
Show HN: Gift Macro – Gift Giving for People Who Hate Giving Gifts in 60 Seconds - gmays
https://giftmacro.com
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gmays
Hey all, OP here. I've had this idea for a couple years, but finally blocked
off time to put a MVP together with YC's startup School (I only audited).

 _What is it?:_ An app to give the perfect gift in 60 seconds.

 _Who is it for?:_ People (like me) who don't like giving gifts, but
understand that others still appreciate receiving them. If gift giving
stresses you out, you're too busy, you give bad gifts or always give gift
cards (like me) then this service is for you.

 _How does it work?:_ Tell us the occasion, tell us a couple things about the
person, tell us where to send the gift. Then we'll pick out a gift and send
it. For now, the price tiers are $25, $50, $75 and $100. Shipping is free on
gifts $50 and above.

How is it different? (special sauce):

Most gifting services make you actively pick a gift. Here you have no choice--
you tell us the details, we decide for you.

Most gift services are also online only and have the same shallow collection
of gifts. Instead, we've actually partnered with a real gift shop on Cape Cod
that's been around for 20 years. They were even voted #1 gift shop on Cape
Cod. I actually live near this gift shop and have seen the people who work
here help real people carefully pick out the perfect gift.

Why not abstract that process into a handful of questions so anyone can
leverage it? This way, your special person gets a special gift from a real
gift shop. Meaningful, convenient gift-giving.

 _Why use it:_

\- Leverage real gifting expertise--you don't have to think about what gift to
give.

\- No preset gifts, all gift orders are handpicked to order based on details
provided.

\- It doesn't cost you more than you'd pay in store (sometimes cheaper).

\- Free shipping on orders $50 and above.

\- It's very fast, only asks essential questions.

\- Gift comes from a real gift store without Gift Macro branding.

 _Other questions you may have:_

\- _This sounds like a manual gift picking process--will it scale?_ Maybe. For
launch I've limited orders to 100 per day based on what the gift store can
handle (I waited until the end of the Cape Cod tourist season to launch so
it’s less busy). Later even if we add capacity there's only so many gifts a
real gift store can fulfill if each gift is custom handpicked. At that point
I'd have to add capacity by sourcing other gift stores, but that's a problem
for future me and a good problem to have. It's also an opportunity to send
gift orders to different stores based on the details of the gift request for
even better gifts.

\- _Are payments processed securely?_ Yes, they're processed through Stripe--
no payment information is stored on the site.

\- _How is customer support handled?_ Before the order is made, I (Gift Macro)
handle it. Once the order is placed the customer receives an order receipt
with an order number from the gift store along with fulfillment updates. After
the order is placed all support is handled directly with the gift store to
make exchanges, returns, etc. easier.

\- _Can I really not pick what gift I want to give?_ Correct. Tell us the
details, then trust our gift expert team. It's not for everyone.

 _I 'd love any feedback, thanks!_

