Independently audited, ABC circulation of 6,093
The impartial voice of the greetings card industry June 2017 Issue 09 Volume 18
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REGULARS 07 08 16 18 20 24
the team
Leader
After 25 years covering the industry, Greetings Today is going strong.
News
Rounding up the month’s happenings, with more online at www.greetingstoday.co.uk.
On The Line
Chris Fox and Helen Pallen give their online insights for publishers and retailers.
Spotlight
22 28 30 62
26 61 65 71
NEW! Ward’s Words
78
It’s All About Sales
80
Giftware Association CEO Sarah Ward joins as Greetings Today’s latest regular columnist. It’s a dog’s life for Ian Bradley while Rachel Williams is partying hard.
FEATURES 16
contents
83
John Ryan
The perfectly-priced pick-me-up?
Four Corners
East, south, north west, this quartet of retailers know their business the best.
On The Shop Front
Guest columnist Hannah Plant realises she has strong views on Brexit.
Talk Of The Town
Greetings retailers tell it like it is.
Retail Advice
Stationery is a great add-on sale, as Henri Davis’ look back at the LSS.
Meet The Newbies
Window On The World
25 Years Of Greetings Today
66
Talking Shop
72
Cover Story
75
London Stationery Show Review
PG Live Preview
82
Pulse Review
Malcolm Naish takes you back to 1992.
John Lewis talk about their fab 40 suppliers Danilo have so much to show at PG Live. Huge 31-page guide to the specialist show.
Hand-Finished Cards
It’s all about the finish and detail.
Children’s Cards & Wrap
There’s plenty around for the little stars.
Editor Tracey Bearton tracey@lemapublishing.co.uk
Advertisement Manager Simon Davis simon@lemapublishing.co.uk 01442 289940 (direct)
Group Advertisement Manager Ryan Horwood ryan@lemapublishing.co.uk Group Editor Mirella Anstey mirella@lemapublishing.co.uk Publisher Mark Naish mark@lemapublishing.co.uk Production Director Paul Naish paul@lemapublishing.co.uk Managing Director Malcolm Naish malcolm@lemapublishing.co.uk Circulation Manager Robert Thomas robert@lemapublishing.co.uk
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Home & Gift Pre-Preview
An early look at the most sociable trade fair.
ONLINE
Go to our website – www.greetingstoday.co.uk – for all the up-to-date news and new product information plus our Facebook page carries more photographs from shows and events.
HOTSPOT New ranges aboun abound but here Greetings Today features some of the long-standing collections that are always hitting the hotspot. many long-stand
THERE can be few that meet the longevity criteria better than Second Up collection as it’s been continually updated and refreshed Nature’s Pop U for 30 years and counting. Buyer Louise Parker, from Daniels Department Store in W Windsor, said: “We purchased Second Nature Pop Ups at PG L Live in 2015 and they have continued nued to exceed our expectations. Pop expe p p Ups have become a really valuable asset department with customers a as sset to our depa mers specifically coming in to buy them, some even two or three at a titime. They’re not just ust unique, but are great vvalue for money and nd sell exceptionally well at a fantastic exception astic point – we can’t wait for price poin or the launch in June!” new la
www.facebook.com/greetingstodaymag /gre /g re eet etin ings gssto g todaym da d aym yma ag g @g @greetingstoday @ gre reet etin ings in gsto tod to day
PUBLISHING
Lema Publishing Ltd
1 Church Gates, Wilderness, Berkhamsted, Herts HP4 2UB
Telephone: 01442 289930 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
At the heart of retail Greetings Today is independently audited with an ABC circulation of 6,093 (July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016) Subscription pe per annum: UK £60 (free for fo people in the greetings industry), Europe Euro £80, ROTW £100 Am member of the Audit Bureau of Circulation Bu
ww w www.greetingstoday.co.uk ww. 5
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23/05/2017 15:00
leader Editor Tracey Bearton
● Cartoons by James Whitworth T: 07872 013943 – jameswhitworth@mac.com www.whitworthcartoons.com
W
HAT were you doing on the work front 25 years ago?
Actually, there’s a fair chunk of people reading this who were probably not a million miles away from where they are now – working somwhere in the greetings card industry. And that’s exactly what was going on here at Lema Publishing, because back in 1992 MD Malcolm Naish started this magazine in its original format as Greetings, the publication of the then GCCA, the Greeting Card & Calendar Association. Malcolm takes a look back at the start of the magazine on page 14 – and he’ll be continuing the story next month too. It makes for interesting reading, working out who is still around and which companies have fallen by the wayside or been taken over. Mind you, as I wasn’t even a twinkle in the greetings industry’s eye way back then, being mired in the murky world of newspapers before making the move to trade magazines, I’m afraid it’s all way above my head, but so fascinating to see how things have changed – and how so much is the same. A quarter of a century on, the enduring love affair the Brits have with sending and receiving cards is on-going, even growing despite the onslaught of the digital age. The number of new publishers constantly appearing is testament to that, many of whom can be seen at PG Live in the Springboard area – and, of course, here in the pages of Greetings Today, which is how Malcolm evolved the business once the GCCA became the Greeting Card Association and stopped publishing their own magazine. It’s a circle of life really, as some of those companies in the 1992 issues have grown so at least of few of the PG Live newbies will no doubt go on to become as well-regarded as Simon Elvin, Second Nature, Belly Button, Abacus Cards, The Art File and Cherry Orchard. See for yourself at the show and you can find out more about
them in our hefty 31-page preview which starts on page 30. Speaking of growth, the roster of regular Greetings Today columnists has just grown with the addition of Sarah Ward (pictured), chief executive of The Giftware Association, who will be imparting advice and comment of the greetings and gift industry every month. The first Ward’s Words is on page 20. While the GCA solely look after the greetings side of the industry, the GA cater for the wider picture, both for supplier and retailer members, which is where many are moving. Every month we speak to retailers across the country and have found the vast majority stock something other than greetings cards – there are card retailers who also stock gifts, and many a gift retailer who also stocks cards. From the other side, publishers are always looking to expand their ranges and, with licensing deals abounding, plus in-house complementary products, there are numerous opportunities for taking greetings designs on to gifts and homewares, which all help everyone sell more. So, as a trade magazine for the greetings industry, it makes sense to team up with the trade association which helps all sides. Finally, on a completely different, and not altogether serious, subject, we come to this month’s daft picture of Simon, the Greetings Today ad manager, who got down and crafty at the London Stationery Show. You can see the cute little bag he made for his gorgeous dot of a daughter in the show review starting on page 75 – what you can’t see is the glitter he managed to cover himself in! We’re hoping everyone will help continue this new tradition of Silly Simon Shots. There may have to be one involving the cow when we’re at the Business Design Centre for PG Live, and I’m praying The Art File’s James Mace is at Home & Gift with his pal Mungo again so we can finally get the classic big rugby players lifting the more delicatelybalanced but perfectlyformed Simon!
www.facebook.com/greetingstodaymag @greetingstoday
Send your views and submissions for the magazine to: tracey@lemapublishing.co.uk Tel: 01442 289930
Want to appear in ? THE JULY ISSUE DIGITAL EDITION WILL GO TO CLARION EVENTS’ 55,000 DATABASE
JULY FEATURES: Home & Gift Buyers’ Festival Preview (July 16-19) Plush Toys & Gifts JULY COPY DATE – JUNE 14
AUGUST FEATURES: Verse, Sentiment & Sympathy Cards Art & Photographic Cards Spring Seasons & Occasions Stationery, Posters & Prints AUGUST COPY DATE – JULY 14
SEPTEMBER FEATURES: Autumn Fair Preview (Sept 3-6) Top Drawer Preview (Sep 10-12) Giftag Preview (Sep 10-12) Scotland’s Trade Fair Preview (Sep 17-18) Diversity Cards Animal Cards SEPTEMBER COPY DATE – AUGUST 2
www.greetingstoday.co.uk 7
peoplenews Abacus’ Nick stands up to be counted BRIAN Carey has announced he’s not going to be around at Abacus Cards as much – the managing director has just stood down but isn’t out for the count as he’s continuing as executive chairman. As from May 1 son Nick (pictured with Brian) moved up into the post from being commercial director, and will be assisted by creative director Bev Cunningham. In a letter sent to all staff at Newmarket-based Abacus, who also own Clare Maddicott and Mr Fothergill’s Seeds, Brian said: “I will assume the role of executive chairman of the company with greatly diminished day-to-day responsibilities but will remain very
interested and involved in the positive future development of Abacus Cards. “Naturally there will be a changeover period but the intention is for this to be reasonable short and, following which, you will see much less of me around. “Abacus and, of course, Mr Fothergill’s Seeds, probably form part of my DNA but, going forward, Nick will call the shots, ably assisted by Bev and all of you. “I’ll be in the background, offering views and opinions as required and, no doubt, making the odd coffee!”
