About us
Bottom Drawer: “The clothes, linen and other household articles that a young woman is given and collects ready for use in her own home when she gets married. US equivalent Hope Chest.”
Etymology: 19c: because such items were commonly stored in the bottom of a chest of drawers, it became customary for a woman to say they were ‘for her bottom drawer'.
The Bottom Drawer is the longest established alternative gift list service in the UK. We may not be the biggest, but we’re passionate about looking after our clients and helping them to enjoy what should be one of the happiest days of their lives.
The business was founded to offer a unique kind of service to couples who wanted to set up a gift list, but already had enough teacups, toasters, and towels, and who would rather pool their guest’s generous gifts to buy something larger and more expensive.
At first, The Bottom Drawer just offered couples the opportunity to get a fabulous garden makeover, with guests contributing towards tangible elements such as paving slabs, fountains, and herbaceous borders. Today, the possibilities are endless, and couples can select from a vast range of products and services, all of them broken down into guest-sized gifts.
And with our bespoke service, couples can make their wildest dreams come true by selecting something not even listed – we do the rest by making everything guest-sized!
The team behind The Bottom Drawer has many years experience gained across a diverse range of customer facing businesses, and care deeply about making sure that our couples get the service they deserve, and that every guest feels emotionally rewarded when contributing to the couple’s choice of gift. We also have the breadth and length of experience to manage the business well, ensuring that couples and guests alike can feel secure in the knowledge that their guest’s money is safely handled, that all transactions are as they should be, and that couples receive their money on time.
Ian Bush, Managing Director
Ian, a chartered accountant who was once awarded first place in the UK by the industry's main professional regulatory body, has now turned his business skills to managing the day-to-day operations of The Bottom Drawer.
He takes responsibility for ensuring that the relationship between the couple and their choice of supplier is a positive and successful one.
John Weir, Director
John is currently a non-executive director of The Bottom Drawer. In the seventeen years prior to 2002 John held various posts at Wilson Connolly Homes- then the U.K.’s sixth largest house builder, including Regional Chairman. In 1998 he was appointed to Wilson Connolly’s main board as Group Design Director. In April 2002 he established his own consultancy ‘Haute Future’, advising on the design and marketing of sustainable new homes and communities. His clients to-date include The Peabody Trust and PRP Architects. In March 2005 he was appointed by the ODPM as Deputy Chairman of the West Northamptonshire Development Corporation. He is a past vice president of the House Builders Federation, a fellow of the RSA and a former trustee of the New Homes Marketing Board. John has also presented for programmes on BBC1 and Channel 4.
In addition, we have a call centre based here in the UK to answer calls and for guests phoning in to make purchases on a gift list.
Company Registration Number: 4717398
VAT Number: 827207435
Registered Office: 68 Rotton Park Road Birmingham B16 0LH