Gift Certificates

Gift certificates can be a great gift that is certain to never be returned. Perfect for someone who has everything, a gift certificate can be purchased for almost anything. Most retail stores and food establishments will offer some sort of gift certificate for sale, especially around the holidays. If you need a gift quickly, or don't know what to get as a gift for a friend or family member an excellent solution can be to visit one of their favorite stores and purchase a gift certificate to allow them to pick out their gift later themselves. A gift certificate can come particularly handy for clothing purchases when you are unsure of a size, or when you are traveling and don't want to be loaded down with heavy gifts. Some stores set a dollar amount per certificate such as $5, $20 or $50, while others will allow you to get a gift certificate for any amount you choose. You purchase a gift certificate for your desired amount, and then your gift recipient can come back to the store (and usually other stores within a chain), and redeem the certificate for merchandise of their choosing. If the store you choose has an online store the gift certificate can often be used there as well. If there is any change

left over from the purchase most stores will give the change in cash when a paper gift certificate is involved. If the store you choose has gift cards instead of gift certificates the balance will usually remain on the card to be used for a later purchase until the amount on the card drops below a certain set amount (usually around $5) and then in most cases cash change can be given. If a balance remains on the card some stores will charge a fee for keeping the account active. If your store charges a fee the terms associated with it will be explained on the back of the card, make sure you and your recipient is aware of those as well as any expiration date the gift certificate/card may have.