T: 01638 569050 www.abacuscards.co.uk
Three join Ling as Ian retires A TRIO of appointments has been made at Ling Design to fill key positions as the company prepare for the retirement of long-time managing director Ian Bant. Alessandro Arosio will be taking over from Ian (pictured together) at the end of June, with Sarah La-Plain joining as charity sector manager and Teresa Teagle becoming the new head of purchasing to replace long-serving Sam Ferrara. David Byk, CEO of Ling’s parent company Swan Mill, said Alessandro has a background in branding, design and new product launches, along with the desire for fresh thinking and delivering growth in competitive domestic and international markets. He added: “At a time when there is real pressure
in our sector we believe he has a true passion for product and a pedigree for getting under a category and driving what the customer wants while hitting the onerous commercial requirements of running a greetings cards and gift packaging publisher. “Ling have thrived under Ian and Sam and the new team have a fantastic mix of experience, drive, creativity and passion.” Sarah is part of the Caltime advent calendar family, and went with the team when the business was sold to Woodmansterne. Terasa arrives in August from a purchasing role at the Great British Card Company, to replace Sam who is leaving to pursue personal projects. Ian said: “Although I will have some sadness on leaving this great company, wonderful industry and fantastic people after many years, I’m sure the new faces coming into Ling will bolster the already strong team.”
T: 01892 838574 www.lingdesign.co.uk
Riverside appoint MD Andrew THERE’S a new managing director at Riverside Greetings as the pioneers of the consignment business model and owners of the Riverside Cards brand have appointed Andrew Glen to the post. Andrew joined Riverside in November 2016 as commercial director and has been the author of a major business improvement programme which is transforming the organisation and strengthening their position as leading publishers in the convenience and impulse sectors. Following the announcement on May 22, Andrew said: “I’m delighted to have the privilege of leading Riverside Greetings. The team and I have already introduced several major innovations into the business and it’s gratifying to see them having an impact.”
T: 01924 840500 www.riversidecards.com
● WELL-KNOWN greetings and gift agent Ian Bradley and publisher Lorraine Rush have been a bit busy lately – getting married at Gretna Green! Having finally popped the question at new year a mere 16 years after the couple got together, they’ve been fending off people asking when the big day would be, but Greetings Today columnist Ian emailed on May 12 to admit they did the deed the previous day. Following the ceremony at the Old Blacksmith’s Shop, Ian and Lorraine stayed in Cumbria to continue the celebrations – mainly because it was also his 50th birthday!
● DAVID Wootliff has arrived at Pyramid International as the new commercial director. He has had a long and successful career within the licensing industry having held high-profile roles at a number of well-known organisations. Davd was licensing director at Hallmark for four years and has moved to Pyramid after almost seven years with Rubie’s as head of marketing and UK commercial director, having previously worked with Hasbro, Disney, Warner Bros and Corgi International. A Pyramid spokesman said: “He brings with him a wealth of knowledge and experience we believe is going to continue Pyramid International’s growth and take us to a new and exciting level.” ● THE CLOSURE of Wigan-based Wishing Well Studios has allowed Words ’n’ Wishes to welcome Kate Hughes to their team in the town. One of their key artists, the decision by owners Carte Blanche Group to move the creative facility to their Sussex headquarters means Kate can go across to Words ’n’ Wishes, owned by Rod Brown and Carl Salt. MD Rod said: “We’re really pleased to get Kate on board, she will be a valuable addition to our studio team. We look forward to introducing her style and expertise over the coming months.” ● CAROUSEL Calendars have welcomed Shabana Walji as their new licensing coordinator, after she stepped into the role in early April. Shabana will be working closely with Head of Licensing Martin Rees-Davies to forge new licensing opportunities, provide a point of contact for companies, and to oversee the design process of new and existing licensed products.
inthenews newsinbrief
Cyril goes into training
CYRIL the Guide Dog pup is busy doing his own version of the Seaside Shu e as the reason for this year’s Cardgains Charity Challenge is learning how to do his job. He is in the six to eight-week initial training period with puppy walkers in Rotherham as those taking part in the 25-mile coastal walk from Whitby to Scarborough on June 22 get on with raising money to sponsor Cyril (pictured), named after Cardgains’ mascot. The buying group have also just announced the 2017 Cardgains Charity Golf Day on September 18, when all monies raised will also go towards funding Cyril’s training and upkeep. https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/ cardgainsseasideshuffle
Berni goes mobile
A NEW mobile-friendly website www.berniparkerdesigns. com has been launched by Berni Parker Designs making it easier to order from the Worcestershire-based publishers. The site includes both consumer-facing and trade-only areas, where Berni’s gentle humour such as her Ladies Who Love Life and Animals Loving Life collections can be found on greetings cards, prints, giftwrap, stationery and gifts.
Big backers for credit union
JOHN Lewis and Debenhams are among High Street names backing a new credit union for the retail sector, which aims to help shop workers avoid payday lenders. O cially launched on May 23, RetailCure has also been supported by former Dragons’ Den star Theo Paphitis, who revealed he and his companies have invested a six-figure sum in the not-for-profit enterprise.The union has been live and trading for some weeks with twothirds of loans at less than 10 per cent APR – many payday lenders charge more than 1,000 per cent APR.
Summer showcase
LESSER & Pavey are holding their own show to launch 4,500 items in their new ranges to buyers who can visit the 6,000sq ft showrooms over July 10-23. The site near Dartford Bridge in Kent is just off the M25 and close to Ebbsfl eet Station, and enables Lesser & Pavey to showcase thousands of new lines across gifts, homewares, tabletop, stationery, glassware, photograph frames, lifestyle pieces, reading glasses, fashion accessories, occasions, and bespoke opportunities. Call 01322 279225 or email sales@leonardo.co.uk to attend.
Ohh yes, triple Brit win in US A TRIP to New York paid off for Laura Darrington after her festive village design earned the Louies Award in the Christmas/Seasonal General $4 & Below, while Ohh Deer picked up two honours. Laura made the trip from Leicestershire to the Big Apple for the gala dinner held at the Edison Ballroom – where she is pictured with her award – at the end of the first day of the National Stationery Show, and her winning card was on display in the foyer at the Javits Center throughout the May 21-24 fair. She was one of four British publishers recognised in the annual honours with 60-plus categories, that have been run by the US Greeting Card Association since 1988, and tweeted immediately after her win: “Winner winner chicken dinner! “Very happy to win a Louie Award for the best General Christmas card in the whole of the US.” Ohh Deer weren’t at the gala presentation but they were exhibiting at the show so co-founders Jamie Mitchell, creative director, and Mark Callaby, managing director, are pictured on their stand with their trophies for the categories, Christmas/Seasonal Humourous $4 & below and Valentine’s Day $4 & Below, where they
were nominated. Fellow Brits Purpose & Worth Etc were one of the three finalists for LGBTQ $4 & Below and Dear To Me Studio were in the Rising Star Above $4 section. Daphne Diamant, of Purpose & Worth Etc, said: “It was a really fun night and the ballroom and styling for the event was quite spectacular. I’ll have to try again next year, always a great excuse to visit NYC. I was really impressed overall with the quality, finish and design of the finalists.”
www.lauradarrington.co.uk www.ohhdeer.com
Really good day for David THERE are already big celebrations at Really Good and Soul this year with their respective 30th and 20th anniversaries, and now founder David Hicks has been presented with the Honorary Achievement trophy at the Greats Awards. Sales assistant Nicky Leach picked up the Retail Employee of the Year title for her work at MiMi in Hartley Wintney, Hampshire, while In the Best Service To The Independent Retailer category Widdop And Co won gold for the second year running, with Joe Davies taking silver. The Greats took place at Grosvenor House on London’s Park Lane on May 4 where 400 guests gathered for the crystal-themed lunch. David is pictured (left) with Widdop’s Andrew Illingworth, and the full list of winners is available at www.thegreatsawards.co.uk.
GA’s big birthday THE Giftware Association’s AGM will be extra special this year as they will be celebrating their 70th birthday at the same time. In true GA style they’re throwing a party, with all members invited to the AGM and birthday bash on June 21 in the organisation’s Birmingham home. Digbeth is an area that refl ects the GA’s contemporary and hardworking past, and they have a venue to match for informative talks throughout the day followed by an evening of fun activities for members to let their hair down and get involved in a relaxed networking environment.
T: 0121 236 2657 www.ga-uk.org
Fresh from feedback
Job losses with iCandy closures
Tree-mendous customers
JOB losses have been announced as Clinton Lewin’s iCandy chain of 14 greetings and gift stores has gone into administration, with the blame placed on under-performing smaller stores and sharp rises in business rates. The company, founded by the ex-Clinton Cards boss, axed 22 staff and closed four stores immediately following the appointment of administrators from FRP Advisory on May 10, with 79 staff retained at the remaining 10 shops. I Candy Cards and Gifts Ltd, which trades as iCandy, was launched by Clinton (pictured) following the collapse of Clinton Cards in 2012, when the business founded by his father was taken over by American Greetings and rebranded as Clintons. The move comes just a few months after iCandy opened their 14th shop in Romford – which has shut along with Ilford, Bishops Stortford and St Albans.
