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Summary
The shop on a narrow cobbled street winding up to a mediaeval castle overlooking the Slovenian capital Ljubljana, aims to take some of the stigma away from re-gifting, and at the same time save consumers hard-earned cash in trying economic times. The re-gifting also appeals to those people who feel racked by throwing unwanted presents away and end up cluttering their homes without ever using them. Following the anti-consumerist concept further, the founders decided to leave the presents without prices, so the value of an item is not a consideration in the decision to pick it up. Each present is displayed with its pedigree: a piece of paper explaining why it was brought to the shop, but which mentions no names to avoid possibly awkward situations in a small city.We came up with an idea to open a place where, in this festive time when we all are obsessed with shopping and consumerism, people could exchange the presents that they at some point received from someone but had no use for them, so here they can change them for something else said Masa Cvetko, one of the founders of the shop. The shop, although essentially a non-profit initiative, does not skimp on presentation and aesthetics: each present is put in a box, wrapped up neatly and placed under a large Christmas tree. Instead of a glossy catalogue, a photo of the actual present is displayed on the wall for customers to peruse and make their choice. We pile up so many things over the time and we don't know where to put them anymore. This is why I brought a few presents here to give away, said Marija Gajsek. Although in the past people have mostly felt embarrassed about passing on an unwanted present, the current economic climate seems to be changing people's attitudes and creating a more accommodating social etiquette. I think this idea is great. At home I have a lot of presents that I don't need, that I got from various people and some friends that that did not pick the right things for me. So you can come here and exchange these things. You bring the things you don't need and take something that you find at the photos and like. It can be for you or someone you know. Then you need to find the number of the gift and you look for it under the tree. This is very nice said Evin Hadzialovic, a 23-year old dancer. I think we should have this through the whole year. For birthday or anniversary presents and so on. It would be great to have this shop here all the time. Maybe we wouldn't need the Christmas tree here, but it would be nice to be able to exchange the gifts. In a way it is recycling. In the first week since opening, the shop has found new homes and happy owners for some 170 presents. But with the rush of gift-giving only going into full-swing on Christmas and again just before the New Year, Ljubljana's little gift-recycling shop eagerly awaits new waves of merchandise to keep its shelves fully stocked until it closes its doors on January 8. For those getting something unwanted or inappropriate after that, just put it in your closet and wait until next Christmas.
