Sell custom gifts with Printify
To start a personalized gift store, you don’t need inventory, a big team, or a warehouse. What you need is:
- Product supply and fulfillment services
- Digital design tools or software
- eCommerce or marketplace storefront
- Marketing and brand promotion tools
- Customer experience and personalization tools
With the right setup, you can go from idea to income – on your own time, and on your own terms. Here are the top tools to start a personalized gift store today, so you can sell personalized gifts for birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, and everything in between.
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Print-on-demand and fulfillment tools
When you start a personalized gift business, managing inventory can be overwhelming. That’s where print-on-demand (POD) tools shine. With POD, you simply design it, list it, and sell it. Your provider takes care of the rest – printing, packing, and shipping.
Printify
Printify makes it easy to sell personalized products without any upfront investment. Connect to a global network of Print Providers and choose the fastest, most affordable fulfillment option for every order.
Key features:
- Over 1,300 customizable products, including t-shirts, mugs, wall art, gift wrap, and engraved jewelry
- Product Creator tool for fast design uploads and mockups
- Direct integrations with Shopify, Etsy, Wix, WooCommerce, and more
- Fastest shipping times in the global personalized gifts industry
Best for: Entrepreneurs starting or scaling a personalized gift business online without handling stock.
Need ideas on personalized products to sell? Check out top personalized gifts for her and our guide on the best personalized best friend gifts.
Printful
Printful is a great print-on-demand company for creators who want in-house fulfillment and custom branding options. It offers hundreds of products you can design and sell, including t-shirts, mugs, home decor, customized travel accessories, and more.
Key features:
- Custom branding solutions (like labels and packaging)
- In-house production for quality control
- Design Maker tool for customizing products
Best for: Creators focused on building a high-end brand with consistent quality.
Design and creative tools
Strong designs bring your personalized gift business to life. You’ll need tools with advanced yet easy-to-learn capabilities and mockup design features.
For a more in-depth review, check out our full list of t-shirt design software.
Canva
Canva is a drag-and-drop design platform perfect for beginners. With thousands of templates, you can create gift ideas like greeting cards, wall art, and personalized home decor in minutes.
Key features:
- Templates for special occasions and personalized gift ideas
- Stock photo, element, and font libraries
- Easy customization for thoughtful gifts
Best for: Sellers who want quick, professional-looking designs without needing advanced technical knowledge.
Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop
The Adobe Creative Cloud features industry-standard tools for professional creatives. Illustrator handles vector artwork, while Photoshop excels at image editing. These tools are essential for sellers who want advanced customization options.
Key features:
- Create print-ready files for custom jewelry, packaging, and labels
- Tools for embroidery, engraving, and product mockups
- High-resolution exports for POD and printing services
Best for: Professional designers or stores building polished, personalized products.
Placeit and Smartmockups
These are mockup generators that make it easy to showcase personalized products in real-world settings. Instead of costly photo shoots, a product designer tool like Placeit or Smartmockups can help you create lifestyle images in minutes.
Key features:
- Thousands of product and lifestyle mockups
- Drag-and-drop functionality for custom mugs, t-shirts, and more
- Quick exports for social media marketing and ads
Best for: Stores that need polished visuals to promote amazing personalized gifts quickly.
Explore how to use Placeit mockups with Printify.
Vectary and Threekit
For advanced customization tools, 3D visualization platforms like Vectary and Threekit let shoppers preview products interactively. They’re ideal for high-value or detailed personalized items.
Key features:
- 3D and AR product previews
- Interactive shopping experiences
- Great for engraved jewelry, customized home decor, and packaging
Best for: Sellers who want to enable product customization with immersive previews.
eCommerce platforms
Your online business needs a storefront that handles payments, product listings, and personalization. These platforms make it simple to sell online while connecting to print-on-demand and personalization apps.
Shopify
Shopify is one of the most popular platforms for creating an online store. With thousands of apps, it scales with your personalized gift shop.
Key features:
- Wide range of online store themes optimized for mobile devices
- Built-in payment gateways with multiple payment options
- Seamless integration with Printify and web-to-print solutions
Best for: Sellers who want flexibility, branding control, and scalability.
Learn more about integrating Printify with Shopify.
Etsy
Etsy is a marketplace designed for handmade or customized products. It connects you with a global audience searching for meaningful gifts made by artists.
Key features:
- Marketplace traffic with high buyer intent
- Built-in search for gift guides and personalized gift ideas
- Simple listing tools and community trust
Best for: Beginners who want to sell popular personalized gifts without building a site.
Learn more about selling on Etsy with Printify.
WooCommerce
WooCommerce is a free WordPress plugin that transforms your site into an online store. It’s flexible, customizable, and integrates with POD and personalization apps.
Key features:
- Add-ons for shipping, vendor management, and inventory management
- Direct integration with Printify
- Support for secure payment gateways
Best for: WordPress users who want complete control over their personalized gift business.
Learn more about setting up a WooCommerce store with Printify.
