Unwanted gift extravaganza under way on Trade Me

Media release
26 December 2014

Unwanted gift extravaganza under way on Trade Me

Thousands of Kiwis are partaking in the annual trading of unwanted gifts on Trade Me today, as New Zealanders look to sell presents they never wanted, received two of, or didn’t fit.

Trade Me spokesman Jeff Hunkin said Kiwis clocked up thousands of searches for unwanted gifts on December 26 last year, and that wasn’t expected to change in 2014. “Boxing Day is a massive shopping day for New Zealanders online and offline, and on Trade Me we see things go berserk after the pre-Christmas lull.

“The Kiwi tradition of checking Trade Me for surplus presents and great deals is in full swing today – last year we saw 208,000 searches for unwanted gifts on Boxing Day. That means the fluoro underwear or novelty garden ornament you unwrapped yesterday might have a good chance of being snapped up by prowling bargain hunters.”

Mr Hunkin said usual suspects likely to land on Trade Me throughout the day as unwanted gifts included socks, DVDs, perfume, car mats, dinnerware sets, books, phone accessories and tea towels.

“A recent UK survey showed more than 70 per cent of adults would be disappointed to unwrap socks on Christmas Day, followed by bubble bath and soap sets at 66 per cent. Socks consistently feature in crap gift lists so take note if you’re guilty of adding these to your shopping cart – especially if they have cartoon characters on them.”

He said the research showed that gift givers often focus on the gift receiver’s personality, instead of what that person might like. “People sometimes rush or don’t quite get their research done so they go for a blunt option. It’s also worth remembering that scientists reckon gift givers get a bigger kick out of buying gifts and handing them over than the recipient does – so there’s no need to stress out about being the world’s greatest gift-giver. A boring but safe fall-back option is to opt for a gift card – but we do see these getting cashed up on Trade Me too.”

Trade Me has a dedicated unwanted gifts section to make it easy for New Zealanders to find and buy treasures and trinkets and disasters that missed the mark yesterday: trade.me/unwanted2014.

5 odd unwanted gifts on Trade Me today
1. Unwanted Christmas dinner (trademe.co.nz/825494004)
2. Pink and black lace corset (trademe.co.nz/826150921)
3. Pink selfie stick (trademe.co.nz/825899409)
4. Brand new 8ft surfboard (trademe.co.nz/ 826055306)
5. Failed Greenhouse project (trademe.co.nz/826010427)

3 hot tips for selling an unwanted gift
1. If you’re selling, include the words “unwanted gift” in your listing to make it easy for buyers.
2. Don’t sell handmade items, especially if your name is carved, embroidered or etched on the side.
3. Only sell brand new items, and keep the packaging as intact as possible.

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