After a clandestine meeting at a trunk show in Fort Worth, lifestyle blogger Bradley Agather and posh party planner Eden Delaune became fast friends. “She walked in and I just got this vibe,” Agather says. “We also figured out that each of us was our friends’ go-to for ‘What should I buy this person?’ We both love the thrill of the hunt.”
Last fall, after landing a corporate gifting contract with a national brand, the friends turned their knack for present picking into a luxury service called Bisette, through which Agather and Delaune—who spent years amassing a Rolodex of vendors during her tenure with event planner Bronson van Wyck—handle wedding registries and corporate gifting.
A generous portion of their work, though, is personal gifting. For each new gift, the duo begins with a questionnaire to learn more about the recipient—things he or she loves, things he or she hates, and what that person might consider a vacation. “What they collect or how many grandchildren they have,” Delaune says. “And then it sticks with us.”
Clients become regulars, and the friends build a calendar for each one so they can track anniversaries, birthdays, and beyond. “We’re always looking for things for clients,” Agather says. “Once we get to know you, we know you, and we’ll start to explore on your behalf. And since we’re not a retailer, the world is at our fingertips, so it’s never going to be the same gift.”
For one client, that might be something in an Hermès box. For another, an expert-led visit through Napa. When the gift needs to be truly one of a kind, Bisette’s relationships with antiques dealers come in handy.
“We don’t really know any of our clients, but we feel like we do,” Agather says. “We know that they collect tiny lipstick memorabilia, or love the color red, or hate chocolate. We feel like we know them, and that’s why they’re always on our minds.” bisetteco.com