When to order corporate Christmas gifts (and why September isn't early)

September: choosing

In September the catalogue has just closed and every product is available in full quantity. It's the month in which you can still say "this selection, but with the mountain Parmigiano instead of the pecorino", or "we need two hundred identical selections across three different deliveries". Everything that is personalisation — substitutions, bespoke selections, printed cards, ribbons in your colour — lives in this window.

October: confirming

October is the month of the recipient list. It's the part companies underestimate most, and the one that matters most.

• —complete addresses, with postcode and province
• —a contact person and a phone number for every delivery
• —sites that close in the last week of the year
• —the wording of the card, different for each recipient tier

With the list in hand, production is locked in and departure dates are set.

November: shipping

From the second week of November the first deliveries go out. Anyone arriving here without having decided isn't late because of us: they're late because fresh products, leavened goods and bottles have finite batches. On a November order we still work well, but on the catalogue, not on the bespoke.

December: catching up

In December much can still be done, provided one accepts the constraint: what's available. Every year some December requests still close, but with less choice and concentrated deliveries.

In short

September for projects, October for the catalogue with the list ready, November for those who moved late but still want to choose. December exists, but it's a different conversation.