Marketing and sales tools
Even the best personalized products won’t sell themselves. These tools help you attract your target audience, run promotions, and build customer loyalty in the personalized gift market.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp simplifies email marketing for small businesses. It helps you promote personalized gift ideas, send holiday campaigns, and build customer lists.
Key features:
- Drag-and-drop email builder
- Segmentation based on customer preferences
- Analytics for campaign performance
Best for: Sellers new to email marketing who want automation and simplicity.
Klaviyo
Klaviyo offers advanced email and SMS campaigns with advanced personalization. It’s designed for higher customer satisfaction and retention.
Key features:
- Behavior-based triggers for personalized messages
- Dynamic product recommendations
- Integrations with Shopify and WooCommerce
Best for: Growing shops that want to maximize customer loyalty.
Buffer
Buffer helps you schedule and manage social posts across multiple platforms. Consistency is key in the gift industry, and Buffer saves time.
Key features:
- Multi-platform post scheduling
- Team collaboration and analytics
- Insights to refine social media marketing
Best for: Stores that want to stay visible without daily posting stress.
Later
Later is a marketing tool built for visual scheduling, making it great for Instagram and Pinterest.
Key features:
- Visual content calendar
- Link-in-bio features to boost sales
- Post-performance tracking
Best for: Stores that rely on visual storytelling for selling personalized items.
TikTok Creative Center
TikTok is a major driver for customized gifts. The Creative Center highlights trending formats and hashtags.
Key features:
- Trend discovery for short-form content
- Creative insights for ads and organic posts
- Data on engagement and demographics
Best for: Sellers targeting Gen Z and millennial audiences with personalized products.
Google Analytics
Google Analytics helps you understand how shoppers use your store.
Key features:
- Track traffic and conversions
- Measure ROI on online transactions
- Identify top-performing gift ideas
Best for: Sellers who want to optimize based on data and market research.
Ahrefs and Semrush
SEO tools like Ahrefs and Semrush help you rank higher in search engines for personalized gift ideas.
Key features:
- Keyword research and ranking insights
- Competitor and backlink analysis
- Content optimization for the customized gift industry
Best for: Stores that want to grow long-term visibility in organic search.
Customer experience and personalization tools
Creating a seamless shopping experience in your personalized gift shop is a must. These tools boost customer satisfaction and help build trust.
Zakeke
Zakeke lets shoppers preview their products in real time with 3D and AR technology.
Key features:
- Interactive previews and AR views
- Real-time pricing for customization options
- Works with Shopify, WooCommerce, and Etsy
Best for: Sellers who want immersive previews for personalized products.
Customily
Customily makes personalization simple with text, images, and personalized messages.
Key features:
- Real-time product customization
- Pre-built design templates
- Easy integration with Shopify and WooCommerce
Best for: Sellers offering engraved jewelry, custom mugs, and personalized stationery.
Teeinblue
Teeinblue is a Shopify app for selling personalized items at scale.
Key features:
- Artwork layering and previews
- POD-ready with Printify integrations
- Simple workflow for selling personalized POD products
Best for: Shopify stores scaling their personalized gift business online.
Tidio, Zendesk, and Intercom
Tidio, Zendesk, and Intercom offer excellent customer support features to help you grow your personalized products business.
Key features:
- Live chat, chatbots, and ticketing
- Omnichannel support (email, chat, social)
- Mobile apps for on-the-go management
Best for: Sellers wanting to improve their customer experience and response time.
Yotpo, Loox, and Smile.io
Yotpo, Loox, and Smile.io help facilitate reviews and loyalty programs to drive repeat business in the gift industry.
Key features:
- Collect photo and video customer feedback
- Build loyalty programs for rewards
- Showcase social proof for customer preferences
Best for: Stores that want to strengthen trust and customer loyalty.
Stripe and PayPal
Secure checkout with Stripe or PayPal builds buyer confidence. These payment gateways protect customer data and help you process orders smoothly.
Key features:
- PCI-compliant fraud prevention
- Support for multiple payment options
- Trusted worldwide for online transactions
Best for: Any personalized gift store wanting a simple checkout with robust security measures.
FAQ
You can start for free using print-on-demand platforms like Printify. However, expect to spend $100-$300 for domains, marketing, and tool subscriptions.
Choose a niche, like customized home decor or productivity gifts, and set up an online store. Then, connect it to Printify for automated fulfillment and personalization apps for customization.
To offer personalized products, use design tools like Canva, connect to a sales platform like Shopify or WooCommerce, and integrate web-to-print fulfillment solutions like Printify or Printful.
Learn more about personalization with Printify.
Conclusion
Starting a personalized gift store doesn’t need to involve warehouses or risk. With the right tools, you can easily design, sell, and ship personalized products to customers worldwide.
From Printify for fulfillment, and Shopify for your storefront, to Zakeke and Customily for personalization – every step is supported.
With Printify, you have the freedom to create, sell, and build a successful business – your way.
