SINGAPORE - Media OutReach Newswire - 27 August 2026 - Corporate buyers in Singapore are increasingly asking for gifting and packaging to come from the same supplier, and for that supplier to hold sourcing presence in the region rather than in a single procurement market. The Gift Empire Pte Ltd, a Singapore supplier of promotional gifts and customised corporate gifts, has responded to both within the same quarter, opening a Vietnam office supported by a local platform at giftempire.com.vn and launching Packaging Empire as a dedicated division for customised packaging solutions. Singapore remains the company's primary market and the base from which it serves corporate gifting accounts across Singapore, Malaysia, and Vietnam.

Packaging Empire was established in response to demand from businesses seeking one partner for both requirements. The Gift Empire has supplied customised corporate gifts and promotional gifts since 1999 to organisations including Amazon, Citibank, Maybank, Shopee, and Microsoft, and receives orders through GeBIZ, Ariba, and Coupa, the procurement systems used by Singapore government agencies and large corporate buyers. Accounts of that size have traditionally run separate vendors for promotional gifts and presentation packaging, which adds cost and complicates delivery schedules when both elements are tied to the same campaign date.

The division produces gift boxes, mailer boxes, retail packaging, product sleeves, and event packaging, covering product launches, corporate events, gift-with-purchase campaigns, festive gifting, roadshows, retail applications, and brand activations. Demand for everyday corporate gift items such as custom canvas tote bags and custom water bottles in Singapore has grown alongside the shift, and these are frequently ordered with matching boxes or sleeves timed to the same launch. Clients ordering both now work to a single production timeline under one supplier.

For buyers, consolidating the two functions changes how a project is run. A client briefs one team and works to a single production timeline, so the gift item and the packaging it ships in are scheduled against the same delivery date instead of being tracked as two jobs. Colour matching and print finishing are handled within one production process, which keeps branding consistent between the item and the box it arrives in. Quality control covers both components at the same stage, and any delay sits with a single point of accountability. Volumes across gifts and packaging can be quoted together instead of being priced by two vendors working to separate minimum order quantities. For procurement teams, a single supplier also means one vendor record to maintain and one invoice per campaign, which is a practical consideration for government agencies and large corporations buying through GeBIZ, Ariba, or Coupa.

The Vietnam operation serves a dual function. Alongside supplying Vietnamese businesses through its local platform, the office gives The Gift Empire direct presence in one of the region's largest manufacturing bases, where a significant share of the product it already sources is made. Vietnam's electronics sector contributed over 35 per cent of the country's total exports in 2025, reaching a record US$165 billion, according to Vietnam Briefing. Working on the ground allows closer collaboration with manufacturing partners and tighter oversight of production and quality control. The company expects this to shorten lead times for its Singapore and Malaysia clients and reduce its exposure to disruption in any single supply market.

Vincent Lau, Sales Manager at The Gift Empire, said the changes came out of client requests and not a shift in the company's focus.

"Most of our work is still corporate gifting for clients here in Singapore, and that has not changed. What has changed is that more of them want one team handling the gifting and the packaging instead of coordinating two suppliers against the same deadline, because when the packaging runs late, the whole campaign moves with it. Vietnam happened at the same time for a practical reason, which is that a lot of the manufacturing we already source from is there, and being on the ground changes how quickly we can sort things out." - Vincent Lau, Sales Manager, The Gift Empire Pte Ltd

The two developments give The Gift Empire a broader service range and a wider sourcing base within the same quarter, with Singapore continuing as the primary market for its corporate gifting and packaging work. The direction Lau has set out for the company is to operate as a single-source provider for corporate gifting and packaging across Southeast Asia, where a client in any of its markets briefs one team and works to one production timeline supported by a regional sourcing network.


https://giftempire.com.sg/