Not On The High Street recruits psychic to help customers buy tricky gifts

A major retailer has recruited a psychic for Christmas - to help customers at a loss what to buy loved ones.

Not On The High Street has taken on renowned psychic, Inbaal Honigman, who claims to accurately reveal the perfect gift for those impossible to buy for.

Within her newly created role of 'head of gifting insights', the clairvoyant will provide personalised readings for shoppers in need of help.

To take advantage of the TV astrologer's services, customers will need to answer four questions on the retailer's website [https://www.notonthehighstreet.com/campaign/impossigift] about the person they're struggling to buy for.

But they'll need to be quick, the trial service is operating on a first come first served basis - with just 50 readings available.

It was launched after a study, also by the 'home of small creative businesses', found 45 per cent of adults suffer from 'holi-dread' - anxiety over what gifts to buy.

Inbaal Honigman said: “Seeing the disappointed face of a loved one when opening a gift can make you feel clueless and cause stress for the next year.

"I'm thrilled to step in and uncover the perfect gift for those hard-to-shop-for friends and family using my psychic skills.

"Some people are trickier to buy for and getting gifting right is important to so many.

"Even shopping for a notoriously picky Aquarius will be made a breeze with this service."

The study of 2,000 adults, who celebrate Christmas, found 14 per cent of those who've endured holi-dread, begin to panic in early October.

And perhaps with good reason, as 26 per cent have given someone a present which wasn’t well-received.

Concerns among those who dread gift buying include cost (48 per cent), if the gift is thoughtful enough (34 per cent), and whether the recipient will like it (61 per cent).

It also emerged 22 per cent of adults polled claim their partner is the hardest person to buy for, followed by their dad (18 per cent), and their mum (15 per cent).

To provide context as to just how stressful gift buying is, 18 per cent said it was as harrowing as a job interview, while 15 per cent said it's harder than a break-up.

And 13 per cent even said it’s worse than giving birth.

Carried out through OnePoll, the study found 61 per cent intend to shop at a small or local business for Christmas gifts this year.

Of those who plan to do so, 68 per cent like to shop this way to support their local community and 58 per cent feel the presents are more 'heartfelt.'

Leanne Rothwell, CEO of Not On The High Street, said: "The festive season often brings a mix of joy and stress, as we strive to meet societal expectations and create the perfect Christmas.

"The pursuit of the 'ideal' holiday experience can lead to unnecessary stress, as we forget that the true meaning of Christmas is about love and togetherness.

"Our mission this Christmas is to take the panic out of gift-giving through launching our psychic service and encouraging people to buy personalised and thoughtful gifts from small businesses.

"We hope that with this new service, will help shoppers to gift fewer and better this festive season."