Why Do We Wrap Presents?

With spring underway and summer just around the corner, many are looking forward to graduations, baby showers, bridal showers, weddings, and any other reasons to celebrate!  And whether getting together or virtually, these celebrations will likely include gifts that share one thing in common – they will all come wrapped in beautiful, specially selected wrapping paper!

But why do we wrap presents?  And why do so many gift givers take pride in selecting the perfect paper and then make every effort to make the exterior of the gift as special as what is inside?

The practice of cutting, folding, and securing gift wrapping paper transcends cultural boundaries and religious doctrine. And can you believe it is millennia old tradition of framing objects to designate them as special?  The same way a gilded frame elevates a picture or a jeweled box signifies that what’s inside is valuable, gift wrapping paper is used to transform an ordinary object into something extraordinary.  At this point, it is hard for most to even imagine a gift without its ornate paper veil and wrapping paper has become synonymous with giving a gift.

This is one of the primary reasons today’s wrapping paper industry is so immense!  In recent years, gift-wrap manufacturers estimate annual sales to be between $3.2 billion and $9.36 billion. Each holiday season, an estimated 4 million tons of wrapping paper and shopping bags are used and discarded in the U.S. alone!  (To put this into perspective, that is the same weight as nearly 11 Empire State Buildings!)

Wrapping paper frames an object as a gift and the more special the paper, the more special the gift!  In fact, according to a study published in 1992 by Daniel Howard, professor of marketing at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, a gift-wrapped item influences the recipient to have a more favorable attitude towards owning the gift item, regardless of what the item is.  Additionally, the perceived “quality” of the wrapping paper itself affects the recipient’s attitude towards the gift.  So, if you are really looking to elevate your gift giving, carefully select your gift wrapping paper and spend a little extra time making the exterior or your gift as thoughtful as what is inside.

An easy to do this is by adding custom gift wrapping paper! 

And next time you receive a gift, consider the wrapping that envelops it and consider the possibility that, were the gift you are holding not wrapped, it might not feel like a gift at all.

About StickersAndPosters.com

StickersAndPosters.com is a strategic partner with one of the nation’s largest traditional gift wrap manufacturers and we have access to over 10,000 traditional holiday, event, and geometric designs and patterns. Our design team is also available to assist you in creating a unique branded pattern that can then be converted, uploaded, and ordered through your online shop. Once the order is placed on your site, it’s printed and drop shipped by us!

If you are looking to add custom wrapping paper to your Etsy or e-commerce shop, let’s get you started!  If you can imagine it, we can transform it into custom wrapping paper!