You’ve chosen the hamper. Now comes the part that takes longest: the message. If you’ve ever stared at an empty gift card wondering what to write, you’re not alone. Over the past two Christmases, our customers wrote 163,527 personal messages to go with their hampers, and we analysed every one of them (anonymously and in aggregate) for our Christmas Love Curve study. Here’s what Britain actually writes, and what that tells us about writing a good one.
1. Don’t skip the message
A personal message is fast becoming part of the gift rather than an extra. In 2025, 83.1% of our Christmas hampers were sent with a personal message, up from 79.0% the year before. Even a single line turns a delivery into something that feels hand-given.
2. Say “love” if you mean it
The closer it gets to Christmas, the warmer the messages become. In October, fewer than one in five messages mentions love. Between 21 and 26 December, 56.5% contain the word “love” and 41.4% are signed with kisses. Last-minute senders aren’t disorganised; they’re writing to the people closest to them.
For family and close friends, simple and heartfelt works best:
- “Merry Christmas! Sorry we can’t be with you this year. Enjoy every bite. All our love, Sarah & Tom xx”
- “Thinking of you this Christmas. Something to put your feet up with. Love always, Mum x”
- “Happy Christmas to our favourite neighbours. Thank you for everything this year. Love from all at number 12 x”
Sending close to the big day? Our next day delivery hampers are the ones that make it in time.
3. Match the message to the gift
The hamper you choose shapes the words that go with it. Cheese hampers carry the most affectionate messages of any type we send: 61.3% contain “love”, more than three times the rate of wine hampers. Cosy gifts seem to bring out warm words.
Champagne and prosecco hampers, on the other hand, are the gift of gratitude. They carry the season’s highest rate of thank-yous (37.8%) and the longest messages, averaging 115 characters. If you’re saying thank you with fizz, it’s worth a sentence or two:
- “A little something to say thank you for all your help this year. Here’s to a very merry Christmas!”
- “Thank you for making our wedding year so special. Raise a glass on us this Christmas!”
4. Keep business messages warm, too
Corporate gift messages are getting friendlier. The use of “kind regards” in Christmas gift messages halved year on year, and businesses are swapping formal sign-offs for something more personal. A good client or team message thanks them for something specific and sounds like a person wrote it:
- “Thank you for a brilliant year working together. Wishing you and the team a very merry Christmas. From everyone at [Company]”
- “To the best team we could ask for: thank you for everything you’ve done this year. Enjoy a well-earned break. Merry Christmas!”
If you’re sending to lots of clients or staff, our corporate gifting team can add personalised messages to every recipient for you, with branded cards available too.
5. Kisses are allowed (and the record is 25)
Signing off with a kiss is on the rise: the share of messages signed with kisses grew from 16.8% to 20.1% in a year. The two-year record for kisses in a single message is 25, and 145 senders signed off with ten or more. So there’s no such thing as too many.
6. It’s never too early for “Merry Christmas”
If you’re an early organiser, you’re in good company: 44% of people sending hampers in October were already wishing their recipients a merry Christmas. And if all else fails, take inspiration from the 60 hampers sent by “Santa” himself: “Merry Christmas to you all, Love Santa xx”.
Find the perfect hamper to go with your message
Whether it’s a loving note to family or a thank-you to your team, every Virginia Hayward hamper is hand-packed in Dorset with your message hand-attached. Browse our Christmas hampers, or read the full findings from 163,527 Christmas gift messages.
