The sight of an extensive range of gift cards by supermarket tills is becoming more and more common.
New research from The UK Gift Card & Voucher Association confirm this trend and say almost half of consumers (49 per cent) are likely to give a gift card or voucher as a gift this Christmas.
The popularity of gift cards and vouchers has grown over recent years and Christmas 2013 is on track to be one of the strongest for the industry to date.
Andrew Johnson, director-general of the UKGCVA, said gift cards and vouchers are a great way to give a personal gift without running the risk of them not liking your choice of present or buying the wrong size.
He said: “There‘s nothing worse than opening a present from a close friend or family member, only to find that it‘s something you already have – or something that you really dislike!”
The survey of over 2,000 consumers, carried out by YouGov, is in line with recent industry data from auditing firm BDO that showed consumer sales of gift cards and vouchers grew a record 8 per cent in the third quarter (Q3) of 2013.
Gift cards can be key drivers of sales – Microsoft recently launched new gift cards that can be used for purchases on Xbox One, Windows and Windows Phone stores.
