In LA, a new retail platform offers a viable alternative to Amazon

It’s the day before Valentine’s Day in Los Angeles, and Giftphoria founders Anthony Abaci and Nic Clar are both in their cars making sure some last-minute gifts reach their destinations. “It’s the busy season, to say the least!” says Clar with a laugh. “We’ve been running around all over the place.”

About a year ago, Abaci dreamed up the idea for the pair’s popular new website when he found himself stuck for something to buy his girlfriend’s 22-year-old cousin. “I thought: ‘Why do I never know what gifts to give these people?’” he recalls. “I know these people so well, why am I always having this problem? I wanted to try and solve it.”

Abaci’s hunt for a solution evolved into Giftphoria, a site that connects online shoppers with local small businesses and their artfully curated wares in the LA neighbourhoods of Echo Park, Silver Lake, Atwater Village and Pasadena. Soon, they’re planning to launch an app too.

Giftphoria works because it offers something existing delivery sites don’t: the opportunity to find something genuinely special or unique. Their other key selling point is that their delivery times are just as speedy as those offered by major online retailers. “We all got duped into thinking that convenience has to mean corporate,” argues Abaci. “We’re trying to change that narrative. We’re giving people a way to support their local community, we’re treating people fairly, and we’re literally faster than Amazon.”

Abaci and Clar, who have known each other for a decade since meeting as students at Chapman University in Orange County, say they first bonded over wanting to build something “impactful.” Today, they’re helping people discover local community gems they may have entirely overlooked. “83% of our customers say they’ve bought from stores they’d never heard of before,” says Abaci. “People want to shop local, but it isn’t always convenient. We’re seeing people use our site to buy gifts, but we’re also showing up at people’s houses for delivery and seeing cardboard boxes everywhere because they just moved in and they’e looking for something for their living room. A lot of our customers are young moms that don’t want to shop from Amazon, but they literally cannot leave the house. We’re able to be the connector to their community.”

So far, the site’s top sellers have included all-natural skincare products from Highland Park-based Luca Essentials, as well as jewellery selected from around the world by the Burbank boutique Lusanet Collective. “Anything that has a unique quality about it, always sells,” says Abaci. “Initially we thought we’d know what people want, but people proved us wrong! There’s so many unique people, and when someone decides on a gift to give somebody they do so by matching their aesthetic. Can I see this in their apartment, or can I see them wearing this?”

What Giftphoria is doing so succesfully is making it easier than ever to find those perfect gifts, while also pointing out that they’re often closer than you might think. “Guys in particular often just default to shopping at Amazon or Walmart,” says Clar. “One of our customers said that last Valentine’s Day he just went to the candle section in Target. We’re able to put you in touch with stores that are close but that you may not have known about. We’re really excited to be able to provide that kind of visibility and that new distribution, and obviously that’s why we’re so busy right now!”