Kaysha Rajani brings joy to others through gifting, and she’s passionate about using it to develop and maintain relationships. As the Owner and Founder of Curated Giftables, she provides a custom gifting service for corporate clients and event pros that curates beautiful gifts to fit any budget, brand or theme.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

Prior to launching Curated Giftables, my background was in marketing and communications–handling everything from project management to social media, email marketing, public relations, website development, branding and event planning and management.

What inspired you to start your business?

Like many others during the pandemic, I started to think about my career and what to do with my life. I was craving a position with more flexibility and wanted to take ownership in something I could nurture and grow.

Gifting has always been my love language and when everything was shut down, I quickly realized how it could be used to develop corporate relationships. Businesses were looking to connect with people working remotely, and gifting was a strategic way to do that.

At the time, local options for corporate gifting were limited to branded swag or baskets of nuts and dried fruit–but I wanted to offer gifts that were exciting and unique. Gifts that were on-brand and coordinated by theme, color or product, and I thought businesses would appreciate outsourcing their gifting to a service that manages the entire process from design to delivery.

Where is your business based?

Central California, specifically Fresno.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

First, I took an entrepreneurship class offered through a local university to learn the basics on how to get started and in the meantime, I worked on developing my website and social media pages. Then, with the help of my mentors, I navigated completing the applications and licenses required and set up a few systems that would help me streamline bookkeeping, operations, and marketing.

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

Social media has been very effective in raising awareness of Curated Giftables as it has allowed me to have a platform to share examples of the gifts I create and spark conversations about how strategic gifting can help boost employee morale, invite more referrals, show gratitude and appreciation and more!

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

When I started my business, I thought there was a market for offering a concierge gifting service where clients would tell me about the recipients likes and dislikes and I would put together a custom gift box for them. For example, my clients would provide a budget and tell me something like: “Mom of 4, loves all things Disney, her favorite color is pink, she loves Chinese food, in her spare time she goes hiking with her family”.

Then I would run around town and search online to curate a gift specifically for this person. It was time consuming, and I had to buy everything at retail price since I couldn’t meet wholesale minimums. I quickly realized that offering this service was not profitable. So, I redirected my efforts to focus on mass gifting for businesses and the event industry and that was a better fit.

How do you stay focused?

I work from home and picking up my phone to scroll through Instagram or Facebook, check text messages etc… is my biggest distraction. If I need to stay focused, I often put my phone in another room and that way I am not tempted to look at it!

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

Prior to starting my gifting business, I enjoyed a fifteen-year career in marketing and communications, primarily in project management. Meeting deadlines, managing customer expectations, and creative problem solving are all skills that have migrated over from my previous experience into the gifting business, which is why customers can trust that their gifts will exceed expectations for presentation and delivery and that’s what differentiates me from my competition.

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

Social media and word of mouth have both been effective marketing strategies. People tend to share positive experiences and naturally when they receive a gift it makes them happy, so they are usually excited to post about it or tell someone!

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

Say “yes!” to every opportunity. The more connections you can make in your industry and community, the more your business can grow! Get out there and network, find a mentor, attend every event you’re invited to, join professional and social organizations. Even if it pushes you outside your comfort zone! You never know who you will meet that could use your product or service (or they might know someone else to connect you with!)

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. It’s a classic book that helps you understand how to build good relationships. The practices I have implemented from the book have been effective for both my personal and professional life.

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

Canva, it’s an online graphic design tool that’s user friendly and offers tons of templates to help you develop creative assets. I use it daily for creating social media posts, presentations, gift tags, note cards, stickers and more!

Who is your business role model? Why?

It’s hard to give one role model as I have a few that come to mind – some are celebrities and others that are people in my life, but a common thread is that they are powerful, inspirational women that use their success to give back and lift up others.

How do you balance work and life?

It’s often said that if you’re a business owner, you’ll work a lot more than if you were someone else’s employee and it’s so true! It’s very easy to blur the lines between work and life because they tend to bleed into each other when you’re a business owner. The best way I have been able to find balance is to stick to a Monday – Friday schedule and unless it’s busy season, I don’t work during weekends. This helps protect me from burn out and makes me more productive during the week.

What’s your favorite way to decompress?

Self-care is number one for me. Scheduling a massage, facial, or mani/pedi gives me something to look forward to and forces me to decompress for a couple of hours so I can feel re-energized and ready to tackle the next project.

What do you have planned for the next six months?

After getting through the busy holiday season, I’ll be setting goals for 2024 which include revamping my email marketing and participating in various training opportunities. The beginning of the year is usually a quiet time for me so I can spend some time focusing on business development and strategy.

How can our readers connect with you?

Email hello@curatedgiftables.com or visit curatedgiftables.com if you’re interested in a gift consultation.

Follow @curatedgiftables on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/curatedgiftables)  or Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/curatedgiftables/) to see the projects we’re working on and get some gift inspiration!