Retreat Gifts: How to Surprise Your Teammates

In every company retreat, the same question pops up: what can we give that won't end up forgotten in a drawer? Over the years, I've taken charge of designing and creating these gifts. I've developed a formula based on three non-negotiable requirements:

It must be funny: This is the golden rule. If it gets a laugh when it's opened, the job is done.
It must be different: No predictable gifts. Pens, corporate notebooks, or boring merchandising are strictly forbidden. It has to be something they don't expect at all.
It must be personalized: The magic touch. Every coworker should feel the gift was made just for them, reflecting their jokes and personality.

This combo makes the experience truly memorable. My teammates say I outdo myself every time. The bar is getting dangerously high, but I love the challenge.

Here is the history of the madness I've been cooking up:

1. Mugs

We started with something classic, but with our own twist: mugs packed with inside jokes that only our team could truly understand.

2. Coasters and Stickers

Taking it a step further. Personalized coasters for every desk and stickers that became an obsession to cover all office laptops with legendary quotes from the team.

3. Real-time Magnets

For this retreat, I wanted something tangible. I made magnets capturing internal "memes" and epic team moments. A physical memory for the fridge that makes you smile every time you grab a glass of water.

4. Blister-style Figure (2D)

Here I took advantage of the ChatGPT trend around "build your own action figure" and adapted it to our team with inside memes. I created a front side and a back side, printed them double-sided on cardboard, and assembled each piece to look like a toy blister package.

Since the cardboard was too fragile and could break easily, I bought an IKEA frame that can be viewed from both sides. The result looked like a freshly bought action figure, but in 2D instead of 3D.

5. Collectible Cards

My latest big move and the most ambitious project. I designed a full collection of cards (Pokemon or Football style) with stats, skills, and an epic bio for each teammate.

The interactive website solved a real problem from a previous retreat: people only kept looking at their own card and did not get to see everyone else's. With this site, anyone could explore the full team collection in a simple and interactive way: clevergy-cards.pages.dev.

What's next? I don't know yet, but the bar is literally in space. It will be hard to maintain this level of insanity, but seeing the team's faces when they discover the surprise makes it all worth it.

🎁Retreat Gifts

retreats gifts design

Retreat Gifts: How to Surprise Your Teammates

It must be funny: This is the golden rule. If it gets a laugh when it's opened, the job is done.
It must be different: No predictable gifts. Pens, corporate notebooks, or boring merchandising are strictly forbidden. It has to be something they don't expect at all.
It must be personalized: The magic touch. Every coworker should feel the gift was made just for them, reflecting their jokes and personality.

This combo makes the experience truly memorable. My teammates say I outdo myself every time. The bar is getting dangerously high, but I love the challenge.

Here is the history of the madness I've been cooking up:

1. Mugs

We started with something classic, but with our own twist: mugs packed with inside jokes that only our team could truly understand.

2. Coasters and Stickers

Taking it a step further. Personalized coasters for every desk and stickers that became an obsession to cover all office laptops with legendary quotes from the team.

3. Real-time Magnets

4. Blister-style Figure (2D)

Since the cardboard was too fragile and could break easily, I bought an IKEA frame that can be viewed from both sides. The result looked like a freshly bought action figure, but in 2D instead of 3D.

5. Collectible Cards

My latest big move and the most ambitious project. I designed a full collection of cards (Pokemon or Football style) with stats, skills, and an epic bio for each teammate.

Retreat Gifts: How to Surprise Your Teammates

It must be funny: This is the golden rule. If it gets a laugh when it's opened, the job is done.
It must be different: No predictable gifts. Pens, corporate notebooks, or boring merchandising are strictly forbidden. It has to be something they don't expect at all.
It must be personalized: The magic touch. Every coworker should feel the gift was made just for them, reflecting their jokes and personality.

This combo makes the experience truly memorable. My teammates say I outdo myself every time. The bar is getting dangerously high, but I love the challenge.

Here is the history of the madness I've been cooking up:

1. Mugs

We started with something classic, but with our own twist: mugs packed with inside jokes that only our team could truly understand.

2. Coasters and Stickers

Taking it a step further. Personalized coasters for every desk and stickers that became an obsession to cover all office laptops with legendary quotes from the team.

3. Real-time Magnets

4. Blister-style Figure (2D)

Since the cardboard was too fragile and could break easily, I bought an IKEA frame that can be viewed from both sides. The result looked like a freshly bought action figure, but in 2D instead of 3D.

5. Collectible Cards

My latest big move and the most ambitious project. I designed a full collection of cards (Pokemon or Football style) with stats, skills, and an epic bio for each teammate.