Xmas token for team

[FFSWhatToDoNow]

This is my second Xmas with my team, who are all incredibly hard working. There are 14 of them, spread all over the country. Last year I did them each a little gift box with shortbread and chocolates etc but it took a lot of time and effort and cost about £4 each in postage. (I’m paying.)

Looking to simplify this year and just send them each a £10 voucher and handwritten note saying thank you for all their hard work. Question is, which voucher. I’ve done M+S before, but have been boycotting them for years. Tesco doesn’t feel very special. There’s a possibility of redundancies next year and I don’t think John Lewis/Waitrose is very tactful
if they are trying to save money and not buy things.

So where best to get a voucher?

@FFSWhatToDoNow to be honest at Christmas time there will be 1000s of cards being posted with £10 notes in. We all hear tales of envelopes being opened and money going missing but it's really rare.

Waterstones voucher - A new book is a lovely treat and paperbacks are less than £10. They can spend it on someone else or regift if they prefer. Seems a bit more special than Amazon.

If they don't have waterstones in their own town, the vouchers are valid for a year at least so they can get one while elsewhere / on holiday. Or National Book Token to open up geographically.

OP- Are you aware that you are coming across as rude and combative? People have taken their time to make lots of different suggestions, yet you complain that they also didn't check the postage costs for you! Then you refute each suggestion!

FFS OP- sort it yourself then!

This.

They also have an excellent range of calendars which are half price after Christmas too, so any non book readers can sort themselves out in that way!

I don’t think I have.

I asked which vouchers people would like to receive and had very mixed replies with people disagreeing with each other.

I’ve had suggestions of letterbox gifts, but I can get better value doing that myself, as I did last year, but it’s a lot of work and postage cost and I don’t have the capacity this year. I’m also conscious that something that can be used to supplement usual spending (groceries) might be better given the looming redundancies.

I agree that M+S would probably suit everybody. But having decided years back not to give them a penny that’s not an ideal solution.

I’m not trying to be difficult. I’m also at risk of redundancy so really don’t want to go too far beyond the £10 I’ve budgeted. Apart from DD I don’t buy Xmas presents for anyone else so I don’t want to blow £150 on things that won’t work for people. :-/

There’s a tea and cake hamper on Amazon for £12. At a push that might work.

Not intending to. As I said, on verge of burnout and I’m now overwhelmed looking at suggestions that don’t meet the spec. (If I asked for recommendations of a car for £10k I wouldn’t expect to get Ferraris as a suggestion.) I have considered something other than a voucher, and checked the links but want to get decent value and generally letterbox gifts seem to be more profit than substance.

It’s also a tough time for all of us with the threat of redundancy in the new year looming large. I want to be caring here.

I do appreciate the suggestions. Some just went rather more off piste.

Actually I really like this idea. I’d probably go for National Book Tokens over Waterstones, just for convenience.

Wouldn’t be used here , we are boycotting Boots , that said I don’t work for the OP 😀

great. Thanks for that.

"I asked which vouchers people would like to receive"

Nah, you said;

"So where best to get a voucher?"

😅

It was more free delivery method I was thinking, but yes, you could get a nice treat delivered for a £10. They do have chocs and wine etc for less than your budget

What’s the difference?

Please don't do JL or Waitrose. Neither of those are within 50 miles of me.
M&S, Amazon, Boots, Costa, book token (not Waterstones specific) could all be used, even if they aren't stores I'd usually visit, and all sell stuff that doesn't need to cost very much more than the value of the gift.

I think OP, that you need to pick one of three things:

1. pay a premium for the convenience of a gift which you could make yourself for a lot less but which is not something you have headspace for and you'd still need to factor in the costs of postage yourself
2. make the items yourself and risk additional burn out and potentially higher costs after postage is paid
3. plump for a voucher which people can use at their leisure from the likes of Amazon or Waitrose and don't overthink the gift!

If people are in and out of motorway services, lots of them have the Little Waitrose shops these days, and they can be used there from what I can see.

It looks like on here (they are the love2shop voucher people) you buy a love2shop e voucher and the recipient can exchange for eg John Lewis, Waitrose, tk maxx etc
And they’re emailed so no going missing in the post.

Edited to add: maybe you can compose a greetings email that mentions the possibility to exchange for the voucher of their choice.High street vouchers

People have slated these vouchers on this thread.

I’m trying to do number 3, I think!

But rather than spend the love2shop voucher itself, they can exchange for the voucher they would use

True. It’s an option.

Exchange option sample

Even though there is a mark up on the letterbox gifts, you are paying to save yourself the hassle so isn’t it worth it?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bellalisia-Relaxation-Pamper-Present-Relaxing/dp/B08W2PPPKS/ref=sr_1_23?adgrpid=56946851927&hvadid=606159041705&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=1006988&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=2721868365781007578&hvtargid=kwd-314664316022&hydadcr=7523_2282339&keywords=letterbox+gifts&qid=1700406251&sr=8-23

if you have prime there’s loads of things like this that would work with no postage. You can then send different ones to different people

Ooo, Sainsbury's feels like a good shout if you were wanting to supplement groceries. There's also nice PJ's and house stuff as well in there. A tiny bit more special than Tesco/Asda/Morrisons

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Christmas-Chocolate-Letterbox-Friendly-Surprises/dp/B0CM3TFQLG/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?adgrpid=56946851927&hvadid=606159041705&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=1006988&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=2721868365781007578&hvtargid=kwd-314664316022&hydadcr=7523_2282339&keywords=letterbox+gifts&qid=1700406381&refinements=p_36%3A406395031&rnid=355251031&s=grocery&sr=1-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Treasured-Forever-TEA-Letterbox-Afternoon/dp/B08X2VHTNC/ref=sr_1_6?adgrpid=56946851927&hvadid=606159041705&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=1006988&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=2721868365781007578&hvtargid=kwd-314664316022&hydadcr=7523_2282339&keywords=letterbox%2Bgifts&qid=1700406381&refinements=p_36%3A406395031&rnid=355251031&s=grocery&sr=1-6&th=1

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Chocolate-Friendly-Presents-Surprises-Occasions/dp/B0C2CYSWVJ/ref=sr_1_24?adgrpid=56946851927&hvadid=606159041705&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=1006988&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=2721868365781007578&hvtargid=kwd-314664316022&hydadcr=7523_2282339&keywords=letterbox+gifts&qid=1700406381&refinements=p_36%3A406395031&rnid=355251031&s=grocery&sr=1-24

Thanks.