The best retirement gift ideas celebrate what comes next, not the job they are leaving: the golf, the garden, the travel plans or simply a lie in on a Monday. A print does that well. It is personal without being over the top, easy to wrap or post, and it will still be on the wall long after the leaving do. Our retirement prints start from £16 and none of them carry a year, so they suit a retirement this year or any year after. Here are our favourite ideas for colleagues, friends and family.
What Do You Give Someone When They Retire?
Something that marks the moment and looks forward. A good retirement gift usually does one of three things: it lets them laugh about the job they are leaving, it nods to the hobby they finally have time for, or it simply says well done in a way they can keep. Think about what they have talked about doing once they finish. A golfer, a gardener, a traveller and someone who just wants a slow morning with the paper will all want something different.
Keep the card in mind too. A few lines about what they meant to the team, or a favourite shared memory, is often the part people hold on to.
Gifts from Colleagues vs Gifts from Family
Who the gift comes from changes what works best.
- From colleagues. A team gift is usually a group collection with a card everyone signs. Lighter, funnier gifts tend to suit a leaving do, because the person often opens them in front of everyone. A print that teases the office, the commute or the endless emails fits well, and a shared budget means you can choose a larger size.
- From family. A gift from a partner, son or daughter can be more personal. Look to their plans: a print for the garden room, a travel poster for the trip they have been saving for, or something for the golfer. If you want to go further, pair it with a day out together.
- From a friend. Somewhere in between. A shared joke, or a nod to a hobby you enjoy together, is hard to beat.
Retirement Gifts for Women and Men
Gift guides often split retirement gifts for men and women into whisky and golf for him, flowers and spa days for her. Those suit some people, but the best gift follows the person, not the label. Plenty of women retire to the golf course, and plenty of men cannot wait to get into the garden. So rather than one list of retirement gift ideas for women and another for men, we have sorted ours by what they love to do.
8 Retirement Gift Ideas They Will Hang on the Wall
Every print below starts from £16, and most come in sizes from A4 up to A0.
1. A funny send off from the team
Local Legend puts them on the front page of The Retirement Times under the headline local legend retires, with a picture of a deckchair on the beach captioned the new office. Permanently Away is the very last auto reply, suggesting anyone with an urgent query tries the golf course, the garden or a sunny beach. And Office Cancelled turns retirement into an airport departures board, with the office cancelled and golf boarding.
2. Something smart and simple
For a more elegant goodbye, The Next Chapter sets Retired in large cream serif letters on black, with officially above it. Adventure Begins is warmer, with Retired written across a striped seventies sunset in yellow, orange, red and plum. Both look at home in a hallway or a study.
3. For the one who has earned a break from the diary
Crossed Off stacks alarms, meetings, emails, commuting, deadlines and Mondays in heavy black capitals, each struck through with a red line, above the word retired. Nothing Planned runs from Monday to Sunday with the same plan for every day: nothing. It looks right on the kitchen wall where the work calendar used to hang.
4. For the golfer
Retirement Club is a scorecard for the new routine, with nine holes running from lie in and coffee to eighteen holes, a long lunch, the grandkids and an early night. For a golfer who enjoys the clubhouse as much as the course, Drinks at 19th Hole is a sunny painted scene of wine and beer on a table with the 19th flag beyond. The Set fans a full bag of numbered clubs into a neat circle. See more in our gifts for golfers.
5. For the gardener
Slower Life is a vintage style seed packet labelled Retirement, seeds of a slower life, with three flowers in red, yellow and pink. Patience Required shows a seed tray full of green seedlings with one red flower already open, and Long Lived is an olive tree in a terracotta pot, with the caption slow growing and long lived. There are more in our gifts for gardeners.
6. For the traveller
Visit Retirement is a vintage style travel poster with an orange sun setting over a teal sea, a palm tree and a striped deckchair under a parasol. No Return Date scatters passport stamps for Lisbon, Rome, the Amalfi coast, Kyoto and New York beneath the words have passport, will travel. And One Way Only is a single ticket from work to retirement, valid forever, return not required.
7. For the angler
Back Never is a wooden gone fishing sign hanging from a single nail on deep teal, with a fishing line dropping down to a little golden fish. Simple, and very hard to argue with.
8. For the lover of lie ins
Always Saturday is a tear off calendar on sunny mustard yellow that reads every day is Saturday, with a note underneath that tomorrow is Saturday too. Weekend Mode is a green switch flicked to on, permanently, which says it all.
What Should You Write in a Retirement Card?
- Thank them for something specific. The way they trained new starters or always remembered birthdays means more than a general well done.
- Share one memory. A funny moment from work or a shared project brings the card to life.
- Look ahead. Wish them well with the golf, the garden or the trip they keep mentioning.
- Keep jokes kind. Gentle teasing about the commute is fine. Jokes about age rarely land as well as you hope.
How to Send a Retirement Gift
- Send it straight to them. Tick "Mark as gift" in the basket and we leave the invoice out, so the print can go straight to their door.
- Order in good time. Every print is made to order and usually dispatched within 1 to 2 days, and UK orders typically arrive in 3 to 6 days, so allow a week or so before the leaving do.
- Not sure which to choose? Our wall art gift card lets them choose their own print and size, and it is delivered by email. It is a handy answer when a team collection cannot agree.
Retirement Gift FAQs
What is a good retirement gift for a colleague?
Something light hearted they can keep at home, chosen and signed for by the whole team. A funny print such as Local Legend or Permanently Away gets a laugh on the day and reminds them of the office long after.
What is a funny gift for someone retiring?
Gifts that tease the job they are leaving: departures boards with the office cancelled, out of office replies that never end, crossed out diaries and calendars where every day is Saturday. Keep the joke kind, since it will often be opened in front of colleagues.
What is a classy gift for someone retiring?
A simple, well designed print in classic colours, such as The Next Chapter in black and cream, suits almost any home. Pair it with a heartfelt card and it feels like a proper send off.
Do the retirement prints show a year?
No. None of our retirement prints carry a date, so they suit a retirement this year or any year after, and never look dated on the wall.
Are the prints sold with a frame?
No. Every print here is sold unframed, on matte paper, so the retiree can pick a frame that matches their own home. The A sizes fit standard ready made frames from any shop.
Retirement is a big moment, and the best gift is one that looks forward. Pick a print that matches their plans, add a few heartfelt lines in the card, and it will be on their wall for years. Browse all our retirement prints and find one for your colleague, friend or family member.
