‘Wrapping’ money from gifts

Walking around Kampala City at night, you can’t miss seeing some structures twinkling with Christmas lights. You think it’s too early? No! The festive season is here again.
You can get a better feel of the season as you enter down town (Kikuubo) business area, the surrounding malls and arcades.

Businessmen are busy offloading trucks laden with goods, stocking their shelves and stores in preparation for the season.
It is just about six-weeks to Christmas. But did you know you can actually start a business and make money in this period? If you are talented in wrapping gifts, get up and make some money. It is not too late.

Ideas
Here are some of the business ideas you can start and make a killing in this festive season.
Ideally, the service of gift wrapping is the act of enclosing a gift in some sort of material. Wrapping paper is a kind of paper designed for gift wrapping. An alternative to gift wrapping is using a gift box, bag or a basket.
So then, how do you start? If you are creative, a gift wrapping business will help you sort, for it is profitable especially around this season.

Ms Belinda Namutebi, the chief brand at IGIFT - a local gift wrapping business situated in Nakawa, says: “This is a season for giving out gifts to appreciate those that are close to you especially, friends, relatives, children or workmates.”
Experts in this business say in an ideal world, operating a gift wrapping business requires you to create a working relation with especially big malls and supermarkets to operate around their premises.

Start with one gift hamper, it can off-set you, according to Namutebi.
After wrapping your gift, take a photo using your camera phone, then start sharing the photo within your network of friends’ social media accounts such as Facebook, WhatsApp or Instagram.
Once you have got some orders, and then make sure you look out for people who will be supplying you with the boxes, baskets and sometimes bags.

Having access to data on your laptop or smartphone is very essential because it will help you to download YouTube tutorial clips to teach you the different creative ways of wrapping gifts.
Namutebi says in this case after establishing all that, it would be advisable to take short courses on Internet and learn how to display and make sure that you provide a variety of gifts in different sizes and shapes.

Money
Since we are in the festive season, most people are already in a giving mood. Parents will be gifting their children, friends and workmates could also be sharing gifts.
Corporate businesses will pay by the piece for you to wrap gifts they have purchased.
You just have to decide on what will be in these packages. Is it wine, chocolates, personal care products, a collection of novels or kids’ stuff?
Ideally, a good gift hamper costs between Shs100,000 up to Shs1 million. The gift is really what you put into the basket.
You can extend your creativity to making the gifts personalised. In this case, you price according to the cost of the items you have wrapped.

Namutebi says for a gift of Shs100,000 you can get a profit of Shs20,000; this means the more gifts wrapped and dispatched, the more money you earn.
On average, if you wrap gifts for five people in a day, at the end of the month, you will be assured of your Shs2.8 million.
Mr Newton Buteraba- chief executive officer- House of Wealth, says that Shs2.8 million is enough capital to further grow this business from a mere festive gig to a permanent income generating activity.
“If you develop a unique and recognisable wrapping design, you can build a brand for your gift wrapping business that can then be turned into a big company,” Mr Buteraba shares.

Profit potential
Namutebi says for a gift of Shs100,000 you can get a profit of Shs20,000; this means the more gifts wrapped and dispatched, the more money you earn.
On average, if you wrap gifts for five people in a day, at the end of the month, you will be assured of your Shs2.8 million.