WINDLES Group have launched their redesigned website www.windles.co.uk following feedback from customers, and in keeping with their ethos to continually refresh and provide new solutions for techniques and processes. The fresh mobilefriendly website boasts a clean design and intuitive and consistent site-wide navigation system with improved menu functionality that directs people to the information most relevant to them. WORKING with customers has enabled Premier Paper to raise more than half a million pounds for the Woodland Trust to date from their Carbon Capture Scheme. The cash from the Birmingham-based paper merchants has funded the planting of 87.5 hectares of new native UK woodland – equivalent to 122 football pitches. Premier’s Group Marketing Director David Jones’ programme has quickly become the trust’s
10 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
Glyn Mummery and Jeremy French, partners at FRP Advisory, have been appointed as joint administrtors and are marketing the 10 remaining stores in Basildon, Chelmsford, Colchester, Epping, Witham, Southend Hatfield Galleria, Hemel Hempstead, Ware, and Bury St Edmunds, while trading the business. They said they are already engaging with a number of parties “interested in some or all” of the business, which booked revenues of £4.165million to the end of July last year. Glyn said: “After a period of rapid expansion at iCandy, several of the stores have more recently been hit by a double whammy of a sudden deterioration in consumer spending on the High Street by those who have felt the squeeze on disposable income from the rising costs of fuel and food since the pound's fall in value, and a sharp rise in local business rates that often hits small shops hardest.”
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Glick reveal logo
GLICK are moving with the times and now have a new brown and black logo to go with their refreshed website and increased social media presence. Having revealed the new logo via their Facebook page, director Becky Dobson said: “We’re thrilled with our new logo, and we’re also on Twitter and Instagram now – we’re getting into the modern day!”
Campaign write on target
PROVING that writing still matters is the aim of the National Stationery Week and this year’s sixth annual bold and bright campaign did just that. From national newspapers and radio, to bloggers and CBBC’s Hacker T Dog, there were multiple successes as the campaign reached 12.5million people. National Stationery Week appeared in newspapers such as The Sun, Metro and Daily Express, and more than 35 million listeners to the Christian O’Connell Breakfast Show and Andy Bush Lunchtime show on Absolute Radio were told all about it, as well as getting several mentions from Simon Mayo on his Drivetime Show on BBC Radio 2.
McColls shop for One Stop
THE boss of the country’s biggest convenience store chain McColls Jonathan Miller has told The Daily Telegraph he is eyeing a possible takeover of Tesco’s One Stop chain. Industry experts believe Tesco will have to either o oad their One Stop brand or hundreds of Tesco Express shops to secure clearance from the UK’s competition regulator for their merger with the wholesalers Booker. While McColls plan to add around 50 more shops a year to their existing 1,300-store estate, a deal to buy One Stop would be a significant step up.
£21k thanks from Joe Davies
THE efforts of Joe Davies’ customers selling their Equilibrium Poppy Jewellery have led to £21,462.50 being raised for Scotty’s Little Soldiers, who help bereaved British forces children by way of Christmas parties, counselling, holidays, etc, and Soldiers Off The Street, who assist homeless ex-forces personnel in finding accommodation and receiving counseling. Sue Briscoe, from Joe Davies, said: “We’d like to thank all our customers for their fantastic efforts in selling the jewellery, 50p is donated to charity for each piece sold. The result is outstanding and will make a real difference to the lives of a lot of people.”
Indie numbers grow
BRITAIN is still a nation of shopkeepers as data released on May 3 by LDC and BIRA shows traditional independents opened more stores than were closed in 2016 in the country’s top 500 town centres. Meanwhile the national chains continued to see a fall, with a net loss of 896 shops last year, as independents saw an increase of 159 – 14,621 opened with 14,462 closing. The figures show key growth sectors have been barbers, hair and beauty salons, tobacconists and e/cigarette shops, restaurants and bars, and mobile phone stores, while newsagents are among those in decline.
Hallmark top poll again
HALLMARK Cards have come out top in the greetings card category of a US poll for the seventh year running. Hallmark Signature were second with American Greetings, owners of UK Greetings, came third in the Harris Poll’s annual EquiTrend Study. Using an academically-vetted brand equity model with elements such as familiarity, quality, and consideration, brands create powerful connections with consumers. The stronger the brand, the greater the bond – the study benchmarks how deep those bonds go and honours the highest-ranked brands in each
12 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
Hospice cash in on UKG card WHEN a special card was needed by Kirkwood Hospice, they turned to local publishers UK Greetings for help, and the resulting design is set to boost their 30th anniversary fund-raising. The hospice in Kirklees, the borough which also covers UKG’s Dewsbury HQ, teamed up with the publishers through their employee Katie Ellis, who has raised thousands for the charity as an organiser of the T3 Farm Challenge. She introduced the hospice team to Catherine Dodd, UK Greetings’ studio director, as Kirkwood fundraiser Lyndsey Richardson was keen to produce a limited edition special celebration card that could be sold to mark the anniversary and raise vital funds to support their work providing quality care for terminally-ill patients. Lyndsey said: “It’s been a great experience to work with UK Greetings. “Catherine and her team have been so enthusiastic and really got behind the idea. They have offered their time and expertise to support us from the very start
licensingnews
and have been really open to our ideas and feedback.” Catherine added: “We were thrilled our creative team were able to be part of something so worthwhile. The design process was a fun collaboration – we worked together to come up with a design we all agreed hits the right tone but, most importantly, is hugely send-able and appealing to make sure we can sell as many cards as possible for such a good cause.” Patients, staff and volunteers at the hospice chose the final design, by Liz Kay, from the shortlist of designs produced by the UK Greetings creative team (pictured). And, with the help of Chris Hudson of Bradfordbased print and wrapping firm Wrapid Manufacturing, the hospice had 3,000 cards produced free of charge, so 100 per cent of every card sale went to the charity.
T: 01924 465200 www.ukgreetings.co.uk
Molang joins Blueprint LICENSING Link have announced two new licences for the Molang brand, taking the cuddly, funny, kindhearted rabbit on to stationery, bags, accessories and socks. Blueprint Collections will be launching a range of bags, stationery and gifting items, including beakers, novelty backpacks, pencil cases, pens, mirrors, storage tubs, beakers and more. All will be illustrated with pictures of a happy, smiling Molang, on his own or with his best friend Piu Piu, a little chick, and the range will be available at retail from spring 2018. Roy Lowe & Sons are launching a range of Molang socks both for his many preschool fans and for the large number of men and women who love the rabbit’s funny, upbeat, carefree and caring approach to life. Molang first came to the world’s attention on the
personal blog of Korean illustrator Hye-Ji Yoon, quickly becoming popular through instant messaging apps. French animation and production studio Millimages then gave Molang his own TV show, which is strongly based on visual humour as the rabbit and his friends speak a language entirely of their own. TV exposure today extends to more than 200 countries worldwide, with high ratings in France, the US and the UK, enormous success on YouTube and apps, and a massive social media presence. Blueprint MD Lisa Shand said: “This simply designed but incredibly charming character is a perfect source of memorable imagery for our output of stationery, bags and accessories.”
T: +1 212 244 5465 www.licensinglinkltd.com
Top of the shops! BULLDOG Licensing have revealed Shopkins is now a top three licensed brand across multiple categories – and has become No1 in stationery, lunchware and lighting. The agents for the smash-hit Moose Enterprises property said Shopkins is also No2 in baked goods, and No3 in trading cards and stickers, as well as primary-age girls’ magazines. According to NPD figures, the Shopkins franchise is the No1 girls’ brand in the toy market – £16.2million above its nearest rival – and is growing fast with Shoppies Dolls the top fashion doll in the market by value while the Shopkins sub-brand Happy Places is bigger than any other non-Shopkins collectible on the market. On the greetings front, Danilo have the licence for a full range of Shopkins cards including general birthday,
age, relations, seasonal cards as well as two-sheet two-tag wrap, rollwrap and gift bags and this year will look to add a die-cut gift bag.
T: 020 8325 5455 www.bulldog-licensing.com T: 01992 702900 www.danilo.com
www.facebook.com/greetingstodaymag @greetingstoday
exhibitionnews Save the date for Top Drawer TOP Drawer, the creative powerhouse for inspired retailers, returns to London’s Olympia on September 10-12 for the Autumn/Winter 2017 edition. The show, organised by Clarion Events, presents 1,500 leading and undiscovered UK and International brands, expertly curated and chosen for beautiful design, exceptional quality, originality and commercial appeal. Encomapssing Home, Gift, Fashion, and Craft, Top Drawer
provides unique access to this season’s hottest new design-led products. New for September will be the Food Emporium, adding a delicious selection of the finest giftable food products from the best producers and artisans, while Spotted returns to bring the strongest edit of new talent to date – the perfect opportunity for retailers to source totally fresh designs from up and coming designers.
www.topdrawer.co.uk
Tourism surge boost for show WITH Scottish tourism figures showing a six per cent surge in overseas visitors last year, gift retailers around Scotland are hoping for yet another great year with a high spend on account of the low pound. Against this backdrop Scotland’s Trade Fair Autumn has a great line up of exhibitors hoping to supply the many retailers who attend the intimate show as one of the last opportunities to order before the Christmas selling season. With bookings up on last year the event at Glasgow’s SECC on September 17-18 has more than 130 suppliers, including publishers Pigment (pictured), Babs Pease and Hole In My Pocket, already contracted to offer a great variety of product. Karen Shand, from Proposals gift shops, said: “I like the timing of the show and especially being able to come here when you’ve seen a lot of the other shows but there are still gaps in your buying. It’s on my doorstep and I always place lots of orders.”
