Building the Dream

Local business owner fulfilling
childhood dream in West

Knoxville gift shop

As a local business owner,
Gail Del Vecchio has had
real success as the owner
and operator of Gifty Girl,
which has become a
popular fixture in
Bearden’s Southern Market
shopping center. And
thanks to that success, Gail
is planning to grow and
relocate Gifty Girl in
Lakeside Village, conveniently located in the heart of
West Knoxville.

“I believe that this area of West Knoxville is in need of
this kind of shopping experience, and with Gifty Girl I
will fulfill that need,” she says. “I want to provide
Knoxville with a shopping alternative that pleases the
senses and provides a niche market for personalized and
unique home décor and gifts.”

With approximately 1,200 square feet of retail space,
Gifty Girl will carry a diverse set of gifts, home décor,
and novelty items, covering a wide range of price points.

Gail says customers should expect a warm, inviting
environment that feels as though they have “escaped to a
quaint shop in Paris.”

“The number of choices and quality of gifts will be
breathtaking,” she says.

Gail also hopes to establish a high level of
personalization through personalized design services,
educational decorating workshops, gift registry, realtor
programs, ASID discounts, gift certificates, gift wrap and
preferred customer recognition programs, all perks Gail
says are far from common in today’s hectic, mass market. She
hopes to eventually ad online shopping and direct shipping to
customers.

“My business philosophy is to provide customers with an
opportunity to escape the ‘routine’ of day-to-day life activities
by providing a mini-vacation that is refreshing and
invigorating,” Gail says. “It is my personal goal to create such
an enjoyable and fulfilling experience that my customers want
to come back frequently.”

This business dream is one that Gail has held onto since
childhood, when she ran what she calls a “pretend store,” in
which she went through her house and priced everything she
wanted to “sell.” Gail would even use her mother’s ironing
board as a counter and an old rotary phone as a cash register.

“The personal satisfaction and joy that I receive from
interfacing with customers and helping them find a unique
and personalized gift for a loved one
or special friend is indescribable,”
Gail says.

Gail, who was born and raised in
South Carolina, spent 10 years in
Colorado before settling in Knoxville
with her husband and three children
in 2005. She says she is pleased to be
“back in the South.”

“We have found Knoxville to have
the best people and climate,” says
Gail. “You hear a lot about Southern
hospitality, but the people in
Knoxville demonstrate true
hospitality every day.”

Upon arriving in Knoxville, Gail
started a home-based jewelry business
and then worked at Southern Market,
where she became a merchant with
her own home décor shop, something
she says she could not have done
without the support of her family.

“My husband David is my strong
arm and the best thing that ever
happened to me,” Gail says. “We’ve
been married for over 20 years and
we have three wonderful children,
Cole age 24, Jessica age 19, and
Shelby age 15.” EK