Wrapped in Kindness, a store selling Irish gifts online, was founded by me, Julie Gaffney, at my kitchen counter in Passage East, Co. Waterford.
I have always loved Irish design products and truly love shopping local for jewellery, notebooks, mugs, scarves, books, candles etc, so curating this collection of products has been an absolute joy to me. There is an abundance of talented designers and makers in Ireland to choose from.
My background is in accountancy and I worked as a finance manager in an insurance company for 12 years. However, I have always felt like there was something else out there for me. With Wrapped in Kindness, I finally feel like I have found it and it is to bring more beauty, joy and above all kindness into people’s lives.
The first seed of the idea was planted 3 years ago. I was looking for a present for my son’s teacher for Christmas and didn’t want to just grab the usual stuff. During my search to get something more meaningful, I spotted an Irish design print, where a % of the sales went to an Irish mental health charity. I bought it and felt great, knowing it was both a beautifully designed Irish gift and also, was supporting a fantastic Irish charity. It inspired me to create a place, where people can go for all their gifting needs, that has the same kindness concept at its heart. It’s made all the more special by the customer being able to choose which charity partner to support.
It took me 3 years to make it happen due to lack of time (three kids, house renovation and moving the family from Dublin to Waterford) but it was also a lack of self-belief. My nasty inner voice kept saying “ You could never do that”, so I pushed the idea out of my mind. But, it kept coming to the surface, so I began to trust it was something I needed to put my energy into. On the days when I felt full of self-doubt, I read this quote I found that really resonated with me “No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted” and it set me back on track to keep going.
So I’m delighted to be here now – with my website up and running, stocking some really fantastic Irish made/designed products and with our amazing charity partners on board. I’m really excited for the future of Wrapped in Kindness – a place to support both amazing Irish businesses and fantastic Irish Charities, whilst buying something beautiful for yourself or a loved one.
Please spread the word to your friends and family about our unique Wrapped in Kindness concept and hopefully together we can make a difference to these charities,
Love,
Julie Gaffney
Director & Founder Wrapped in Kindness
