I never thought I would write this, but you may be too rich if you need a “Santa Gifting Service” – Santa’s ‘Gifting’ Helpers Handle Holiday Shopping for the Wealthy. I read this article and was laughing and mildly disgusted all at once. Here’s why:
To some people, hunting for the perfect gift is more of a hassle than a holiday. Some of the wealthiest consumers across the country turn to consultants to find ultra-exclusive, money-is-no-object gifts from around the world.
First of all, spending money is one of my specialities. I like to say I didn’t earn it to save it. It is usually at that point I realize how blessed I am to have the wife I have (she is a saver). At any rate, I hate to see Christmas reduced to a gift-giving task that is categorized as a “hassle.”
Donum is the company that provides the shopping service to the wealthy. I have never heard of them which is probably a testament to my income. In case you were wondering, here is the pull quote from the founder:
“Donum stands for cutting-edge luxury,” brags Amy Frankel Nau, who founded the company more than a decade ago and is now a consultant to the company. “We are the most exclusive department store in the world, without the four walls.”
This quote got me to thinking, who sells their services? Better yet, what would the ideal salesperson look like in their world. Without profiling the sale, I would have to guess their most successful salespeople are a blend of two specific motivations – Utilitarian and Aesthetic. This is a difficult combination to find due to the relative scarcity of the Aesthetic motivation in sales.
Let me define the Aesthetic motivation so you can see its importance in this role:
- Driven by a passion for form, harmony and beauty
- Appreciate the finer things in life and strive to get them
- Empathetic to the feelings of others
- Aware of fashion and trends
- Susceptible to purchasing the newest and latest products
I think you can easily see why this motivation, tied to the Utilitarian drive for sales success, would be a tremendous fit for this type of sales position.
And one last trivial point from the article, “Donum” means gift in Latin.