The Stationers Guild

The recent bankruptcy of Blue Tulip has prompted Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal to warn consumers to redeem gift cards before they become worthless at the end of this month.  While the bankruptcy is no doubt a traumatic experience to most Blue Tulip employees, it does raise some interesting questions about the value of gift cards.

At Therese Saint Clair, we have always resisted promoting gift cards.  In effect, it constitutes an interest-free loan to the store for merchandise that may be purchased in the future.  Processing companies that promote gift cards will tell you that on average between 8% and 10% of the face value of gift cards will not be redeemed.  While this might be considered a “good deal” for the card issuer, it does seem rather unfair to the consumer.  One way stores can redistribute these “unredeemed dollars” is to sell gift cards at a discount.  For instance, if on average 10% of gift card sales go unredeemed, a store can redistribute those dollars to their gift card holders by selling a $100 gift card for $90.  Personally, I think that this is only the fair thing to do.

More importantly, I fail to see the appeal of single-store gift cards.  Isn’t just another piece of plastic?  With already over-crowded purses and wallets, why do we need another payment option?  While promotional gift cards to encourage town residents to shop locally might hold some appeal, the single store gift card seems to me to a rather silly payment alternative.

Sheila May
Therese Saint Clair