Giftly: Perfect for the Gifting Challenged

’d like to consider myself a great gift-giver, I really would, but I’d be lying. Just yesterday I went and bought something for myself and the woman ringing me up asked if this was a gift.

“Nope. This is for me. But Christmas shopping doesn’t usually start until December 1^st right?”

She kind of thought that was funny.

I’m a major, major procrastinator when it comes to gift-giving, but it usually all works out. Mostly because of amazing people who truly understand the psyche of the lazy gifter. Those amazing people then created a gift idea that is always appropriate and always a crowd pleaser that we could buy, wrap, and send directly from our phones.

Giftly, a San-Francisco-based startup helps you send pretty much any gift you want, from anywhere, to anyone, and you never have to go through a merchant. Be it a restaurant, a trip to the zoo, a pair of heels, or a bottle of wine at their favorite restaurant, anything is an option with Giftly. You can make it as broad or as specific as you would like. Print it out or send it through an email. Giftly gives you so many options that it’s almost overwhelming.

It’s so overwhelming that I don’t even really know what to write about, so I’ll tell you my own experience. My sister Giftly-ed me last year for Christmas (she’s always on the cutting edge of things) and this was how it worked. I was given three restaurants to choose from and I picked Mi Cocina – always and forever MiCo. When it came time to pay the bill, I paid it like I would on any other occasion, but right after I signed the bill I went online, redeemed my Giftly, and was quickly reimbursed.

Giftly’s trick is their web of connections with banks and credit card processors. The receivers of the gift will have to pay for the item themselves, but Giftly will reimburse them.

So why choose Giftly? What makes it better than just going to a restaurant and picking up an ornate gift certificate? There’s just  something about getting a Giftly that makes you feel infinitely cooler than before you received it. It’s the same way I feel about Birchbox. It’s like, the reason I have this right now is because someone had a really great idea and made it happen. So make someone feel cool this Christmas, save yourself a trip to the mall, and send a Giftly. You can download the app here.