An original gift for a man, without resorting to gadgets.
Three questions to sort the ideas, eight gifts that genuinely surprise, and what looks original but disappoints.
✔ Eight ideas✔ With a Swiss connection✔ No gadgets
An original gift for a man is one he does not expect, but that suits him exactly and that he will genuinely use. Original therefore does not mean strange, but unexpected and well thought out: an experience linked to who he is, an everyday item in a special form, or a subscription that covers a need he neglects. Gadgets and novelty items with slogans amuse for a day, then just take up space.
Before you buy
Three questions that sort the ideas
An original idea has to pass all three.
Will he still be using it in three months? If not, it is a joke, not a gift
Does it reflect him, or only the image people have of him?
Does it need space he doesn't have? Experiences and consumables take up none
Eight ideas
Gifts that genuinely surprise
Each one passes the three questions, and several can be found in Switzerland.
A workshop rather than a product
Forging a knife, baking his own bread, blending his own whisky. He leaves with the object and the story.
For: the man who likes working with his hands
A night somewhere unusual
An igloo, a tree house, a mountain hut. A night he will still be talking about years later.
For: the man who has enough things
A subscription for something ordinary
Underwear, coffee, razor blades. Nobody thinks of it, and it gets used every month.
For: the man who neglects everyday needs
A course in what he has always wanted to learn
Sailing, fishing, photography, cooking. The gift is the first step, not the equipment.
For: the man who has been talking about it for years
A piece from a local craftsman
A chopping board, a belt, a knife handmade near where you live.
For: the man who appreciates things done well
Tickets for something he has never seen
A Swiss wrestling festival, an ice hockey match, an open-air festival. The unfamiliar is what makes it original.
For: the curious one
A map of his own routes
His hikes, his cycling passes or his cities, printed on a single map.
For: the hiker, the cyclist, the traveller
A letter for later
Words to be opened in a year or on a milestone birthday. Almost free, never forgotten.
For: the man you have known for a long time
To avoid
What looks original but disappoints
These gifts raise a laugh when they are opened, then end up in a drawer.
Joke items and gadgets with no real use
Decorative objects with a slogan
An experience he doesn't enjoy, such as a parachute jump for someone afraid of heights
A gift that is original for the giver, but not for the recipient
When UNDY is a good fit
Original because almost nobody thinks of it
An everyday need, given in an unexpected form.
An underwear subscription is rarely the first idea, and that is what makes it original. Yet it passes all three questions: it is used every month, it suits the recipient because he chooses his own size, and it takes up no space. With UNDY, a Swiss subscription, he receives a branded piece every month, for example from HUGO, BOSS, Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein, Nike, Adidas or Puma. The gift subscription lasts 3, 6 or 12 months and ends automatically.
By starting from what he would genuinely use and giving it an unexpected form. Three questions help: will he use it in three months, does it reflect him, and does it take up space?
What original gifts can you give in Switzerland?
A night in an igloo or a mountain hut, a Swiss wrestling festival, a workshop with a local craftsman, or a subscription for an everyday need.
What is an original gift that isn't tacky?
A useful gift in an unexpected form: a workshop, a piece by a craftsman, a map of his own routes or a subscription. Items with slogans and gadgets are the ones that become tacky.
Is an experience an original gift?
Yes, if it is linked to who he is. A generic experience is quickly forgotten; an experience that touches a dream or a memory is not.
Is a subscription an original gift?
Yes, when it covers something nobody thinks of, such as underwear or razor blades. It surprises once and is then used every month.
No subscription
