gift registry

i must have been spoiled by the uk registry.

the gift registry in the philippines needs more improvement. as far as i know, there are three or four shops actually offering registry services: rustan's, sm, kultura and our home. of these four, i've only tried the first two, so these shops are the ones i'm going to compare.

with philippine standards, i'll say hats off to rustan's. a wedding registry was prepared by one of my friends who got married last year. i thought, really thought that registry meant going online, choosing your gift item, paying through credit card and having the shop deliver it for free. but lo and behold when i looked for rustan's registry online, there was nothing! okay, there was a website but i wasn't able to view the list, much more find the registry itself. calling rustan's, i found out that you have to go to the store (whatever branch is nearest to you), look over the list and choose from the display. fortunately, all i had to do was pay for it. they provided a card for where i could write down my dedication and from there, it's up to them to deliver the item.

the worst registry i've experienced was that of sm's. all along i thought one of the perks of having the registry is for a well-wisher to have a hassle-free gift shopping. but no, with sm, it's like the normal going inside the store and choosing what you like, paying for it, taking it home and giftwrapping it yourself! the only difference is that there's a list of things from which you would choose. the other thing with sm too is that if the item's not at this particular store, you have to go to the other store and buy it from there. waaah! can you imagine that? so all right. let's say you have chosen something you like from the celebrant's list. if it's less than PhP2000 or an electric appliance, then you have to take it with you because they won't deliver. with sm, you can just dump the list and buy something else. you can't feel the "specialness" of having your own registry. they didn't even offer a card for your greeting!

now the question is, what does it really mean to have a registry, let's say for a wedding? shouldn't it be something that lists all the things that the celebrants want and have their friends choose among them what they want to buy for you? and when they do buy it for you, shouldn't they have not to worry about the delivery and cards because a registry should provide this necessary service? i guess i really was spoiled by the uk shops.

on further thought, i think i like podium's baby & co.'s registry service. true, they don't have online listing but when you call, they answer to your fax requests right away. they call when they say they'd call and if the item's not with them, then they'd make sure that it is delivered to them and reserved for you. it's a long shot from what a very good registry is but at least it works. they won't make you go around town in their other shops just to find what you like.

i can't help but say this again. sm north (i'm being very specific because it's the only one i've had an experienced with so far) needs to have its registry improved. all they have right now is just a word, not the service.