Gifts and souvenirs that have a person’s name or other special way of speaking to an individual can rack up sales for destination retailers.
It has been said that “Nothing is sweeter than the sound of your own name.” Seeing it in writing is also just as sweet. Having it on a pen, keychain, pocket knife or mug from your favorite destination multiplies their appeal.
Bonnie Gunderson, owner of Bucket Wonders, a wholesale supplier of personalized gifts and souvenirs, says sales volumes for personalized gifts are surprisingly high. “Customers love to find their own name, which makes personalized lines very successful and profitable,” she says. “If you put a personalized keychain against a general souvenir keychain for example, the personalized version will nearly always outsell the general one.”
With dozens of personalized items to choose from at Old Town Gifts in San Diego with hundreds of names on them, shoppers usually end up finding exactly what they are looking for to commemorate their visit to the first European settlement in what is present-day California.
“Personalized items are of course very popular because everyone wants to have something with their name on it,” says Owner Irina Darron. “And they also want something that has a function so it’s very good to have something they can use like a pocket knife or a pen that you can give as a gift to somebody.”
Pocket knives, wooden surfboards and pens top the list of personalized souvenirs that customers can purchase.
“We have these pens made out of rosewood. They say San Diego, have an engraved symbol on it, and they also have names on them. Customers get a souvenir that says San Diego that’s personalized with their name, so it’s like two for one,” explains Darron.
The name gameAt Old Town Gifts, finding a name is usually pretty easy. Darron says the store carries a very large selection of names to choose from, including some Spanish names like Jose and Jesus. The retailer also has names spelled in multiple ways, such as “Michele” as well as “Michelle” to make sure most names are covered.
 Pocket knife keychains and rosewood pens are popular with all ages at Old Town Gifts. Photos: Robyn Scherer There are situations though when a customer has a unique name that she’s never heard of. For those scenarios, the store offers items that are personalized in a different way, like “Dad” or “Best Friend” or “Awesome Person.”
Bucket Wonders’ EveryName program helps retailers when this situation occurs.
“The EveryName feature is unique to Bucket Wonders and allows stores to sell even more from their personalized programs,” explains Gunderson. “By scanning a QR code on the display, customers can order online unique names not found on the display, and these unique names ship directly to the customer in just a couple of days.”
With EveryName, the store profits from these direct online sales in the same amount as in-store purchases. When the store places an order to refill their display, online sales are applied as credits to the invoice.
Darron’s go-to for personalized items is Wayne Carver. “Their products are really well made, I like their designs and they are easy to work with,” she says. She recalls working with them on a design that represented Old Town that went through a couple renditions.
Men and boys are drawn more toward the pocket knives while women and girls are more interested in the pens, but when it comes to personalization, she concludes, everyone likes them. “It is absolutely all ages,” she says.
Wayne Carver also provided Old Town Gifts with Rosewood displays with the names written on them. “It is very easy to find the right name and I think we have a bit over 1,000,” says Darron.
Keys to successAt Texas Treasures in Dallas, Owner Brandi Allen carries personalized solar-powered keychains from LaserGifts that customers like.
“It’s solar-powered. It has two little indicators on the top of the keychain so as long as it has artificial light or the sun it will never die, and they’re pretty sturdy,” she explains. “They’re in acrylic and they flash on and off with the name on it, and it changes color sometimes.”
The boy names flash blue and girl names flash pink on these solar-powered souvenirs.
“Everybody loves them. I have to order them every month,” says Allen.
 Texas Ranger law badges and bicycle license plates are among the personalized gifts available at Texas Treasures. Bucket Wonders also has a keychain that Gunderson says is among the company’s top selling lines, called the zipper pull. She describes it as a “cute, mini keychain.”
“It’s shiny and colorful, and easy for travelers to collect from various destinations,” says Gunderson.
In addition to keychains, Allen carries pocketknives and larger knives with names on them. Magnets, bike license plates and metal Texas Ranger law badges are also among the personalized selection at Texas Treasures.
Both kids and adults are drawn to the personalized items there. “If a kid sees her name on it, especially something that’s spelled correctly with their name, they just absolutely love it, and usually older people do too,” notes Allen.
And if her customers can’t find their name because it is either too long or unusual, they aren’t out of luck.
They purchase a small tube that Allen will send off to LaserGifts and then send the personalized product to the customer when it is ready.
Other ideasIt may not be possible to add every name to a wall of souvenirs, but don’t fret. Melody Caban, owner of the retail consulting firm Melody Caban Consulting says there are other ways to personalize products.
“Maybe you can include something like Moonglow’s necklace that captures a personalized moment in time.
Maybe it’s the day you had your child, your anniversary date, that day you visited Capri — those dates can be personalized to the moon that was shown for that day, which is really fun.”
She also suggests scratch-off maps like those available from Luckies of London or scratch-off MLB stadium maps from Pop Chart. “You’re really getting that moment personalizing that poster and really making a memory.”
Get creative and imagine what you would want personalized, suggests Caban, when deciding what to personalize in your store. Items with initials on them or astrology items can also be a great way to appeal to a wide audience in a more personal way, she says.
“Your store is going to be connected to those amazing memories people are having, and I can imagine people coming back again and again to commemorate with those personal items.”
Still going strongPersonalization is not only special for the customer, it also evokes nostalgia that adults want their children to experience.
Caban explains, “Having that little piece of nostalgia with your personalized items is going to pay off, especially with those millennials who love nostalgia and looking back at those great times growing up so I would bring those pieces in and really highlight what they could mean to your customer.”
Gunderson also sees some staying power with personalized products. “We’ve been in this business 25 years and names sell just as strong today as they did 25 years ago.”
Many of Bucket Wonders’ customers have had the same product in the same spot for 20-plus years without a decline in sales, she notes.
“Personalized programs are a very popular, high-selling product,” says Gunderson. “It’s also noteworthy that many personalized lines are low dollar items, which make them ideal in a changing economy. These lines sell consistently through any economic climate, with very little fluctuation in sales.”
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