Key Takeaways:

• Corporate gifting has seen a tremendous annual growth of over 80% post-pandemic.
• The market share of corporate gifting has soared to about 23% as against 10% before the pandemic disruption.
• The last two years have accelerated the adoption of merchandised corporate gifting with 74.3% of respondents saying that increase in the trend is owed to remote work culture.
• Companies have increased their gifting budget by around 15% with an average ticket size per gift of Rs 5,000 per employee/annum, while it was earlier Rs 3,000.

HYDERABAD, India, Oct. 25, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — eYantra Industries, India's largest B2B merchandising and corporate gifting brand, has today released its Corporate Gifting and Trends 2022 on the evolving culture of corporate gifting triggered by remote work setup. The report covers over 2500 employees, HR leaders, and CEOs with details of the growing importance of merchandising in corporate gifting culture, the latest trends, and the ideal time to invest in corporate gifting. According to the report, the Indian gifting market is estimated to be worth Rs 2,50,000 cr, of which corporate gifting is pegged at Rs 12,000 cr.

With the global work landscape shifting to hybrid and remote models, corporate gifting has evolved as a mechanism for businesses to stay connected with their workforce, clients, and partners. Also, B2B merchandising has become an integral part of corporate gifting as brands are increasingly using it to personalize their gifts. Corporate gifting has seen a massive turnaround in terms of gifting frequency and spending led by changed work models, shifts in gifting behavior and emerging gifting occasions. Employers are witnessing significant gains in improving employee productivity and building lasting bonds with clients. About 80% of respondents claimed to have seen gifts improve connections with clients and employees, while 48% described it as 'substantial benefits'.

Archana Purohit, CEO of eYantra Industries, said, “The culture of corporate gifting is humanizing businesses like never before. It is also resonating brilliantly with both employees and clients as they feel cherished. The flip side of growing prominence of corporate gifting is the challenge of finding the ideal gift. This report is intended at helping companies unlock the secret to merchandising and corporate gifting by highlighting the key trends and the best way to leverage this evolving culture. Our findings revealed that a majority of employees desire a large number of choices, which are also personalized. While festive gifting stands with the highest budget, employee joining kits are gaining significance owing to employers wanting to woo and delight the new workforce.”

Four Top Corporate Gifting Trends To Follow:

Gifting is tough. It is tougher to find a gift that gets everyone excited. Clearly, corporate gifting cannot be a one-size-fits-all proposition. This is the part where most companies struggle and tend to experiment. After eYantra's extensive research, the findings suggest four key trends and practices in corporate gifting that will help companies offer a memorable gifting experience.  

Choice-based gifting

Businesses are distancing themselves from the earlier practice of gifting mass-produced generic t-shirts and stationery. The focus today is on experience, and merchandising has an important role to play. About 88% of respondents stated that they desire high-quality and personalized gifts, along with a variety of choices.

Festive gifting

Festive occasions like Diwali and Christmas continue to maintain dominance with 32% of respondents saying that they are prime corporate gifting events. Employee onboarding follows closely with 26% saying that it is a crucial occasion in the wake of changing work culture and the necessity to attract talent. A personalized and thoughtful gift translates into employer recognition for fresh talent to join the organization.

Merchandised gifting

Corporate gifting has gained strategic importance for businesses in not just appealing to clients but also top talent. As such, companies are increasing their gifting budget by 25%. While the popular per-gift budget range is Rs 500 – Rs 2000, companies are not shying away from shelling big bucks for gifting. 17% of respondents stated that their gifting budget is between Rs 2000 – Rs 5000 per employee or client per gift.

Eco-friendly Gifting

One of the many things that the pandemic has taught everyone is to value the environment, and this learning has clearly extended to gifting culture. 8 out of 10 respondents want to purchase environment-friendly gifts. This has companies moving to a minimum to zero-waste gifting and packaging options. It also adds to the company's sustainability stand. 

“Corporate gifting is all about building an emotional bond, which can be done perfectly with personalization. Our study found that 8 out of 10 individuals preferred eco-friendly gifts driving a shift to zero-waste gifting and packaging options. It's also interesting to see that companies are willing to bear the costs to show that they care about their employees and clients. It is evident from the increase of more than 65% in ticket size per gift to Rs 5000 per employee per annum from earlier ticket size of Rs 3,000 per employee per annum,” Archana Purohit added.

B2B merchandising and corporate gifting are likely to see a consistent upward trend if not exponential with a growth rate of about 23%. This is primarily because hybrid and remote work models are becoming a norm. Also, companies are realizing that employee recognition and client delight are the tenets of a successful business. eYantra Industries is poised to support the growing demands and customizations of Indian corporate gifting by offering an innovative merchandising platform to build a strong and lasting relationship between employers and their clients and employees.