The old tale about a bride and groom receiving half a dozen toasters from well-meaning relatives on their wedding day has passed into 70s history. But, what to buy the modern couple? Its a question that is guaranteed to drive their guests to near insanity.

Toasters, bed linen, TVs, pots, pans and all the rest of the boring household necessities are fine but... lets face it, they arent fun to buy, they arent fun to receive and they certainly arent going to increase in assessment of worth ! So, why not think of the unconventional?

Ive been involved in various businesses in Scotland over the decades : weddings, restaurants, photography, writing, letting property are just a few. And this modern, multi-streaming lifestyle led me eventually to the simple world of buying and selling.

We had a problem. We owned a small Highlands restaurant which could not possibly bring in enough money even if we worked every hour available and filled the place to bursting point night after night. So we thought: lets sell things as well. We already had a sizeably effective customer base, and so the challenge was to sell things to them in addition to the successful quality food. We needed to add worth to their dining experience, and charge them for it.

These we are the criteria we set:

1 We refused to load profit onto the wine. We knew the profit margins on wine and knew that it was a common tactic of restaurants to charge customers through the nose for drink. And we knew how customers felt about this. They simply dont like being ripped off! Neither do we.

2 The retail items would positive need to add to and improve the general ambience of the restaurant so tat was out.

3 The items would have to sell themselves. We wouldnt have the instant to give customers the hard sell while preparing and serving food and, besides, hard sell is not our style. We dont feel comfortable with it.

4 The things would have to look great, feel good and be intrinsically interesting.

5 They would have to be accessible to customers, not locked away in drawers or cupboards.

6 They would be the type of thing that would encourage a dinner party atmosphere between diners rather than put up communication barriers. In short, they would encourage conversation.

7 There would need to be a range of items, from the cheap to the expensive so we could not rely on one supplier.

8 We needed a regular and reliable supply of these items.

9 They needed to be cheap to buy and yet give us a healthy profit margin.

10 And finally, they needed to be things that we liked. How could we live with things we hated and how could we sell them to others? Unthinkable!

And the answer to our problem after weeks and many years of thinking? Second-hand books, antiques and collectables!

We lined the restaurant with bookshelves and filled them with hard back literature. We filled every nook and cranny with curios. We hung things from walls and from beams and from every spare vertical surface. We even cleared out an old shed and packed it to the gunnels with interesting things. And all of them carried a price tag.

And the result? Success beyond our wildest dreams! The customers loved it, they bought it by the barrowload (we sold barrows as well!) and we made handsome profits. And it was nice fun.

So, where did we buy all these items? At local auctions, thats where. And we still go to them. They are addictive. And we still deal now and again even though we sold our restaurant last year. Its on a smaller scale than before, admittedly, but that means we could be more selective. Silver and glassware, jewellery and genuine antiques - they are all there to be had as potential wedding presents. Monart glass, silver napkin rings, antique silver-topped wine and vinegar bottles are much more fun than a toaster and, if you buy intelligently , you will be giving the lucky couple something that is both beautiful and a sound financial investment.

Think valuable, think collectable! Do not think toaster!