Ernst & Young recently reported that gift card sales in 2010 grew 4% over 2009.  That’s good news as recent trends have been flat, even down.  Choice, and an increased acceptance of gift cards as a meaningful gift gesture, continues to fuel the gift card market.  Online sales and the use of gift cards to offset a tough economy have also been significant trends in the gift card economy.

According to EY, “the gift card market doesn’t just include physical cards. Website and virtual gift cards are two growing trends that retailers need to keep an eye on.”

We agree.  We’ve firmly established ourselves as the leader in making gift cards even more valuable for consumers and merchants, and we work hard to make them more easily available to you.

Nearly everyone agrees that mis-gifted gift cards just don’t do anyone any good.  But every gift card has a home, and we view it as our job to bring those cards back into the stores and the hands of motivated shoppers.  Remember this video?  It’s as apt today as it was when we put it together more than 2 years ago, and probably more so.

Check out this video:

Plastic Jungle: We Can’t Draw but We Can Sell Discounted Gift Cards

In 2011 we’re pushing the envelope even further.  Our business has grown so fast that we’ve had to adopt new platforms to support the scale.  We’ve created new technology and new operations, expanded our customer service focus and enabled faster delivery. We are now offering better deals and even more ways to get great bargains and real value for cards that go unredeemed.

Here are some cool facts from Plastic Jungle (based on data from January 1 through March 31, 2011):

As always, your feedback is most welcome – please send your thoughts, ideas and criticisms to me at ceo@plasticjungle.com.  I read them all, and every day will make sure that we continue to build our service to best meet your needs.