Supply Chain Issues Got You Down? 5 Alternative Gifting Ideas for the 2021 Holiday Season

Aside from eating our weight in desserts and gathering as families, gift-giving is a part of the holiday season. You want to bring a smile to your loved ones’ faces and gift-giving is certainly something to celebrate. However, for this holiday season, you’ve heard the doom and gloom about how the pandemic has opened up the potential for huge shipping delays for the 2021 holiday season. And you’ve been told that items that we may want to purchase for your loved ones may be out of stock, as the country faces “product scarcity” this holiday season.

Bah! Humbug!

Don’t let these woes dampen your holidays. (Grinch Be Gone!). There are still plenty of ways to bring the best and brightest holiday season to your loved ones, despite these potential woes. Here are five ways to give by not only brightening your relatives’ spirits but also helping your local economy.

I do not earn any commission from the links I have listed nor am I affiliated with any of these links. They are just my ideas to help my gift-giving this year.

1. Shop Local

Remember the olden days when you would go to a local store, pick out a gift that was in the store, wrap it up and give it on Christmas day? This option is still available this Christmas.

Large online retailers have seen record profits during the pandemic. However, in cities across the United States, small businesses have been negatively impacted by the pandemic. Many small businesses shut down and many more are still facing financial crises.

Now more than ever is the time to shop local. Sure, you may be able to sometimes find a product a little cheaper online, but that is not always the case. Additionally, given the delays predicted this season, and the fact that the local businesses need support, if you are buying gifts, please consider spending your hard-earned money locally.

One idea that will truly bring the holiday spirit on is to check out local holiday markets. In New York City, for example, there are dozens of holiday markets filled with small businesses and local vendors. These vendors have everything from hand-crafted jewelry to unique children’s toys and everything in between!

One of the more popular markets is the Union Square Holiday Market. Time Out NY has a comprehensive list of this year’s best holiday markets in New York City, and also covers holiday markets in other metropolitan areas. For example, Los Angeles and Chicago feature bustling holiday markets too.

If you are not in New York City, your locality is sure to have a holiday market with local artists and business owners showcasing their products. Many churches and community centers host holiday markets this time of year. Check them out, as the vendors will surely appreciate your support this holiday season.

Be sure to be safe and follow any local COVID-19 related guidelines when you are out and about in your local stores to keep yourself and others safe this holiday!

2. Shop Small

Perhaps you are not feeling very comfortable with the idea of holiday crowds, or you cannot seem to find the right gift for your nephew at your local shops. There are still plenty of ways to support local businesses or small vendors from the comfort of your home.

Many local vendors have online platforms listing their current inventory where you can order items directly from their stores.

Etsy is another option, which features many small businesses that create artistic and unique items, often with a personalization option. You can limit your search to vendors within the United States to minimize the potential for shipping delays.

If you are ordering items online, be sure to read the shipping information and estimate carefully and order well in advance of the holiday, to be sure that your loved one receives their gift on time.

3. Make Something

What better way to show someone you love them than to make something just for them?

You can easily create your design with that special someone in mind on sites like Zazzle, for example. There, you can create shirts, mugs, magnets, blankets, ornaments, and even shoes, with a design of your own. Or, you can upload your favorite photo of your friend and add it to any one of these fun items. There are many sites for personalization, like Personalization Mall, Vistaprint, and even Shutterfly, which provide a great source for photobooks and personalized calendars. Many of these places will be running sales leading up to the holidays, so be on the lookout!

Still too rich for your blood? Baking is a fun and easy way to share your holiday cheer with your friends and family. Bake several types of cookies and deliver them personally to your loved ones. Add a festive holiday sweater and hat to make the delivery extra special!

Allrecipes offers hundreds of places to find easy-to-follow holiday cookie recipes which are added by actual home cooks. There are tried and true recipes or modern options. If you try something new, this will give you an excuse to sample it before giving it away! Bake up a sugary sweet holiday!

4. Give an Experience

If your loved one is a fan of the arts, there is nothing better than giving the gift of an experience, such as tickets to an art museum, or a local theater, or orchestra performance.

Perhaps you have a relative that is particularly difficult to shop for. Your relative certainly has a favorite band that is possibly touring after many months of live performance restrictions. Tickets to shows or museums can lift someone’s spirits, and build lifelong memories, especially now since many people haven’t been to live performances in quite some time.

Plus, you will be supporting performing artists who’ve also faced difficulties during the pandemic due to live performance restrictions.

The arts aren’t your thing? How about a trip to a local amusement park or zoo? You can give your family member a ticket or a yearlong membership to their local park. One of my favorite destinations, the Bronx Zoo, allows you to purchase gift memberships for individuals and families and these memberships cover all zoos in New York City! Or, for the adventurous person, you can give them a Wildlife Encounter where they can meet and greet a giraffe, cheetah, sloth, or other zoo animals (with a zoo animal handler of course).

Does your relative enjoy mysteries? Take them to an escape room! Many cities have both locally. These adventures, especially if done together, will be sure to put a smile on your loved ones’ faces and create lifelong memories.

5. Give to the Less Fortunate

As you get older, you may feel that you have everything that you need, or that your needs are far too expensive for a holiday gift (hello, student loans). For this reason, you may want to ask for a donation to be made in your name to help a family in need this year. Many children and families in your city or state may not be able to even think about purchasing gifts for each other and instead are doing what they can to be able to put food on the table.

No Kid Hungry, Meals on Wheels, and Food Bank NYC are non-profit organizations that work to make sure no person goes hungry. Even small monetary donations to them go a long way to help families and people in need.

So, what are you going to do to help spread holiday cheer despite the supply chain issues?