Half of Kiwis say they get Christmas gifts they don't want

Brian from New Lynn

Christmas is a time of giving - but it seems many Kiwis don't like what they're given. Half of New Zealanders say they receive at least one unwanted gift on Christmas Day and thousands of them have already ended up on Trade Me. Spokesperson Millie Silvester says the majority of Kiwis unwrap between one and three unwanted presents on the holiday, according to findings from a survey of over 1000 people across the country. "Sometimes Santa gets it wrong or you get a double-up - our philosophy has always been that it's better to get that gift to someone who wants it and get yourself some cash to get something you really want. "It makes no sense to have it gather dust in the drawer or under the bed, or even worse thrown out unused and unloved." She said it's become "a bit of a Kiwi tradition to check out unwanted Christmas gifts on Trade Me and we start seeing presents that didn't make the cut appear onsite before Christmas lunch has even had time to digest". There were 40,000 searches for unwanted gifts on Christmas Day, according to Trade Me, as Kiwis started their hunt for bargains. But Ms Silvester says most New Zealanders wouldn't feel offended if the item they had given was sold to someone else - a finding she said was "a surprise". "We thought there'd be a stigma around selling unwanted gifts but 60 percent of Kiwis are all for it." That compares to just 37 percent of people in 2017 saying they would be okay with it. Ms Silvester says it shows how Kiwis are becoming more accepting of unwanted gifts being sold and that Kiwis are "pretty okay with it". New Zealanders have already listed 3000 unwanted gifts on Trade Me including a basket of Barkers chutneys, 52 boxes of Sampler biscuits and a mystery box of women's clothes, Ms Silvester said. In 2017, there were over 16,000 unwanted presents listed and 133,000 searches racked up on Boxing Day as opportunistic sellers and bargain hunters jumped onsite. Ms Silvester said Trade Me has also found that around 83 percent of New Zealanders will pretend to like the present they're given to avoid an awkward situation. "It's reassuring to us to hear most New Zealanders will at least attempt to remain polite and respectful in the face of a present they can't abide." She said the gifts most likely to conjure up fake appreciation were cleaning products, clothes that don't fit and weird craft items, according to the survey. "Amazingly several of survey respondents told us they got spray and wipe for Christmas, while one respondent said a 25kg bag of salt was the worst they'd received. "If you're thinking about selling an unwanted Christmas gift on Trade Me, our hot tips are to give the item a good back story, and avoid items that are personalised or easily identifiable. "You don't want the giver to stumble across it when bargain-hunting onsite!"
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