Great questions, Glenda. For those of you who do a lot of these, jump in and give your opinions and answers. I’ll begin: I do a few of these. 1. Many people buy these. If you search for gifts, including gourmet gift baskets, on Etsy, you’ll get an idea of how many more people are selling these than the traditional gift baskets. 2, They sell for both coporate and individal use. 3. The sellers prefer them because they require little skill to produce. Just put a themed group of products into a box and call it good. This is allowing a lot of people enter the “gift basket industry” who have never made a gift basket and probably couldn’t make one that has that WOW appearance. But another reason that both buyers and sellers prefer them is that they are usually cheaper to ship because they are more condensed in size. 4. They are more economical to ship which is beneficial to both buyer and seller. As far as being more economical for use to produce, boxes are usually cheaper than baskets although, unless the lidded gift box is sturdy enough to ship without being put into a shipping box, you have to pay for two boxes. The contents cost would be the same. It’s just how they are arranged. It takes longer and requires more skill to create a beautiful gift basket than to place products in a box so time can be a factor.
But, to me, the primary difference is appearance and skill. I can create the same gift as a “gift box” or a “gift basket.” Many of those who are creating the boxes can’t.