A NEW LEVEL OF SERVICE, QUALITY & VALUE Offset Print & Packaging design and manufacture high quality, bespoke printed cartons and greetings cards. We offer full in-house support across innovative structural design and state-of-the-art reprographics. This is complemented by the highest levels of quality and reliability throughout the entire production process. We continue to redefine expectations through our superior levels of commitment in everything that we achieve.
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CELEBRATING 25 YEARS
Greetings Today June 1992
It doesn’t seem like 25 years ago o ng gs that we began publishing Greetings w Today which for the first time saw my company, Lema Publishing, linking with the GCCA to publish their own title Greetings. At the beginning of 2000 the association had dropped the calendar connection and become the GCA and decided to link with Progressive Greetings. This enabled us to continue our own title as Greetings Today and the rest, as they say, is history. I have fl agged up some of the news stories and people who graced the industry in our first full year of publishing Greetings. – Malcolm Naish 14 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
There I was minding my own business enjoying a very nice dinner at Spring Fair 1992 in a local Italian restaurant. Sitting immediately behind me was none other than David Metcalfe, my great chum and MD at the thenowners TPS, who have, of course, metamorphed into Ascential Events. David uttered those immortal words: “Greetings is no longer being published by its present publishers, I suggest you contact Terry Anderson,“ the then-chairman of the GCCA. A few weeks later and I was pitching p my company’s worth to Terry. Following F a four-pitch presentation from various publishers my company got the nod to commence publishing Greetings. The title was owned by the association so, following a Lema makeover, our first edition was published in June 1992 with Terri Mousley our editor. A similar title Profitable Greetings had just closed down – obviously not so profitable – so it was with plenty of enthusiasm that we began our love affair with the greetings card industry. In that first edition we ran an interview with Cardgains’ Cardgain MD Tony Duck and d our pic shows Terry An nder Anderson handing over the the chain ch of office of the the GCCA GC to incoming chairm Mike c chairman Belsten, Bels B who also gave gav a stirring view t future for the of the association. ass We also ran a ful full-page advert ad dvert for for the Gran ndpa arents’ Grandparents’ Day that tha at was wa as being celebrated celebrrated d on S t b 26 – I don’t d ’tt think September that celebration lasted very long! al on A two-page editorial the changes at Sharpess also appeared highlighting Mike Bugler as the new MD and charged with revitalising g the company. w Our buyer interview was with Diane McLaverty of WHSmith. h. Simon Elvin was advertising with us and d
has maintained his support ever since. Simon’s advertising campaign featured Great Moments In Communication and highlighted the history of the first Christmas card send and designed by Sir Henry Cole in 1843. Mark Howard wrote our Last Word column and back then was telling us that four publishing companies in the UK enjoyed 60 per cent of the country’s sales of greeting cards and therefore dominated the retail scene.
August 1992
Mike Belsten was asking how much longer the recession of 1992 would continue as two well-respected publishers. Photo Production and Coronet, had gone and retailers Cardshops, owned by Peter Ashcroft, had also gone into receivership. Keith Auty, of Carlton Cards, included a great quote in their full-page advertisement attributed to Mark Twain: “If you have a good story to tell, it’s no good whispering it down a well.” No doubt Mark Twain would have benefitted from emailing, Twitter and Facebook? Jodi Ferris was the greetings card buyer at Boots that Terri interviewed in this issue. I loved Jodi’s quote: “Boots is not a cut-price retailer and never will be. We are not a stationery shop or a convenience store.”
October 1992
The GCCA enjoy a major breakthrough for their members by establishing a new bar-coding agreement with the ANA. The Royal Mail drop a bombshell with the return of POP – Post Office Preferred Sizes. TPS (Ascential) and Blenheim are going g g at it hammer and tongs g
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25th anniversary with their gift shows with changes to their various show dates. TPS announce that the industry wants a January and September show at the NEC while Blenheim want to run a joint venture with Earls Court – London’s International Gift Week in September as well as their Harrogate gift fair in July. Let battle commence! Terri’s buyer interview is with Martin Retail’s Sue Smith. With 766 stores they are big buyers of greetings cards, toys and stationery, although best known as a CTN chain. Company profile for this month is Simon Elvin who, in just 14 years, has become the biggest brand in everyday cards. Operating out of their 65,000sq ft premises in Wooburn Green, Bucks, Simon tells us that they currently distribute more than 2.5million cards a week – 25 years on and the man remains a legend within our industry. I advertise my first Ski America 10day holiday in Breckenridge, Colorado, at the Beaver Run resort. At a mere £625 per person including flights it is a fantastic deal for skiers. As an avid skier I host the group of 25 who go, and manage to break my coccyx (a small bone at the base of the spine) in the process. We highlight the opening of Gibson Greetings in Telford. Industry icon Peter Osman is appointed MD. As the then third largest American greetings card publishers, they will be employing up to 100 staff over the next 18 months or so and are set to take the UK market by storm. As a fellow Gooner (Arsenal fan to the uninitiated) I assure Peter that Greetings will be giving Gibsons our full support.
December 1992 In 1993 we will see the 150th anniversary of the very first Henry Cole Christmas card, and the GCCA are gearing up to maximise on this. The card market in 1992 is reckoned to be worth £840million compared to £650m in 1990 – 2,500m cards were believed to have been sent in 1992 despite the demise of several big players.
Hallmark’s chairman Keith Wheal H Hall llmark’s k’ ch hairma i nK eith ith Wh W heall retires with Don Read stepping up from his role in marketing to become the new MD. We interview Woolworth’s greetings card buyer Caroline Large. With 796 stores they claim to be number one in the High Street for Christmas cards and giftwrap, and claim to be second in market share. How many of you remember all the wholesale greetings card publishers who showed at the January Harrogate Toy Fair? The list for the 1993 January show is 39 and includes a couple of balloon companies.
February 1993
This was our first preview edition for Spring Fair and we come in with a healthy th hy 88 8 88-page 8 page page is issue sue with Jarrold on the front cover. Arnold Barton celebrate their 21st year. These popular wholesale publishers were started up by Eric Abrahams and were part of the Fine Art Development Group. Eric was a lovely man and a credit to Arnold Barton. Who remembers our regular retail columnist Joan Lewis? She was manageress of The Card Centre in Littlehampton, Sussex. Joan loved to quote the foibles of the Great British
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public. I liked this e one – a gent came into the shop asking for a wife birthday card. He was back again the following day to buy a second one. Joan couldn’tt resist asking him why he had returned, asking: “How many wives do you have?” He replied, laughing: “No, the dog ate it!” We hope the dog didn’t suffer too badly from indigestion. Harry Birtley, of Valentines, was a great supporter of the magazine. Part of the Hallmark group, Harry was a great ambassador for the industry, loved his cricket and, with Valentines based in Dundee, would spend weekends at home and stay in Dundee for the weekdays. I enjoyed a particularly long dinner with Harry on my visit to Dundee, with a very sore head the following morning! Valentines enjoyed the Queen’s R l Warrant W f many years. Royal for We profile Kingsley Cards where MD David Orr has successfully kept the company at the top of their game as a wholesale publisher.
April 1993
We come to the end of our first year of publishing Greetings with our April edition. The GCCA suffer a number of resignations of key members. For some publishers the association is thought to be a bit of an old boys’ club and not fit to support members in these tough economic times. While this may appear to be true to some I have to say, from personal experience of dealing with key personnel within the organisation, that gentlemen such as Mike Belsten, Simon Elvin,
J lian Royle, Juli Royle l Harry Harry Birtley B Biirtl tley and d Mike Mike Mik Julian Bugler give a huge amount of their personal time to help secretary John Roscoe in the association’s role as protector of their members’ interests. The association, along with the Royal Mail are organising a high-profile media campaign to promote the 150th anniversary of the greetings card. Gibsons link with Mencap for a Christmas card competition and our pic shows Peter Osman with Anthea Turner and Mrs Norma Major. We have a new contributor from Scotland – John Oliver – he has his own shop and many of his observations are as true today as they were 25 years ago. His main beef was that greetings card publishers cannot forever get away with the deals they strike with the supermarkets and other large operators, to the detriment of the independent trade. He cites personal service as one big advantage that the independent card store has over the supermarkets etc – is he right? As if to illustrate the changing nature of the greetings card business, I am detailing these advertisers of ours in this first year of publication that are no longer with us 25 years later – Kingsley, Sharpes, Egmont, Medici, Giesen & Wolff, Downpace, CTI (balloons), Valentines, Gibsons, Carlton, Graphic Humour, Panache, Rap Cards, Hayes Greetings, Scandecor, Kardonia, Woodfield, Option 2000, Rococo, and quite a few more Of course, some will have been bought and incorporated into other companies, so I apologise if I have mentioned brands that are today still publishing from the above named companies.
– Malcolm Naish
www.greetingstoday.co.uk 15
ON
THE LINE
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We needed W a hook, something to make e our village stand outt
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Very bunny tale S
OMETIMES it’s easy to lose sight of what you’re trying to achieve when it comes to social media – you need a reality check.
