Let the regifting begin!

Unhappy with your holiday gifts? You've got several options. The most traditional is to just keep them. That's what basements, closets and storage lockers are for. Who knows? At some point, you may actually find some use for that mashed-potato-scented candle. Or you could return them — as long as you're prepared to run the gauntlet of rules retailers have set up for would-be returners. Another option: regifting. In a recent poll, the Consumer Reports National Research Center found that 13 percent of consumers consider regifting an option. And according to the editors of Consumer Reports on Health, unloading some of your gifts is just fine — at least if your gift is of the Harry & David or Mrs. Fields persuasion. "When it comes to food, consider it sharing. Bring decadent cakes, cookies, or other treats you’ve received to the office or get-togethers so that everyone can enjoy a small amount," our health mavens commented in a recent report. For other gifts, the etiquette is less clear. While the standard-bearers at the Emily Post Institute take a hard line that "regifting should be done only rarely," other experts are a little less strict. Ethics at Work president Bruce Weinstein, quoted by CNN, says that "there is no reason to feel guilty for regifting. The purpose of giving a gift is to give pleasure, to bring joy to someone's life." Weinstein adds that it "would be wasteful" to keep a gift that duplicates something you already own (the Post Institute also says it's OK to hand off duplicates — as long as you treat them as "unofficial" gifts). In the end, your personal comfort level — along with the amount of space you've got left in the basement — is likely to determine your own regifting strategy. In the meantime, can someone pass me one of those decadent cakes, before they're all gone?

— MP

Comments

[mpower1952]

Donating the gift to a thrift store of a worthwhile charity is also an option. You get a tax deduction and the store sells your unwanted gift to someone who appreciates it. The money goes to help the homeless, or habitat for humanity, etc.