Specialty Departments: Gift

Gifts Galore
Peggy Guerin, lead
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

When friends and family member’s birthdays rolls around, Peggy Guerin knows exactly what she wants to give them.  As the Gift Department lead at the Philadelphia, PA, store, Peggy is constantly handling new gift items and getting new ideas for future presents.  And, although, she would love all the products for herself, she likes to share her wealth of knowledge by purchasing items as presents for others. 

To familiarize herself with the variety of products, Peggy regularly checks the Barnes & Noble Top 50 report, which her store keeps in the break room.  The location of the Gift Department allows her to also stay knowledgeable about new books as well.  Peggy says, “I’m located right on the first floor with the new titles all around me – it’s a book lover’s heaven!” 

Among the book ends, greeting cards and other gift products, Peggy most enjoys working with the journals – “It’s fun and challenging to create a colorful flow from the different journal covers that captures people’s attention and draws them into the Gift Department,” says Peggy.  Two journals in particular – the Floral Portrait Lauren Wan lined journal and the Jill Bliss Native Flowers softbound journal – have become Peggy’s favorite items. 

Peggy enjoys bookselling because it gives her an opportunity to talk with customers about the products and to hand-sell.  She offers a tip: “If I notice a particular item is selling well, I will do a search to see if there is anything else in that line available.  And, if an item is a ‘hot seller,’ I will shortlist the item to ensure it is available for my customers.”  Her go-to gift item suggestion is our Moleskines journals.  “They are perennial sellers.  I often suggest Moleskines to customers who aren’t sure what they want since they are universally appealing and useful.” 

In terms of customer service, Peggy believes the best way to ensure excellent service is to always be polite, pleasant, and helpful.  “If the customer feels you have paid attention to them, listened to what they want, and really made an effort to satisfy them, they will have had a memorable shopping experience and come back to us again.”