What occurs to a present after the event is over? The flowers finally wilt, the sweets disappear, and the festive hampers are emptied. However what concerning the costly watch that’s by no means worn, the portray that does not fairly match the lounge, or the fifth dinner set stashed away, unlikely to ever adorn a desk?
Some presents are treasured, others are tucked away in cabinets, and lots of are quietly handed on. But a present needn’t attain the tip of its helpful life just because its first recipient has little use for it. It might be resold, exchanged, donated, and even change into an asset.
A quite uncommon instance of this was on show not too long ago on the Nationwide Gallery of Trendy Artwork (NGMA), New Delhi, the place Union Tradition Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat inaugurated an exhibition showcasing mementos introduced to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Work, sculptures, handicrafts and different objects are being provided by way of the PM Mementos E-Public sale 2026, with the proceeds going in direction of the Namami Gange programme.
“Even presents may be put to significant use,” stated Shekhawat on the inauguration, explaining the bigger goal behind the initiative.
There’s something compelling about this journey. An object given as a token of appreciation finds a brand new proprietor, acquires a brand new goal and, within the course of, contributes to a public trigger. Its worth now not lies merely in what it price or who acquired it, however in what it will possibly go on to realize.
And that brings us again to our personal gifting habits. As India enters the festive season, with Diwali celebrations and weddings across the nook, we are going to spend appreciable money and time selecting, wrapping and exchanging presents. However how a lot thought will we give to what occurs after the presents have been opened?
A present’s ‘second innings residence’
India’s festive procuring growth is creating one other market, one which begins after presents have modified fingers. Undesirable devices, duplicate presents, luxurious equipment and home items are more and more discovering their means into resale, alternate, and refurbishment channels.
Karan Chechi, founder and chief government officer (CEO) of TechSci Analysis, a Delhi-based market analysis and consulting company, estimates festive e-commerce gross sales at ₹1.55 trillio–1.60 trillion this season, in contrast with ₹1.24 trillion final yr. Individually, India’s recommerce market, which incorporates resale of pre-owned items past gifting, is estimated at $5.02 billion in 2025 and projected to succeed in $9.07 billion by 2030.
The chance lies in recovering worth from even a small proportion of festive purchases that recipients can’t use or don’t need. After all, the dimensions of India’s festive retail market shouldn’t be confused with the worth of undesirable presents, for which dependable estimates stay scarce.
Manufacturers are already responding. Apple, Samsung and Xiaomi provide smartphone trade-ins, Cashify facilitates system buybacks, IKEA has furnishings resale programmes, whereas jewellers resembling Tanishq and CaratLane provide gold exchanges. Chechi believes present receipts, prolonged alternate home windows, instantaneous resale valuations and refurbishment companies may make this secondary market extra accessible. The chance isn’t merely to promote extra throughout Diwali, however to recuperate worth after the celebrations finish.
And for sure classes, resale is changing into a sensible various to holding one thing one neither wants nor likes. Luxurious items are a first-rate instance. Punit Anand, founding father of The LuxuryPop, an Indian resale platform specialising in authenticated designer merchandise, says purses, wallets, and equipment from manufacturers resembling Gucci and Louis Vuitton incessantly enter the resale market after being acquired as birthday, Rakhi, or Diwali presents. Think about a Gucci pockets price ₹45,000. The recipient might not prefer it, however with out the unique buy invoice, exchanging or returning it may be troublesome. Reselling turns into an choice.
In keeping with Anand, such presents are sometimes in brand-new situation however provided under their authentic retail value, making them engaging to consumers. “As a result of it is new and priced underneath retail, it sells sooner,” he says.
For the recipient, resale unlocks cash from an undesirable possession. For the following purchaser, it provides luxurious at a reduction. And for the product, it means one other life quite than years of disuse.
Can a present change into an asset?
Not each present loses worth when it modifications fingers. Some can change into shops of wealth, though their resale worth might differ considerably from the unique buy value.
“A present and an funding are two very various things. However sure presents, significantly valuable metals, uncommon watches, high-quality artwork and collectibles, can protect wealth,” says Keval Bhanushali, co-founder of 1 Finance, a Sebi-registered monetary advisory agency specialising in holistic private monetary planning.
The excellence lies in what determines their worth. Gold cash have an intrinsic metallic worth linked to prevailing gold costs, though resale proceeds rely upon purity, weight and transaction prices. Jewelry might fetch lower than its buy value as a result of making expenses and retail markups are not often recovered. Luxurious purses and watches usually depreciate, though uncommon, sought-after fashions can command premiums. Artwork and antiques rely closely on authenticity, provenance, situation, and collector demand.
There are tax issues too. In India, presents acquired from specified kin are usually exempt from earnings tax, whereas sure presents from non-relatives exceeding ₹50,000 in combination could also be taxable, topic to statutory exceptions. Promoting a gifted asset may set off capital good points tax, with the earlier proprietor’s acquisition price and holding interval usually related.
Bhanushali additionally highlights the cultural significance of gifting, significantly the custom of passing jewelry, silverware and different valuables from one technology to a different. These usually are not merely possessions however reminders of household historical past. Nonetheless, he questions the lasting utility and resale potential of company presents bearing outstanding firm logos. Such presents might have little enchantment past the unique recipient.
The monetary lesson is simple: a present might carry sentimental worth, resale worth or funding potential, however these usually are not essentially the identical factor.
What makes a present price holding?
After all, not each present wants a resale value to have lasting worth. “Typical gifting usually begins with the event, whereas the presents we keep in mind often begin with the particular person,” says Avi Kumar, chief advertising officer, FNP.
In keeping with Kumar, personalisation, relevance and emotional connection usually decide whether or not a present turns into a cherished possession or one other object gathering mud. “A present turns into a keeper when it feels thought of quite than chosen,” he says.
High quality, craftsmanship and considerate presentation matter too. A personalised souvenir, {a photograph} and even the packaging could also be preserved lengthy after the event has handed. Generally, the afterlife of a present is solely emotional: the reminiscence of a midnight shock, a bouquet despatched on the proper second or one thing chosen with explicit care.
“The transaction might finish at supply and the event might finish that night, however an amazing present can reside for much longer,” says Kumar. For him, luxurious in gifting isn’t essentially a few increased value level. It’s about consideration to element and the flexibility to convey a easy message: “I considered you.”
That emotional dimension additionally raises an uncomfortable query. If thoughtfulness is what makes a present precious, why will we proceed to alternate so many issues that individuals neither want nor use?
Can Diwali gifting go round?
An undesirable present carries an environmental price, from manufacturing and packaging to transportation, even when it stays unused.
“Probably the most sustainable presents are these you make or upcycle your self, crops, and presents that will likely be used for years,” says Rashi Grover, a Delhi-based sustainability professional. She advocates sturdy supplies, minimal packaging and presents that assist native artisans and small companies. Thoughtfulness issues too. “My aunt presents me pinwheels for my balcony backyard, and it means the world to me as a result of she is aware of what would delight me.”
Grover believes manufacturers ought to introduce take-back, resale, refurbishment and donation programmes. “A genuinely round gifting economic system would give each the present and its packaging a second life,” she says, citing Eveready’s used-battery assortment initiative with Zepto for instance. Neighbourhood sharing teams also can assist undesirable presents discover new house owners. “The aim is to construct a sharing economic system, and that shouldn’t be misplaced.”
This Diwali, the query is not only what we give, however whether or not the present continues to create worth lengthy after the celebration ends.