Self-indulgent gifts are sometimes necessary to make yourself happier, boost your confidence and allow yourself to have something special. But it is much sweeter when someone else does it for you.
Under this philosophy, GOBI Cashmere offers giveaways for purchases above a certain value point. From handmade cashmere socks and hats to high-quality woven blankets, we are very – almost excessively – generous with our gifts. It’s our way of expressing gratitude to customers and sharing Mongolia’s culture of gift giving.
As seen in ‘Our Story’, customers who visit GOBI are always welcomed with a warm heart and equally warm gifts. By incorporating the traditional Mongolian custom of giving gifts to those who visit one’s home, we are able to express our hospitality and our feelings of gratitude towards you – our customers.
How Did it Start?
It is widely known that Mongolians have been nomads for centuries, so it is most common for families to settle in remote areas with plentiful of grassland to graze livestock - their main source of food. This would mean that they would often live several kilometers away from other families. Hence, when they do get a rare visitor, especially from afar, they would offer the best of everything they had just to show their appreciation for taking the time and traveling a long distance across Mongolia’s vast lands to come visit them.
Having guests is always joyful for Mongolians for they bring news from far off places and interesting conversations about their journey. It is an unwritten rule for nomads to treat guests well with utmost hospitality and making them feel at home even if they don’t have much themselves. They don’t discriminate between invited and uninvited guests either. Even if you don’t know them and just happen to stumble upon their door, nomads will provide food and shelter if you ask. This generosity is the heart of the Mongolian culture and way of life.
Rules of Gift Giving
Just like any culture, Mongolian gift giving has a few principles. It’s believed that gifts should have an “open mouth”, an opening at the top like a cup, bag and socks. They are meant to symbolize prosperity and good fortune unlike “closed mouth” gifts, which symbolizes fortune pouring out the bag. However, the most auspicious form of gift is the “nine white gifts”, which comprises of eight white horses and a white camel. Often added to this gift is gold, silver, silk, clothes, khadags (traditional ceremonial silk fabric), dairy products and sweets. However, this isn’t mandatory as gifts depend on the occasion and the giver/receiver.
Mongolians give gifts to show appreciation, express gratitude, congratulate, wish good fortune, or simply just because they feel like it. Therefore, it is polite to accept gifts with two hands even if you don’t need it. There is a saying that goes “Бэлгийн морины шүд үздэггүй” which translates to “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth”. In other words, the person giving you a gift considers your job and needs before choosing a present for you, so considering their feelings and accept it gladly is recommended. What you do with it later is absolutely up to you. But most often it would be something you would want to keep for Mongolians give gifts that are symbolic, auspicious and considerate.
How You Can Get a Gift
To share a part of our Mongolian culture, GOBI is offering special giveaways at www.gobicashmere.com. Simply make an order that fits into the certain price point and you’ll receive a thoughtful and meaningful cashmere gift that will last for a lifetime. Learn more about the gifts here.
Is There a Catch?
You might be thinking that this is too good to be true and that there must be a catch but rest assured because GOBI puts special care into each and every gift item as it would for its normal products. All of these gifts are produced with high-quality fibers and hand combed by Mongolian herders in an animal-friendly manner.
We cherish and carry-on our beautiful Mongolian tradition of giving gifts as a sign of appreciation to our customers. Following the unwritten rules, we deliberately choose the best quality gifts that are useful in your everyday life. Thus, GOBI specially produces our gifts items from scratch, using the best quality fibers found only in Mongolia,
As mentioned before, Mongolians strive to gift only the best to those they feel grateful to. As a national brand of Mongolia, GOBI strictly follows this tradition. We have initiated this giveaway in hopes to leave our customers with the joy of warm comfort and a lasting piece of the nomadic cultural heritage. If you’re still wary about the giveaway or quality of the products, why don’t you test them out yourself to see how good they really are?
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