University of Mississippi commencement ceremonies begin on May 5, which means there are only a few more days to find special gifts for graduating students.
Isabella Rogers works at Katherine Beck, a gift shop located on the Square in Oxford. She said many people rely on the store for graduation gifts.
“It’s one of our biggest weekends. That, rush and Double Decker are our three biggest, and we love it to be busy cause it’s really good for the store,” Rogers said. “We love meeting a bunch of new people and all of the graduates that come in with their families.”
According to Rogers, there is one gift that graduating seniors cannot get enough of.
“One of our best sellers right now, it’s a bookstack that we have, and it says, ‘One never graduates from Ole Miss,’ which is one of the university’s sayings; everyone knows it,” Rogers said.
For those worried about cost, Rogers said many affordable options are available.
“We do have gifts under $50, which I would probably suggest you look at our custom coasters, ornaments, any type of décor usually falls under that range,” Rogers said. “We also have stuff above that, so it really just depends (on) what you’re looking for. But I hope people are not worried about coming in and asking about budgeting because we can accommodate.”
However, Ole Miss graduating seniors Edward Hunter and Brady Bucky seem to have their hearts set on a different kind of gift.
“I’d like some money or some essentials for my new house,” Bucky said.
Hunter shared a mutual need for funds to assist his start in post-grad life.
“The gift that I most want is cash and money,” Hunter said.
Rogers suggests that unique gifts will be treasured in a different way than money can be.
“We have a lot of custom stuff that we get in to sell, and a lot of it does come from Ole Miss (alumni), but it’s unique to our store because they usually don’t let other stores sell the same items as us. So, you’ll find a gift here that no one else will have, and it makes it even more special and sentimental,” Rogers said.
