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The global art of gift giving
Gift Baskets Overseas, an Arlington, Massachusetts-based company, specializes in sending personal and corporate gift baskets worldwide. The company works with established local vendors, florists, and gift delivery agents.
Founder and owner Dmitriy Peregudov started his business in 2007. Back then, the focus was primarily on gift baskets and flower delivery to the consumer market between the United States and Europe. “It is a nice way for friends and family to stay connected,” Peregudov said. Today, Gift Baskets Overseas services over 200 countries worldwide, and most of their clientele has shifted to corporate. What they have on offer has also expanded.
“Basically, anything you can think of to go into a basket,” Peregudov said, “we will make it into a gift!”
From baby gifts and chocolates to beer and wine baskets, holiday-themed, corporately branded, and even plants, Gift Baskets Overseas can design, create and ship directly to your desired recipient all over the world. Not only do they have gift baskets for every occasion imaginable, they now have GiftyLink™, a check-enabled gifting program that allows customers to send an email with a link to their gift basket. The recipient can accept, swap, or donate their gift before it is created.
Originally a software engineer with an MBA from Babson College, this isn’t Peregudov’s first foray into the gift-giving world. Before starting Gift Baskets Overseas, Dmitriy owned an online floral business that served a more regional basis. He used this skill set to start Gift Baskets Overseas and, over the past 16 years, has grown in size, both in what they offer and how they offer it.
“The corporate world is so global now,” Peregudov explained. “ and we have made it possible for companies to send their customers and employees gifts no matter where they are.”
Gift Baskets Overseas now has over 1200 partners worldwide, speaking more than 20 languages collectively, which help to design and fulfill the orders using a localized model. Every basket is curated and delivered in-country, saving the client time and money and increasing satisfaction.
“The company is built on seven core values - customer focus, openness, flexibility, improvement, respect, ownership, and be humane,” Dmitriy explained. “By staying true to these, Gift Baskets Overseas can continue to grow and expand their international presence.”
Working on such a global scale has its challenges. Peregudov explained how customer service, quality, and perception of what makes a gift valued varies from country to country, not to mention having all those business relationships.
“A good looking gift (from packaging to contents) means different things in different parts of the world,” Peregudov said. “We sometimes play between two worlds - the sender’s world and the receiver’s world.”
It’s not all about the business for Peregudov. Gift Baskets Overseas takes pride in its efforts to give back from a global and regional perspective. On a larger scale, they support several nonprofits including the Rain Forest Trust and the American Institute for Cancer Research. On the regional side, they offer in-country assistance to companies and causes. For example, with the crisis in Ukraine, Gift Baskets Overseas immediately stepped in to deliver food and medical supplies instead of gifts and flowers.
“We love what we do,” Peregudov said. “We are definitely in it for the long term!”
Gift Baskets Overseas has been a Member Accredited business since 2009. For Peregudov, the trust that comes with being associated with BBB is key.
For more information on Gift Baskets Overseas, check out their BBB Business Profile. To learn more about BBB and read more stories like this, visit Behind the Business Stories with BBB in Eastern MA, ME, RI & VT.
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