The target at Wishes has always been to get people into our shop. To convert our Facebook posts, tweets and Instagram likes into sales for our bricks and mortar store. It’s about building a local, digital buzz. To connect with new customers as well as give our existing ones a nudge. My own Facebook feed is around 40 per cent rabbits, 10 per cent friends, 10 per cent geeky stuff and the remaining 40 per cent retail news. A good mix, I think you’d agree. I try to keep up with the promotions that other greetings card shops are running. One of the trends I’ve picked up on is the power of community projects as shops and villages really are stronger if they team up to promote themselves together. For some great retail inspiration I’d recommend following Richard Shorney @retailmentoring on Twitter and joining in the #IndieHour on Tuesdays 8-9pm. One notable contributor there is @ShopLeominster. Founded in July 2016 to heighten awareness of shopping local in the north Herefordshire town, they use social media channels to promote businesses collectively on daily basis through their Facebook and Twitter pages. The initiative was such a success they won the Gold Cup Social Media Award in The GB High St Awards 2016. This championing of the High Street is a great boost for any town or village and, with this in mind, I decide to reach out to other retailers in Cudworth to create our own Shop Local group. The first step was to post on to our existing Cudworth Village Facebook page and into a few local groups. Tip 1: Don’t start a Facebook post with “I’m looking for guinea pigs” – people will think you want actual guinea pigs. One comment was: “I read your post, thinking you wanted guinea pigs for a photo shoot. I was disappointed by the lack of fluffy animals.” It doesn’t help that my Facebook profile picture
is Pedro our pet rabbit. Still I got some positive feedback but I realised I really needed to get around the shops in person. Which was interesting…! Despite being a small village, not many of the shop owners know each other, and even fewer know me as, unlike our shop owner Julia, I work behind the scenes. Tip 2: If you go into a shop and ask “Are you the owner?” people will instantly be suspicious and think you’re trying to sell them something. Well, in a way I was. I was selling them an
idea. A dream of a better Cudworth, if I could be so bold. The response was mixed. A couple of the shops instantly said no. One shop owner moaned at me about crime/litter/dog poo and asked what I was going to do about it? The newsagent’s insightful remark was “So, your shop’s doing rubbish then?” A rather shortsighted comment; every shop can do better and we should always be looking for new ways to promote ourselves. I was expected bemusement but not such negativity – luckily the response from our other High Street neighbours was much more encouraging.
Part of my Cudworth masterplan is to have an event we can all promote together. We’re going to have Shop Local posters, leaflets and stickers of course but, to really capture the public’s imagination, I felt we needed a hook – something that would make our village stand out. The result is The Cudworth Bunny Trail where eight or nine of the shops will have bright, colourful bunnies in our windows. Using the Bunny Stop Map, people can follow the trail. When they find the bunny in the window they can pop in the shop to collect a colour-coded sticker for their map. Once all the stickers are collected they are to visit Wishes to pick up their Bunny certificate. I’ve even created a new website, www.cudworthbunnytrail. co.uk, and it’s all part of a larger Barnsley Shop Local scheme. I’ve also created another free independent shop and business directory called www. shoppinginbarnsley.co.uk which. along with my blog www.giftshophub.co.uk and Wishes, will all cross promote each other. Yep, I’m busy, busy and all this is done in the evenings – I may start dreaming of bunnies soon. Running four websites while working full time is ambitious even for a driven workaholic like me. And it’s a little risky writing this column so early in the planning stages of The Cudworth Bunny Trail but I felt it would be interesting to document the story as it happens – in the hope it doesn’t fall apart due to the scale of what we’re planning. I guess that’s why some of the shops didn’t want to get involved. Change is daunting and trying something new is scary. Yet, without such adventurous plans, how can we hope to be seen? As I wrote this article, we had a planned meeting with the council to look forward to when I’m hoping they support the Bunny Trail and the Shop Local campaign either with funding or by getting their promotional team to help out. I’ll let you know what happens, in the meantime I have nine bunnies to spray paint – not real ones I should quickly add going on past controversy! – Chris Fox
Retailer Chris Fox runs Wishes Of Cudworth with partner Julia Keeling and has learned how to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the internet and social media, and Cherry Orchard’s Helen Pallen looks at the issue from a publishers’ viewpoint.
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Meet the mugwumps
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T WAS with great delight this morning that I read Boris Johnson had used the word “mugwump”. It’s one of those mildly scolding words from my childhood that I never really knew what it meant but it was enough to know I’d done something silly and needed to pull my socks up.
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And the rest of the world too seemed to take great delight and fascination with the word, with it trending on Twitter and the papers going into a frenzy as to what it actually means. Why don’t they just “use their initiative” and “go and look it up”? And you know why they should do that – “because I say so” (enough with the childhood phrases). So, “mugwump” then. Apparently it’s someone “aloof and independent” in the political arena. Even Chris, with his fascination with guinea pigs and rabbits, Itty Bitty superheros and strange sci-fi fantasy creatures probably didn’t know what a mugwump was until he was staring one in the face. It’s a derogatory term and a rather good one I think for those in Chris’s neighbourhood who don’t want to join in the community spirit and get on board to make Cudworth Cool. Because it really is about “using your initiative” and “looking it up”, not because I say so, but because you have to try it for yourself to find out what works. What works in one area might not work in another, you have to suck it and see. It’s always interesting at this time of year to read through the Retas finalists and see what initiatives have been shortlisted: Clintons’ Thinking Of You Week, House Of Cards’ Sympathy Card initiative, The Lynn Tait Gallery’s Queen’s 90th Birthday Card Competition, Nor’s Okido mask-making workshop and poetry balloon day, Ohh Deer’s charity event, Postmark’s Feel Good Friday and The Secret Garden’s Win Kylie For Valentine’s Day, Beany Boo and Pots Of Dreams projects. Initiatives can be very simple but amazingly effective. A marketing calendar of initiatives helps to keep a steady flow of sales throughout the year, to boost those quieter times after the seasonal events have passed. They can be as easy as playful promotions on Twitter along the lines of “guess how many cards we’ll sell today, nearest guess wins a prize”, “I’m not going home until we’ve sold 100 cards” with photos and updates, and the recent #myshoplife photo challenge on Instagram, or more detailed with fundraising events, through to the complex Shop Local campaigns like the Cudworth Bunny Trail. Be creative and playful when planning your initiatives and events. A magical mystery tour can sound so much more interesting than a day trip to Blackpool for instance – no offence, Blackpool is great but who knows where the mystery tour might lead? It’s a sense of fun and intrigue that makes people want to find out more. It’s at this point that I tell you about the totally new concept in greetings cards that we at Cherry Orchard will be launching at PG Live this year on stand 237 (or for a sneak preview, check out our advert on this page and article in the PG Live Preview in this issue). It genuinely will surprise you. Don’t be a mugwump, come and see for yourself. – Helen Pallen
IIt’s a derogatory term and a rather good one e
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www.greetingstoday.co.uk 17
spotlight
● CHERRY Orchard have added 24 stunning brand-new open milestone adult ages in male and female designs, including ages 18 and 21 and also 13 and 16 to their very popular Carnival Celebrations range. The range has pretty spritzy designs on white card with foil finish that adds a colourful display to your racks. They are all at price code 60 and are available to order now, for delivery by the end of May. With Cherry Orchard adding more than 100 new designs to their portfolio during May, there’s plenty of new additions to their extensive portfolio, but some things will stay the same and that is the price and the finish, with no price increases taking place for over 10 years and no compromises being made on the finishes.
T: 01684 295500 www.cherryorchardpublishing.co.uk
● BEAU Couture is a sassy new range with more than 50 designs from The Handcrafted Card Company to celebrate all things girly. With a combination of beautiful imagery and pops of colour including mustard, red and navy, it’s bang on trend, and matched with a coordinating printed envelopes it oozes modern luxe. Hand-finished on a pearlescent, textured board stock in The Potteries with sparkling diamante, glitter and pom poms, Beau Couture covers birthday sentiments and occasions.
T: 01782 639733 www.thehandcraftedcardcompany.com
● BOLD BOLD A AS S Br Bras Brass asss is a b brand-new ra and nd-n -new wm male ma a range rang ge from om A Abacus b cu ba cuss Ca C Cards, rds, w which hich they will be unveiling among gah host stt of ot othe other he new ew prod product duct att this h year’s PG Live. This text-based range picks up on the urban trend of industrial metallic elements using foil and embossed details to create a unique male range. Printed on art board and presented in a standard 5x7in format, the range contains 14 birthday cards specifically for men. Greeted inside, the cards are accompanied by white cartridge envelopes.
T: 01638 569050 www.abacuscards.co.uk k
18 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
● FOLLOWING a review of the market, and listening to customers, Wire Fittings Designs have introduced a new range of Organic wooden display stands. The Swanage-based company have been supplying the UK’s retailers with wire display stands for more than 50 years, and in the new collection each wooden stand is beautifully finished and unique. Marketing director Lesley Gardner said: “Despite the lure of online shopping, the High Street continues to play an important role in driving the economy. Staying fresh is the key element to pulling in shoppers and our new Organic wooden displays offer a great alternative to the traditional display stand.” Customers can specify different finishes to suit their own requirements with a choice of oiled wood, dark stain or white wash panels and coated clear, black or white finishes for the wire pockets. Lesley added: “Our unique Organic wooden displays look and feel like a much-loved piece of furniture instead of a shop fitting.”
