Givewrap was never intended to be a business. Rather, it was a pro-bono marketing campaign, conceived by three advertising executives based in Sydney, Australia to raise money for The Children’s Cancer Institute. The idea was simple: create a custom-designed wrapping paper and donate all the proceeds back to the charity.
The non-profit loved the idea—so much that they decided it was too good to keep for themselves.
“They actually encouraged us to pitch it to other charities, because they knew how much potential it had to generate donations,” recalled Michelle Tirtabudi, Givewrap’s CEO.
Along with her two co-founders, Anthony Hatton and Hans Christian Berents, Tirtabudi decided after years helping other companies build their brand, it was time for them to build their own. Hatton—Givewrap’s Head of Creative and Brand—designed the first product: wrapping paper emblazoned with the message Give Back.
The trio tested the appetite for their charity-focused gift wrap, selling it at local markets in Sydney. It was an instant best-seller. In March 2023, the founders won an Amazon Innovation Launchpad grant, which in addition to a $20,000 cash prize provides education and support for businesses to build and grow their Amazon Brand Store.
“Winning the Amazon Launchpad Innovation prize was massive for us in terms of giving us a kickstart,” said Hatton. “Having people from Amazon whose brains we could pick and who helped us get set up and market our brand store was just brilliant.”
Berents, Givewrap’s Head of Heart, said Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA) has been a game-changer in growing their business, and in turn, the amount of money they can donate to places like the animal welfare charity the RSPCA, the Starlight Children’s Foundation, and suicide prevention charity Gotcha4Life—to name a few of their giving partners.
“No one ever goes gift-wrap shopping; they go gift shopping, and while you buy the gift, you buy the paper,” noted Berents. “Amazon Prime allows us to sell our products in the place where people are buying gifts, and get it delivered fast, sometimes even same day. That’s a huge value-add for us. And as we grow and grow, we give and give, which makes me happy, and I know it makes our charity partners happy.”
Givewrap’s Amazon sales have grown by 10x since launching in 2023; where once the company sold 10,000 products annually, today they sell 100,000. This last Christmas, Givewrap took the top spot in the gift wrap category on Amazon Australia. The company commissions award-winning illustrators across the globe to come up with new wrapping paper designs, and it has widened its catalog to include gift bags and wine bags.
Through Amazon Global Selling, Givewrap has recently expanded into the U.S. store.
“The U.S. sells more wrapping paper on a Monday in any month of the year than Australia sells at Christmas,” noted Berents. “So imagine how much we could potentially sell—and how much we could potentially give—if we crack the U.S.”
Since launching, Givewrap has become a recognized name in gift wrap throughout Australia—Hatton said he gets a thrill on the few occasions he’s overheard strangers talk about their product. Next, the founders aspire for Givewrap to become an internationally recognized brand.
“We have insane dreams to take Givewrap massively global,” said Tirtabudi. “Our goal is to be in every Amazon store around the world in the next three to give years, and to become the first brand of gift wrap that people actually ask for by name.”