Lifestyle/ Fashion & Beauty

Hong Kong gift store owners set up shop because they could never find stuff they liked

Shek Tong Tsui venture is meant as antidote to gimmicky gifts lacking heart

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Published: 2:16pm, 17 Nov, 2015

Updated: 2:16pm, 17 Nov, 2015

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The exterior of get.give in Po Tuck street, in Sai Ying Pun. 04NOV15 [2015 FEATURES ]

get.give, a new boutique in Shek Tong Tsui, in Hong Kong’s Western district, was born of frustration at the lack of original gift choices in Hong Kong. Founders Kate Jones and Seanne Ducat, a cousin, saw a gap in the market and decided to fill it.

Their store on Po Tuck Street, open for over two months now, is a minimalist space full of a curious, earthy and eclectic selection of home, grooming and household products.

SEE ALSO: There goes the neighbourhood: hipster takeover in sleepy Shek Tong Tsui

“We both feel that what is on offer is very trendy, gimmicky, lacking heart and ultimately dust collectors that end up in a landfill,” says Jones, who has lived in Asia for over a decade. “I haven’t been able to find one great store that offers a variety of useful products from quality makers that suits both men and women across a variety of ages. get.give is our answer to this.”

Doorstops from get.give.

Salt and pepper grinders from get.give.

We like it authentic, original, with a reason. The get.give shop and studio is where customers can come and really explore our family of brands. Everything that we’ve selected has a personal connection with both myself and Seanne.”

Ducat and Jones’ have chosen products for sale with a focus on handcrafted goods from independent suppliers – many of which they have encountered on past travels. For example, Jones had the chance to help harvest at Los Poblanos, an organic lavender farm in the US state of New Mexico, and brought some of its products to Hong Kong, where they are now among the store’s more popular items.

Office Blend tea from get.give

Lavender mist and lip salve from get.give.

Another standout label is Bürstenhaus Redecker, one of the last producers of hand-crafted brushes in Germany, and has been in business more than 75 years. get.give stocks a doorstopper in the shape of a hedgehog, and a shoe cleaner, both made from sustainable beechwood and robust bassine fibre suited for cleaning shoes. get.give also stocks a caffeine-free herbal tea from Daphnis and Chloe that contains rosehips, thyme and peppermint.

In December, get.give will introduce a collection of eco-friendly gift wrappings created with Asia-based artists.

“We like the business to be organically slow growing and sustainable,” says Jones. “We are not in a big rush; we want it to be thoughtful.”

get.give, G/F, 6-20 Po Tuck Street, Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong, tel: 2858 0225. Online store: get-give.co