T: 01929 422762 www.wirefittings.co.uk
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A selection of the latest greetings, gift and industry services releases
● THERE are two new ranges from Words ’n’ Wishes in the shape of With You In Mind and Spectrum. Consisting of 14 code 75 designs evoking the modern sentiment, With You In Mind says it all! Enhanced with fluted multi-coloured foil and embossed finish, the designs feature heartfelt sayings and thoughts that reflect your love and feelings. Spectrum has 12 brightly-attractive multi-coloured foil graphic designs in code 60 with embossed and blind embossed finishes.
T: 01942 233201 www.words-n-wishes.co.uk
● TONY Fernandes Design have launched 12 wickedly funny cartoon cards to complement their bestseller Boozey range, and is only for those with a strong stomach. Man Food features unique designs depicting any edibles that men (if allowed) can fit between two slices of bread and then consume – the stuff men forage from the great outdoors when no one’s looking. Titles include the beer sarni, beans on toast, motorway burger, fish supper and midnight snack, illustrated by Tony with his usual trademark pen, ink, watercolour and, of course, a splosh of beer! The 5x7in cards are blank, cello wrapped with crisp white envelope, and sold in sixes at 84p each trade, RRP £1.99.
T: 01142 620899 www.tonyfernandesdesign.com
● FOLLOWING the enormous success of the Next Episode Bon Bon range of lifestyle greetings cards, this concept has been further expanded to include ranges to attract a wider age group. In addition a Father’s Day offering is now available and this will be shortly followed with a high impact range of 24 Christmas titles.
T: 01954 260728 www.nextepisodegreetings.co.uk
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● WHAT started life a couple of years ago as a bit of animated humour and creative fun aimed at entertaining young children throughout December has escalated and exploded into a Christmas phenomenon drawing in all age groups from the very young,to teenagers to adults of all ages who now find themselves trying to create silly and fun poses for their elves every day, in the lead up to Christmas, starting from November 30. Social media is awash with images of elves, posted by adults who are trying to outdo each other in the poseable elf stakes and capture the best photo opportunity. The rapidly increasing popularity of the elf tradition, coupled with the limited availability of elf dolls and associated merchandise in the UK market has culminated in PMS International Group heavily expanding their exclusive Elves Behavin’ Badly range of elf dolls, accessories and novelties, to help the elves go about their mischief making and also to inspire even more creative scenes. Apart from their vinyl-faced dolls, PMS are also offering a range of plush elves, bendable dolls, incredibly cute baby elves and an unrivalled range of elf accessories, all heavily branded in coordinated artwork. They are supporting their brand with a nationwide publicity and marketing campaign and their own website and Facebook pages exclusively devoted to Elves Behavin’ Badly. PMS are encouraging consumers to post their entries on www. elvesbehavinbadly.com or on the Facebook page, and are also delighted to reveal that a series of exclusively-created videos will be released in the lead up to Christmas bringing to life the adventures of Elves Behavin’ Badly. The Elf extravaganza isn’t going to go away. It’s massive and it’s still growing. Order your stocks now, but be sure to only purchase the original Elves with the big ears from PMS’ Elves Behavin’ Badly range.
T: 01268 505050 www.pmsinternational.com
www.greetingstoday.co.uk 19
WARD’S WORDS
SARAH WARD
GIFTWARE ASSOCIATION
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Try a little positive mental attitude to lead you into your best PG yet
● Food for thought – The Art File at the Farm Shop & Deli Show
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Designs on happiness The Giftware Association’s CEO Sarah Ward is the latest regular columnist to join Greetings Today, with views and news from in and around the industry, aimed at helping both suppliers and retailers with today’s business challenges.
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ELLO and welcome to my very first column for Greetings Today. It’s an honour for me to support this publication by offering my views on the ever-changing gift and greetings industry that we’re in.
I’ll also be talking about how The Giftware Association are helping and supporting our members with the business challenges that we’re faced with today. With PG Live just around the corner many of you will be in exhibition mode and ensuring your final preparations are in place for a great show. Whether you intend to visit as a buyer with the anticipation of finding the next big thing or you’re a seasoned exhibitor or exhibiting for the very first time – how about approaching the show a little differently this time? As a retailer, trying walking the aisles the reverse of your normal route or prioritise visiting the stand of a supplier that you don’t know that well with the aim of strengthening your business relationship – I’m sure you’ll make their day. For exhibitors, what about trying a little positive
mental attitude to lead you into your best PG yet? I read this quote recently: “Happiness is not something you postpone for the future; it is something you design into the present.” I know happy people in business commit to meaningful goals, so what will your goals be this show? Back in January The GA partnered with the Farm Shop & Deli Show. We visited this very different trade event in April and took a few of our members along to share the experience. The show is now in its fourth year and attracts more than 450 suppliers and an audience of over 3,500 – you’d be mistaken in thinking this is just a food event as farm shops and delis are becoming more diversified so there has been an increased need for these outlets to stock more and more nonfood items. The GA worked alongside The Art File, Cardology and newcomer Meg Hawkins and we all enjoyed promoting more cards and stationery items within this niche sector. The show has a very different atmosphere to predominantly gift shows such as Spring Fair or Top Drawer, with most sellers walking the aisles
Sarah Ward is Chief Executive of the Giftware Association which is at the heart of the gift industry supporting members by offering invaluable advice and assistance. Coming originally from a retail background she then worked at Penny Kennedy gaining extensive knowledge in the card, wrap and stationery sector, and now utilises these skills across a broader environment. T: 0121 236 2657 www.ga-uk.org
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and giving away samples of their food, but we quickly learned to adapt to this different way of selling, with our members also giving away samples to the interested visitors and building up awareness of the products available. Overall, the show was a definite learning curve and a huge success, and I’m really looking forward to returning next year to a bigger fair where we hope to take more of our members into this expanding market. Another of our members who are going through exciting developments and will be at PG Live are Wrapnation, with their unique Instawrap lick-andstick wrapping paper that sees an end to looking for the end of the sticky tape or searching for the scissors. The company are going from success to success with their unique product and are enjoying the interest from many different parties. I’m privileged to have been asked to lend a helping hand in challenging the team in regards to design development and growth. Bringing great product to market is one thing, however, many businesses are challenged with wowing new and existing customers with strong design so I’m pleased to say that The GA has been working hard this year in promoting designer membership so we can continue to strengthen our relationships with suppliers by instigating unique collaborations. Be happy and I look forward to seeing many of you at PG Live.
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TALKINGSHOP
● Lovely Leeds – the new store and stationery department in Yorkshire
Fabulous 40 Greetings publishers constantly vie for the 40 suppliers’ accounts at John Lewis as their 34 department stores have a reputation for quality and innovation, along with the Never Knowingly Undersold mantra. Here, Lisa Rutherford talks about her role as Stationery Buyer for the John Lewis Partnership, and what they look for. How long have you been with John Lewis and how did you arrive there? I have worked for JLP for 23 years. I started as a sales assistant in what was called Trend – young fashion – in those days. (I was working as part of a gap year before taking up my place at Middlesex University to do teacher training but I never left. What’s the most exciting part of your job? There’s lots I love about my job. I guess the most exciting part is trading an assortment that has been created by myself and my team and seeing our hard work come to fruition. How important is the cards side and what percentage of John Lewis’ turnover does it contribute? We don’t give out specific information like this regarding the whole business but I can tell you that greetings cards are 40 per cent of the turnover of the Stationery Department turnover. What brands of cards does John Lewis sell and which sell well? We work with 40 publishers. We try to ensure that we have something for everyone. We don’t always get it 100 per cent right but we have seen great year-on-year growth so far this year, which suggests our customers are loving our new assortment, which launched in February. Do you stock different products in different outlets, or do you keep the same formula everywhere? Our card assortment is graded by space only. Our smallest shops only sell a fraction of what is available in John Lewis Oxford Street.
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What makes a good buyer for John Lewis, and do you work on your own initiative or are you briefed? There’s not enough time or space to really explain this in depth but, in short, we do a bit of both. We are briefed on trend and direction for the seasons ahead but we are also given the freedom to work with our supply base to create and conjure up ideas of our own. We have a great design team who work with us to ensure we are sourcing unique own-brand products. If someone has a card design or collection they want to pitch to you, how should they go about that? Publishers do this all of the time. The most important thing is that they understand that we buy via a broker and that we operate a one-in one-out policy. We need a publisher to offer enough variety or cover all seasons as well as everyday product in order to be a contender. The best thing to do is write to us directly and send samples or images illustrating the breadth of offer.
Some S customers are surprised at a few of ou our humour s cards
How and who decides on the section design – eg, the new Leeds store has the oversized pencil shavings as decorations, will this be rolled out across the estate? All in-store visual merchandising is designed and installed by our specialist retail design team. Our new branches are stunning.
