Every penny counts and more often than not a full-time job isn’t enough to get by these days – but easy side jobs at Christmas could help.
One woman's story
Amanda White, 67, who’s based in Bristol, has found an easy way to make an additional £5,000 a year doing something she loves and it’s a skill that comes in particularly useful this time of year.
A passion for gift wrapping
After her youngest child left home, Amanda realized she had a little more time to put towards her gift wrapping and decided to turn it into a business.
She told HOAR: "I had noticed both my friends and family really appreciated my wrapping style. My girlfriends would always open gifts from one side and slowly slip the gift out one side so they could reuse my wrapping."
"My husband’s secretary loved my wrapping of champagne and made a throwaway comment that I should do this professionally. That was the seed of an idea which grew into my part-time business."
Amanda's services
Now Amanda provides a range of different services from business wrapping and presenting gifts or products, and workshops where you learn to wrap like a pro and demonstrations – to inspire groups.
The ex-primary school teacher has built her business from scratch and now she’s considered a pro.
She said: "I am completely self-taught and really love the more creative inventive side of the business."
Charging for gift wrapping
The amount Amanda charges for gift wrapping will depend entirely on the size of the gifts and the costs of materials sourced to wrap them.
She said: "I always include all materials in my price because I prefer to provide good quality products which are, wherever possible, environmentally friendly."
"I do have contacts with wholesale sites which I use. But businesses also send out products for me to showcase online."
Developing a social media presence
Amanda launched her Instagram account after participants from one of her gift-wrapping classes begged her for more of her tips.
She said: "I got to grips with it pretty quickly. I’ve always been comfortable in front of a camera. And it’s great to share new ideas with my followers."
"I also launched a website so people can see exactly what services I offer."
Wrapping for others, keeping her own style
Now Amanda usually finds her clients through her Instagram account or through word of mouth.
Even though she spends her days wrapping gifts for others, she still makes sure that she keeps her own sense of style.
She said: "I love turquoise and pink but that doesn’t mean that’s what I necessarily use in workshops."
"I enjoy good quality paper- it makes a huge difference to the overall look. I am a great believer in not having to spend a fortune on everything but getting creative with what you might have in your garden or home."
TV appearances and wrapping for Harry and Meghan
Over the 12 years that she has been wrapping fits professionally, Amanda’s business has seen some huge highlights.
She said: "I got to teach Lauren Laverne how to wrap for an American Express advert. She was so lovely and welcoming."
Amanda says she even wrapped a wedding gift for Harry and Meghan.
She said: "I put a lot of thought into that. I wanted to reflect the way Meghan dressed so I chose pale, blended colours like natural white and cream."
"The gift was decorated with ribbons with oak leaves from my garden, which I thought was a really nice personal touch but a strong British symbol."
"I dried the leaves but made sure they were not flat so they still had movement and painted them with enamel paint."
Christmas is the busiest time
Unsurprisingly Amanda’s busiest time of the year is Christmas.
She said: "September through till Christmas is always the busiest time of year for any gift wrapper."
"If I spend about 5 hours a week on wrapping during the rest of the year around Christmas I spend at least five times that."
"Many opportunities are arranged last minute too, like TV appearances."
"In December I will wrap around 300 gifts. In January possibly none.
"But people will start redeeming their gift vouchers they may have had for Christmas and therefore I’m more likely to be holding small kitchen table workshops."
Extra cash and a sense of fulfillment
The gift wrapping pro confirmed she is making around an extra £5,000 a year wrapping gifts and teaching others.
"It really does depend on the year. For example, during the pandemic, I stopped completely but now it’s full blaze ahead."
She has said her friends and family have been incredibly supportive of her business, sometimes even stepping up to lend a hand.
Now Amanda gets to meet new people doing something she enjoys while getting an extra £5,000 boost to her retirement.
She said: "I used to be a primary school teacher which is a job that I loved when I retired I was really for something to do with my free time."
