Gift card swap

Have no use for that holiday gift card? Just trade it in

There's a good chance a gift card will be among the presents you get over the holidays. But what if it's one you don't really want?

Several Web sites have sprung up to address the problem of unused gift cards, allowing consumers to buy, sell or swap cards for ones they know they will actually use.

Robert Butler, chief executive officer of Cardavenue, says he started www.cardavenue.com in October after discovering a small fortune in unused cards in his own home -- some of which were losing value as time passed because of so-called "dormancy fees."

"At one point," Butler says, "I had $110 [in cards] sitting in my dresser drawer."

Wildly popular

Surveys estimate that at least six in 10 Americans will buy a gift card this holiday season. The gift-card business was worth an estimated $45 billion last year, and it's growing.

As far as store owners are concerned, what's not to love about them? They're already paid for, and they bring in customers -- customers who often spend more than the face value of the card.

Still, sometimes someone will give you one you just won't use, or might not be able to use before it starts losing value. The exchange Web sites let consumers search by store or browse around for good deals.

Deals on Internet

Deals that could be found over the weekend included a $400 Talbots card on www.swapagift.com for $350, and a $14.50 American Eagle Outfitters card for $8.

Sites take a cut

The sites take a cut of each seller's profit. For people who otherwise wouldn't use a card, some cash apparently is better than nothing.

"It's better than sitting in a drawer collecting dust," says Mike Kelly, vice president of sales and marketing for www.swapagift.com.

WHERE TO EXCHANGE CARDS ON THE INTERNET

Here are a couple of Web sites for selling or trading those gift cards you get but can't use or don't really want:

* www.swapagift.com -- Consumers can buy, sell or trade gift cards here. Also, sellers can immediately sell gift cards from about two dozen "preferred merchants" directly to the site's owners, though for just 70 percent of the cards' value. With ordinary transactions, the seller or trader pays a flat fee of $3.99, regardless of the value of the card.

*www.cardavenue.com -- Consumers can buy or sell gift cards through the site's auctions, or they can trade cards. The seller or trader pays 6.25 percent of the value of the card, plus a 50 cent listing fee.