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How many people are on the buying team, do you have separate teams or buyers for different products, such as stationery and gifts? There are five of us in my buying team and our remit is stationery and seasonal eventing. The picture (top right) is from our John Lewis Partnership Day last summer and it sums us up well as we’re responsible for Easter, wedding, Halloween and our newest one Summer Party. We’re modelling one of the most successful lines from this buy last summer, the Sunny Life infl atable fl amingo!
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How do you choose which products to stock – do you deal direct with the suppliers or is there a brokerage system in place? We operate via a broker – Woodmansterne.
Do you attend any of the trade shows for greetings, if so, do you feel they are important and which do you like? We attend as many as possible. I prefer to see publishers with as much product as possible. I also like to see the competition side by side with what we have available. It helps us understand who is doing what and who is similar to whom. We get very excited when we find something a bit different.
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TALKINGSHOP
● Summer party – assistant buyer Amie Scull, buyer Lisa Rutherford, and buying assistant Charlotte McCarthy
What season are you buying for currently, and how does that work – is it that Christmas is bought in January, Valentine’s Day in September for instance? We have bought Christmas for 2017 already. Our next job is spring seasons for 2018. What are customers buying at the moment – is there anything that stands out as a bestseller? This won’t come as a surprise but unicorns and mermaids are hugely popular at the moment. Our humour category is also going from strength to strength. What are the evergreen categories that consistently sell well? And what are the top-selling seasons for you and in what proportion? Outside of Christmas, Mother’s Day and Wedding are our biggest seasons by far. In everyday we consistently see super results from humour, female contemporary, and photographic cards. What are the emerging trends, and how have trends changed over the past year as well as in the time you’ve been with John Lewis? Trends are evolving all of the time. I have bought stationery for just two years and even in that time our selections have been infl uenced by new trends and returning trends from years gone by. We try not to get too bogged down by this though, otherwise the assortment would not be differentiated from the competition and we would all look the same. What’s the item you think people would consider the most surprising product John Lewis stock? Some of our customers are surprised or shocked at some of our humour cards. We try to remain competitive in the market without overstepping the mark. Occasionally our customers tell us if they think we’ve got carried away. Which card would you like to receive for your own birthday from those John Lewis stock? I couldn’t possibly show favouritism – sorry! I love anything that’s really girlie, I also personally prefer cards that are not too text heavy.
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www.greetingstoday.co.uk 23
Name: Mollie, age three year s Breed: Jack Ru ssell Workplace: St ewarts, Bakewe ll Position held: Managing Dire ctor Significant hu mans: Georgie & Simon Stewart, shop owners Likes: Lots of wa lks, especially in the sunshine Dislikes: Being told what to do Georgie said: Mollie is a lovely dog and I always get a wa rm welcome wh en I go into her office. She’s a cheeky little girl who will jump into your seat given half a chance. Living the life of luxur y, Mollie is well catered fo r in her workda y environment – she has a he ater for the wint er months and a fan for the su mmer.
IT’S ALL ABOUT SALES
A dog’s life W
E CERTAINLY are a nation nati tiion n of of riends animal lovers with our furry friends right at the top of the list.
One of the most common subjects ects for greetings cards and gifts is cats and dogs – all shapes es and sizes, every make, model and colour, we just love them. It’s not uncommon that I come across shops where the owner’s faithful friend has come to work with them. m. Of course I’m talking about dogs here, although I oncee saw a big fluffy cat on the counter at a shop in Grassington. 7½ essa, age Cats by nature are not very good at Name: N r o ern d bra reat Malv commuting and doing a full day’s work. Breed: La in & Co, G st u d A e : b e r c he Dogs, on the other hand, are generally up for Workpla zontal on op held: Hori a day at the office, helping out, greeting the Austin, sh n a Position e S : n a m u h t customers and visitors and vetting the delivery n Significa , drivers. Labradors owner nes, boy o So who have I had the pleasure of meeting b vy ra Likes: G recently? Well, the first two – Walter and Mollie lls ladders, tennis ba – were at consecutive appointments, which is luminium s: Cats, a e lik is D really what gave me the idea for this article, then aturdays gral part working S there was Nessa, who’s quite famous already, a is an inte nday ss e N : id a and Sybbie. Sean s works Mo s & Co. She They’re all lovely examples of how man’s main task of Austin p o sh and e th , in r’ y te e (and woman’s) best friend plays a big part within to Frida et and gre fficial ‘me our wonderful industry. ning e include o tt fla d n ster, a Please feel free to share photos of your rightshop product te xes. The hand dog here @midlandcardagnt @greetingstoday board bo rd a c h ty ic p h em s, w using the has tag #petslovegreetingcards. other dog dog welcomes s. With a e – Ian Bradley lik y rl la u in ic rt a p A e il, sh reta ust proach to ennel K e friendly ap th d been vote St & Co has ndly High st dog frie o m rs. a ye Club’s e re the past th Shop for
Name : Walte r, age Breed eight m :D onths Workp almatian lace: L ittle Pa Positio perie, n held As : Custo mer re Chief Hump hbourne te A Lot? ntion o Signif ica Hahah fficer a! Owner nt human: Heidi R (with L ichard ucy Sti Likes: son, S cka) C hop Dislik arrots es: Ba th s Heidi said: L ots of see if regula Walter rv is at w He’s ju ork – h isitors call in st bec e’s qu ome p little b ite fam to art of oy Jud ous! the e crazin ess! It and adds to team with L ’s love ucy’s o when u r d ly h aywe wo rk on o aving a com to-day ur own panion in the shop.
e 15 months (Lady Sybil), ag N me: Sybbie Na oo Breed: Cockap udio, egan Claire St Workplace: M g Northants rity & Wellbein : Head of Secu Position held rdie, an: Megan Pu g ificant hum Sign r ne sig de e tings card gree s & hiding eese, fur-friend k s: Sticks, ch Like c s sock in the fun she can’t join s ikes: When Disl going to the bbie has been e an said: Sy Meg eight weeks as w e sh y since studio every da and, when e work with m d She walks to old. rt break, fo m co or h g a stretc ie has a she isn’t havin bb Sy der the desk. d some of e relaxing un an she’s io ud st e th fluence in headisk br very calming in a g me while takin co s ea id ork st w b be of our side g the day. Out ds en fri a ing walk durin oo clear ap ck co aying with her sses. cla Sybbie likes pl y ilit ag g ly taken up do and has recent
Party hard? C
HILDREN’S cards d are big bi business bi b i in i the greetings industry and the ranges are huge. It’s important, however, that the design is just right and, more importantly, that the price keeps them affordable.
As both a seller and buyer of children’s cards, I know it’s a neverending cycle of demand. Adults usually buy a select number of cards for our nearest and dearest, paying attention to the design and the words, and choosing carefully so the send reflects the person we’re buying for. But in most cases the children’s cards we buy are for little people we don’t really know! Our kids get invited to so many parties in their younger years it can be hard to keep track and, with their busy social calendar comes all the costs associated with parties and birthdays. I often hear from customers and parents that they don’t want to spend too much on a card as half the time it gets ripped as it’s opened along with so many others in the frenzy of party excitement, often not even being looked at. On the other hand, they still want one that looks the part and is on a quality board so when it does eventually get displayed it is admired. Most customers also want the age on the card up to around 10 years, but some companies seem to stop at age six. I’ve
never understood why as I think seven to 10 year olds still like their age displayed. After this it does get tricky as these little people start to develop hobbies and likes and dislikes and don’t want to receive cards that are deemed as childish but you also have to be careful they’re not too grown up! I often struggle to sell children’s cards where suppliers keep the hand-finished element to their design, such as embellishments and embossed foiling. This tends to put the price up and I find customers are generally reluctant to go over the £1 trade line. If the consumer is after a card for a relation is does make a difference as the design and overall detail in the look is important, but for everyday sends to your little one’s pals it can cause a barrier. Many children’s cards have pictures of little girls on horseback or boys playing football so, quite often, shop owners
are reluctant to buy into these images as they worry they’re too generic and not what the youngster really likes. This makes me smile at times as they will go for boys fighting dragons alongside an armoured caterpillar or little girls with wings like a fairy, flying round their chocolate castle. I think as long as the images are bright, cheery and colourful, too much thought on the buyer’s part can sometimes cause unnecessary dilemma. There’s so much scope in children’s cards, publishers can really go to town and have fun with kids’ designs, coming up with cute and fantastical characters and lovely colours. As a child I used to love receiving cards with badges or magnets on them as it was like getting a card and gift all in one. I also loved the ones that were bright and sparkled with lots of glitter – much to my parents’ dismay when it was all over the house! Looking in my bag, I’d say Laura Darrington Design have that something extra special with their Cut-Out Cuties and Let’s Go, all of which have the design-led look with zingy or cute characters and a sparkly, glittery finish on quality board for only 83p. With ages, relations, general birthday and occasions and more than 60 cards to choose from, there’s a full collection to delight your customers. – Rachel Williams
Ian Bradley Neil Anthony(Midland (Reil Agencies, Card Agencies, T: 07766 T: 736254) 07905 and 597498) Alinaand Clark Rachel (T: 07906 Williams 792420) (Reil are Agencies, experienced T: 07561 independent 557898)greetings are experienced industry sales agents greetings independent in the North industry West and salesNorth agents East in of theEngland Midlands respectively. and North Each West.month Each month they share they their shareexperiences their experiences of life on of life theof road. the road.
