Meet Joyce Reid – The Person Behind Shop Creative Gifts
I’ve spent more than 30 years helping people find the right gift for the moments that matter most.
Not the flashiest gift. Not necessarily the most expensive one. The right one — the gift that arrives and makes someone feel remembered.
I started Creative Gifts to Go in Flagstaff, Arizona, in 1992. Back then, I was knocking on doors and learning as I went. Today, Shop Creative Gifts sends gift boxes, baskets and care packages nationwide, but the heart of the business hasn’t changed: helping people say what they’re feeling when words alone aren’t enough.
If you’re here because you’re not quite sure what to send, you’re in the right place. That’s what I’ve been doing for more than 30 years.
More Than 30 Years of Gifting Experience
Experience in the gift business isn’t just about knowing what sells. It’s about understanding what feels appropriate, what will be appreciated, and what helps a gift feel personal rather than generic.
Over the years, I’ve helped customers find gifts for all kinds of moments — from sympathy and get-well wishes to thank-yous, celebrations, corporate appreciation and those simple occasions when you just want someone to know you’re thinking about them.
I’ve also been a speaker at national gift basket conventions and spent 13 years as the publisher of Gift Basket Business Insider, a digital magazine for the gift basket industry, where I shared ideas and experience with gift business owners across the country.
But the experience I’m proudest of is the experience of actually helping people send gifts to people they care about.
How It Started: Flagstaff, Arizona, 1992
I didn’t start out as a gift basket expert. I started out wanting to build something that put a smile on people’s faces.
It was 1992. The nest was empty, my husband Ron had retired, and I had time, for the first time in years, to do something of my own.
I’d spent years moving with Ron from one California Forest Service station to another, raising two daughters, serving on a city council, teaching 4-H, taking glider lessons, and creating and running a statewide newspaper, Arizona Singles, that we eventually sold.
I knew how to start a business. What I didn’t know was which business.
One day, I came across the quote: “Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the ones that take our breath away.” I thought: what better way to create happiness than to knock on someone’s door with a gift designed to do exactly that.
I knew nothing about gift baskets. I couldn’t even tie a decent bow.
But I’ve always believed you can learn anything that matters to you — and this mattered.
My first baskets were simple. People liked them. I kept going.
More than 30 years later, that little business has grown from local deliveries in Flagstaff to a nationwide gift business.
And I still love what I do.
The People Behind the Story
My late husband, Ron, was my biggest believer from the beginning. He encouraged my ideas, steadied me when things were difficult, and helped me build the business we shared for more than 30 years.
He passed away in November 2023, but his encouragement is still part of my story.
Our grandchildren also grew up “helping” assemble gift baskets. They still come to me when they want to send something special.
That means a lot to me.
Because I’ve learned something over all these years:
Gifting is really about connection.
That’s what this business has always been about.
My Promise to Every Customer
My mission has always been simple:
Make people happy.
Not with just any gift. With the right gift — chosen for the person, the moment and the relationship.
That’s why I want Shop Creative Gifts to feel different from simply ordering something from a giant catalog.
If you’re not sure what to send, I’m happy to help.
Browse the gift collections, explore the products, or contact me if you’d like to talk through what might be right.
Joyce Reid
Owner, Creative Gifts to Go
Flagstaff, Arizona | Since 1992
Browse Gift Collections — Call Joyce: 928-774-7629 — Contact Us