If you’ve ever received a gift that came in that distinctive pistachio-green box, meticulously tied with black satin and embossed grosgrain ribbons, you’d have experienced that extra giddiness at the prospect of unwrapping your present. You know there’s a very slim chance you won’t like what’s inside.

 

This is because, as the people behind the store that pistachio-green box comes from say, “There are gifts, and there are Adora gifts.”

 

For the seventh Christmas since it opened in 2008, the elegantly understated department store in Greenbelt 5, Makati City, is once again wooing shoppers who shun the rabid, crowded madness that comes with holiday shopping, into its cavernous, almost Zen-like confines.

 

Shoppers are ushered into the two-level store this season with quirky portraits of Renaissance and Rococo women clutching Adora gift boxes, amid stacks and piles of actual varisized

pistachio-green gift boxes, at the store’s entrances. There’s even one Madonna and Child with angels on their harps, and Adora boxes at their feet.

 

On the first level is the fragrance section, which has specially selected brands that aren’t available in any other local store, such as Maison Francis Kurkdjian, Penhaligon’s London, The Different Company, among others.

 

Adora prides itself in having a carefully curated brand and product selection, such that it feels like you have your very own personal shopper even before you step into the store. Once you walk in, that’s when the true Adora experience begins.

 

The right questions

 

For instance, if choosing a scent for someone sounds daunting for you, don’t fret. Adora’s sales staff are well versed with the products, ask the right questions and thus make the proper recommendations. In short, that’s your personal shopper right there.

 

The staff are articulate and friendly, never pushy or intrusive. They keep a respectful distance while you look around and are quick to help when summoned, whichever department in the store you wind up in.

 

Across the room is the Men’s Department, which has a mix of high and low labels, from international brands like Thailand’s Jaspal and Spain’s Florentino for dress shirts, casual wear and footwear, as well as Italy’s Dolce & Gabbana for formal wear and dress shoes.

 

An escalator takes you up to Women’s Bags and Shoes, where you will find the “It” bags from such brands as Proenza Schouler, Chloe, Anya Hindmarch and the coveted Valentino “Rockstud” line.

 

Adjacent is the store’s so-called “shoe mecca,” which has a mix of affordable stylish labels, such as Stella Luna, Schutz, What For, Pretty Ballerinas, among others. (That’s right—the items are well selected and special, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re all expensive.)

 

Once you’ve made your pick, the sales staff will wrap up the transaction while you wait in comfort in one of the settees around the store.

 

There’s a team devoted just to gift-wrapping, so you will be out of the store with your pistachio-green gift bag in 10, 15 minutes tops. In Adora, they don’t believe in making shoppers

wait for hours to have a present wrapped.

 

As any regular Adora shopper might know, the gift boxes are tied with chic black ribbons. The store, however, has an olive-green ribbon option for customers with certain superstitions.

 

But whatever you choose to tie your gift with, one thing is sure: The receiver will love what’s in the box just as much as you enjoyed picking it out.