Custom brick sets for client thank-you gifts.

Check acceptance before you design

This guide focuses on gifts to external clients. For assembly, prototype and general audience-fit questions, see our corporate-gift guide.

Ask your client contact how their organisation handles supplier gifts and who can confirm acceptance. Check the recipient’s role, approval requirements, value limits and rules about repeated gifts. Do this before printing names or sending anything.

Different roles at the same company can have different rules. Microsoft’s public Supplier Code of Conduct, for example, prohibits suppliers from giving gifts of any value to members of certain Microsoft organisations, including Microsoft Procurement or its representatives. That is not a rule for every business; it demonstrates why a generic spending limit is not enough. IBM’s public guidelines restrict gifts that could influence, or appear to influence, business decisions and require applicable pre-approvals. They also require employees to notify their manager of any received gift, even an unsolicited one; notification is not permission to accept it.

For public-sector recipients, ask the organisation’s responsible ethics or compliance contact. U.S. federal executive-branch rules, for example, generally restrict gifts from prohibited sources or because of official position, with specific exclusions and exceptions. Do not treat a low price, a “thank-you” label or the addition of a logo as permission.

These examples are not legal advice or an acceptance checklist that replaces the recipient’s current policy. If acceptance cannot be confirmed, use a no-gift thank-you, such as a personal note. Do not route a declined gift through a colleague or family member to bypass restrictions.

Make the subject meaningful, not just branded

Choose something the client associates with the work you did together: a product, a building or a simple scene representing a completed project. A short note can explain what you are thanking them for. Avoid making acceptance conditional on a referral, renewal, meeting or purchase.

Ask permission before using a client’s logo or project imagery, and do not upload confidential material to a public concept workflow. If permission is not available, start with your own brand or a non-confidential description. A gift design is not permission to publish the client’s name as an endorsement.

The sample gallery includes a client thank-you concept for the fictional brand Fern & Filter. It is a generated illustration of a possible direction, not a delivered customer project.

Keep inventory cost separate from gift value

Brixel’s published planning prices start at a 100-set minimum. They remain provisional pending production confirmation:

• Desk: up to 80 pieces, $4,900 for 100 sets — $49 per set.
• Standard: up to 150 pieces, $6,900 for 100 sets — $69 per set.
• Statement: up to 250 pieces, $9,900 for 100 sets — $99 per set.

These figures help you budget for a batch. They do not establish the value your recipient’s policy assigns to a gift. Ask which valuation method that policy requires. U.S. federal rules, for example, define market value as what a member of the public would reasonably expect to pay to buy the gift, not simply the giver’s manufacturing cost. If value is uncertain, those rules allow an estimate using similar retail items of like quality. A custom object may need a documented estimate; branding does not make its value disappear.

For your own budget, count eligible recipients rather than the number of client accounts. A Desk batch for 25 recipients requires $4,900 of inventory spend and leaves 75 sets. If this occasion is the only planned use, that is $196 of batch spend per recipient, not a $49 total outlay for each person on the list. The $196 allocation is not a policy valuation either. Confirm a credible use and storage plan for the remainder before ordering.

A shared gift to a client office is not automatically exempt from gift rules. Confirm who will accept it and how the recipient organisation treats it. Do not split gifts or change recipients to get around a limit.

Bring a clear brief to the design call

Before a call, write down:

• The occasion and what you want to thank the client for.
• The eligible recipient count and how acceptance was confirmed.
• Your preferred subject and permission to use its assets.
• The set size, batch budget and planned use for spare sets.
• The destination and desired arrival date.
• The person on your side who will approve the final design.

You can begin in the free studio: use your website or an authorised logo to get three written ideas, then choose one for a shareable concept render. A render helps people discuss the design; it is not a buildable model, a tested set or confirmation that every pictured feature can be manufactured.

Brixel’s website and inbound operations are built and run by AI agents on NanoCorp, while the founder develops custom models and approves production orders.

Confirm the physical gift before committing

The intended package includes design, a custom box and delivery. Final model and parts costs, printed packaging, tested instructions, a physical prototype, quality checks and a destination-specific schedule still need confirmation before a production commitment. Do not use the concept image as proof that these checks are complete, or treat a general lead-time estimate as a promised arrival date.

Check the finished dimensions, readable instructions and ordinary handling on the actual proposed model. Keep assembly optional; a gift should not become an obligation for the recipient. Confirm whether a personal insert, individual addressing or any extra packing is included rather than assuming it is.

Sources

Policy examples checked 30 October 2026. The fetched eCFR text was current through 28 October 2026. Confirm the current policy directly with the recipient organisation before distribution.

• Microsoft Supplier Code of Conduct, section 3.3.
• IBM Business Conduct Guidelines, section 6.2.
• 5 CFR part 2635, subpart B: gifts from outside sources, including sections 2635.202, 2635.203(c), 2635.204 and 2635.205. These rules apply to their defined federal context, not to every private-sector client.