--- title: How to offer gift wrap and a gift message on your online shop date: 2026-11-11 updated: 2026-11-11 canonical: "https://oneshopfront.com/blog/holiday-gift-wrap-gift-message-checkout" --- Holiday buyers want their order to arrive as a gift, with a note from them inside. Here's how to offer gift wrap and a gift message at checkout without tracking requests by email. Category: For shop owners Tags: pickup, shipping, holiday, bundles, gift wrap, gift message, checkout, build-your-own box, cookie tins ![How to offer gift wrap and a gift message on your online shop](https://oneshopfront.com/storage/platform/posts/hggmFL4KauoHnpiqYkmsuUnkiT0qTqVewAeC5RNL.jpg) In December, a lot of the people buying from you aren't buying for themselves. They want the order to arrive looking like a gift, with a short note from them inside. If your checkout doesn't ask, they put "please wrap this, it's for my sister" in a note, or they email you, or they buy somewhere else. A gift wrap choice at checkout fixes that. The buyer ticks a box, types a message, and pays the wrap fee in the same order. You see all of it on the order and the packing slip, so nothing gets lost in your inbox. ## What do buyers expect from gift wrap online? Most buyers want three simple things: - A clear yes or no for gift wrap, with the price shown before they pay - A spot to type a short gift message - Confidence that you saw it, so the gift arrives wrapped with their note They don't need ten paper styles. One good wrap that you can do quickly is enough for most small shops, and it's easier for you on a busy week. ## How does gift wrap work on OneShopFront? Gift wrap is off until you turn it on. Here's what it does once it's on: - **One wrap choice for the whole order.** The buyer adds gift wrap at checkout for everything in their order. - **One flat fee per order.** You choose the fee. You can also set it to $0 if you'd like to wrap for free. - **A gift message.** You can also turn on a gift message, so the buyer can type a short note to go with the gift. - **It shows up where you need it.** Gift wrap and the gift message appear on the order in your admin, on the packing slip, and in the order emails to you and the buyer. The order note is a separate box, on by default. Buyers can use it for anything else, up to 500 characters, like "Please leave at the side door." ## A shop example: Pinecone Porch Cookie Co. Pinecone Porch Cookie Co. is a made-up home baker in Calgary. She sells cookie tins that she ships across Canada, and she offers pickup from her porch on Saturdays. Every December, buyers asked her to wrap tins and add a card. She kept track of the requests in a notebook and missed a few. Here's how she sets it up on her own shop: First, she turns on gift wrap and the gift message. She sets the wrap fee at $8.00, which covers kraft paper, ribbon, and a few minutes of her time. Second, she writes one line in each tin's description: "Gift wrap and a handwritten card are available at checkout." Third, she prints her packing slips each morning. When a slip shows gift wrap, she wraps the tin and copies the gift message onto a small card inside. A buyer in Calgary orders a dozen-cookie tin for her dad. She picks Saturday pickup, ticks gift wrap, and types "Merry Christmas, Dad. Save one for me." Pinecone Porch sees the gift wrap and the message on the order and on the slip, wraps the tin, and tucks in the card. The buyer collects it on Saturday and gives it to her dad herself. ## Can buyers wrap a bundle or a build-your-own box? Yes. Gift wrap covers the whole order, so it works the same way for a bundle or a box. - **Fixed bundles.** You can sell a set of 2 to 20 products as one item, like a "Holiday tin trio" with three flavours. - **Build-your-own boxes.** A buyer picks 2 to 48 items from a list of up to 50 that you choose, like "Pick any 6 cookies." Pinecone Porch sells a "Pick 12" box. A buyer picks their 12 cookies, adds gift wrap, and types the message, all in one checkout. ## What should you decide before you turn it on? Answer these before December gets busy: - **What does wrapping cost you?** Count paper, ribbon, tape, a card, and your time. Set a fee that covers it, or choose $0 and build it into your prices. - **What does your wrap look like?** Take one clear photo and put it in your product descriptions, so buyers know what they're paying for. - **How will the message get into the box?** The message is on the packing slip and in your order emails. OneShopFront doesn't send it to the person getting the gift, so plan to write or print it on a card. - **What does the packing slip show?** Print a test order, so you know what's on the slip before you tuck it in with a gift. - **One gift per order.** There's one wrap choice and one message per order. If a buyer is sending gifts to three people, ask them to place three orders. Say so in your descriptions. - **Does wrapping add time?** If it does, say so. Our post on [holiday order cutoff dates](https://oneshopfront.com/blog/holiday-order-cutoff-dates-pickup-delivery-shipping) covers how to set and show your last order dates. ## What about gift orders from offices? Office buyers often order many boxes at once, and some want wrapping too. Our guide to [corporate holiday gift box orders](https://oneshopfront.com/blog/corporate-holiday-gift-box-orders) covers box sizes, one order for a whole team, and a set day. ## What else comes with a OneShopFront shop? - Your own shop with your products, photos, and prices - [Pickup](https://oneshopfront.com/pickup) with your own times and place - Card payments with Stripe or Helcim, and Interac e-Transfer for shops in Canada - Order emails for you and your buyer Plans are on the [pricing page](https://oneshopfront.com/pricing). Starter is $20 CAD a month or $200 a year, and Growth is $50 CAD a month or $500 a year. A platform fee, currently 1% per sale, applies to the merchandise subtotal after discounts, plus your payment processor's fee. Signing up is free with no card. When you pick a plan, you add a card to start a 7-day free trial, and you aren't charged until it ends. ## Start before the December rush Turn on gift wrap now, place one test order, and print the slip. Then you'll know how it works before the busy weeks start. To set up your shop, [register at oneshopfront.com/register](https://oneshopfront.com/register). No card needed to sign up.