the customers wait.”

Allison notes that the cost of samples is well worth the profit. Oftentimes, when a particular ornament may not be selling, her retailers will put a sample out with a name on it and then it starts selling. She adds that a good way to save money on samples is to use ornaments that may have been damaged by a customer. It can usually be fixed and used as a sample.

Beaulieu says that his line of sports balls are packaged so that they can be put on a shelf or a counter. However, they also have spin racks, cardboard displays and clip strips.

Espinosa says that, “We recommend that ornaments be displayed on grid wall or slat wall hooks which are placed on a small rotating countertop display or a larger stationary floor display. The larger floor model can hold up to 200 designs. The ornaments can also be merchandised on existing end-cap or similar displays that are compatible for use with a hook system.” He adds that baskets are also used in many cases.

Casey relates that, “Most of our wholesale customers hang our personalized ornaments on hooks on a wall or a freestanding spinner. They can also be set out in baskets. How they are displayed really depends on the customer, the style of his or her shop or kiosk, and the amount of space they have available. We always recommend that several personalized samples be displayed in an area that catches the shopper’s eye, since we believe strongly that personalization increases sales dramatically.”

TRYING YOUR HAND

Is hand personalization a fit for your store?

Hand personalization will never be able to keep up with the volume capable with a laser or rotary engraver, or the number of options in terms of fonts and graphic capability. No one is selling hand personalization as a replacement for computerized and aided processes, but if you are looking for a way to diversify your shop with a minimum investment, it’s definitely worth a look.