24 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
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24/05/2017 15:34
JOHN RYAN
RETAIL ENVIRONMENT
‘
Feel a whole lot better without a massive outlay, the perfect pick-me-up
Lipstick on your card shop
’
The business of buying a card can be a chore, but it doesn’t have to be this way, as John Ryan discovers.
I
N CERTAIN circles there’s a thing called The Lipstick Effect, this is what happens when times are tough, or perceived to be so, and a mild pep is needed to make things a little better.
It’s taken from the fact that lipstick is a relatively inexpensive item that can make wearers feel a whole lot better about themselves without a massive outlay, so it’s the perfect pick-me-up. The same should be true of stationers, card shops and other retailers selling items that are pocket money-priced but which have the potential to lift the mood of either the purchaser or the recipient of the purchase. Yet, all too frequently, the matter of buying cards is one of desperation mingled with need. You know you’ve got to mark Leticia’s birthday and you want to do so with an appropriate card, but a combination of drab plush toys and a store interior that has seen much better days means that the lovely L will be happy enough when she gets her card, but you will not.
The lipstick effect, in short, should involve happiness for both giver and receiver. Or put another way, perhaps you’d be better buying your cards via an online merchant – at least you’re in the comfort of your own home and know what the experience involved will be like. But there are alternatives and card retailing actually shouldn’t be that hard. Yes, there is an element of the distress purchase about buying greetings cards – they buy because people will think badly of them if they don’t, but this doesn’t have to mean a drab experience. Visit The Shires, a shopping centre in Trowbridge, the country town of Wiltshire, and perhaps a way forward can be seen. The Shires is, for the most part, a low-cost destination, a place where people go to buy but not to spend big, which is rather the point of lipstick buying. In the event, if they’re in the mood for buying a card then there are at least three options. Round a corner at one point in the mall and you’re confronted by Card Factory. Nothing
John Ryan is Stores Editor at Retail Week where he’s worked for more than a decade covering store design, visual merchandising and what makes things sell in-store. In a previous life he was a retail buyer. T: 07710 429926 twitter: @newstores
26 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
too much wrong with this one, other than that it happens to be just a mite, well, utilitarian and dull – but at least the promise of the exterior is confirmed by the product prices within. What you see is what you get, albeit the pulse does not race. Hallmark and Thorntons – the chocolate retailer, aka Motel Chocolat – do a double act in this small mall, the idea being, presumably, that you can vaccum up chocs, cards and possibly a scented candle at a single visit. Job done. Finally (Poundland notwithstanding) there is Simply Clintons. This is by some distance the most interesting card retailer that you’re going to encounter in The Shires. Do a Google image search of Clintons and it’s immediately apparent there are almost as many variations of the retailers’ fascia as there are cards on the shelves of their stores. Simply Clintons is something different however. This is a discount format and it stands out by a candy-striped frontage and a simple layout within. The range is smaller. This works in the store’s favour as what’s on view is an edited version of the Clintons norm so makes the matter of selection more straightforward. It’s the frontage wot done it, however. There’s a cheerful wholesomeness about it that lifts the spirits and makes buying a card akin to a pleasure. There, not difficult and shoppers will thank you for it – a lipstick effect card shop, just the ticket.
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COVERSTORY
Bursting at the seams
Strictly Come Dancing
Reflecting the shimmer and sparkle of this popular BBC TV series, Danilo’s brand-new range will be full of foils, glitter and sequins as well as captions that encapsulate the fun phrases and language of the show. Judges so far have commented: “Three words, FAB-U-LOUS!”
There’s so much going on at Danilo, they simply can’t fit it all into these pages so make sure you pop along to their PG Live stand to find out more about the licensed cards, calendars and giftwrap on offer.
D
ANILO’S stand at PG Live will be bursting at the seams with cards, calendars and wrap as they have plenty to show off to visitors.
They are launching a fantastic and diverse selection of brand new cards including Enid Blyton’s Famous Five, Hipstory, Strictly Come Dancing and the Selfie range. Also on show will be many of their hot properties on both the greetings and giftwrap front, such as upcoming film tie-ins Paddington 2, My Little Pony Movie, Despicable Me 3, and Transformers, along with TV favourites Shimmer & Shine and Horrible Histories. And never forget the evergreen properties like Paw Patrol and Shopkins, which are justifiably still incredibly popular. PG Live will also see Danilo showcasing a full offering of official 2018 calendars from all genres across music, sport, movies, TV, gaming and publishing. Hot properties for this year include key movie titles such as Wonder Woman, Justice League, Transformers, Despicable Me 3, My Little Pony and, in the movie franchise’s 40th anniversary year, there’s Star Wars Episode 8: The Last Jedi – plus Danilo have some great new additions to their music, TV and gaming calendar titles such as Ed Sheeran, American Gods, Rick & Morty and Minecraft. There are some sneak previews of product here on these pages, and you can see everything in person on Danilo’s stand at PG Live – see you there!
PG Live stand 513 - T: 01992 702900 www.danilo.com
Hipstory
Enid Blyton Famous Five
This quirky new range features the popular illustrations of artist Amit Shimoni in which he seeks to bridge the gap between past and current generations by reimagining famous world leaders as modern-day hipsters. His current designs include a mixture of academics, politicians and even the Royal Family.
Following on from the huge success of Danilo’s Ladybird Books For Grown Ups cards comes an equally humorous range based on Enid Blyton’s Famous Five stories. Danilo can’t wait to see the beloved Famous Five return in spiffing new adventures such as Five Give Up The Booze, and Five Forget Mother’s Day!
Horrible Histories
Having won numerous domestic and international awards, Horrible Histories has been named among the greatest British children’s television series of all time, so Danilo are very excited to be offering card and calendar designs which capture the franchise’s tongue-in-cheek humour while divulging interesting historical facts.
28 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
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COVERSTORY
Shimmer & Shine
Despicable Me 3 Movie
The huge success of this brand – Minions and DM2 movies are two of the top 10 bestselling animated films in history – sees Danilo launching a fantastic new card and gift wrap range for Despicable Me 3, based on the film’s funky 80s retro theme. They have created an innovative Minions gift bag, which includes a birthday card cleverly integrated into the bag’s design. In addition, there are brand-new Crafty Minions cards inspired by screen prints, and printed on a textured matt stock using fluorescent yellow rhodamine, which is then finished with a spot varnish.
The Nickelodeon series follows two genies as they journey across the world of Zahramav Falls, and has been highly praised for its use of imagination, magic fun and music to tell stories. In the competitive pre-school market Shimmer & Shine is a fun new property that brings something fresh to the category. Danilo are excited to be launching new card designs as well as gift bags and giftwrap.
This is one of the hottest girl brands in the UK with more than 65million views on the Shopkins YouTube channel. Danilo have a full range of cards including general birthday, age, relations, seasonal cards as well as two-sheet two-tag wrap, rollwrap and gift bags and this year will look to add a die-cut gift bag.
● ©Marve
l
Shopkins
My Little Pony Movie
New birthday card and gift wrap designs are set for launch that mirror the look and feel of the new movie being released in October this year. Included in this new range will be a fantastic My Little Pony gift bag featuring a beautiful, glitter finish.
Paddington 2 Movie
Paw Patrol
The official No1 UK pre-school brand, more than 2.5million viewers tune in on Milkshake per month to watch Paw Patrol. New designs appealing to both boys and girls will be added this year, including a sound card and die-cut gift bag. This current range includes ages two to six plus relations, general birthday and seasonal captions, plus two-sheet two-tag wrap, rollwrap and gift bags are also available
Selfie Range
This new range of cards takes a modern twist, celebrating the ever-popular selfie. Each card/phone design forms part of a collection, which includes Danilo’s strongest licences, and is die-cut to an oversize smartphone shape with a personalised phone cover on the back page to suit each character.
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After the monumental success of the first Paddington movie – it made £207million ($267m) worldwide – the much-anticipated second instalment will be coming to UK cinemas in November 2017. Danilo will be publishing a great new range of official Paddington cards as well as gift bags and gift wrap.
Transformers Movie
The first of three more Transformers films launching over the next three years, Transformers: The Last Knight will arrive in UK cinemas this summer. With strong new artwork, Danilo will be refreshing their card and gift wrap range, plus there will be an exciting new Transformers gift bag design that includes an Optimus Prime mask.
www.greetingstoday.co.uk 23
● Really Wild Cards
PGLIVEREVIEW
● Abacus
● The A
rt File
Sensing success
● Belly Butt on Designs
A unique scented launch from Cherry Orchard will be one of the big reveals at this year’s PG Live as the eighth edition of the specialist greetings card show opens its doors with plenty to offer.
● Cath Tate Cards
‘
Cath Tate Cards are making the news on the big birthday front celebrating their 35th anniversary
And at the forefront of the trends that will be on offer at London’s Business Design Centre on Tuesday and Wednesday, June 6-7, will be Cherry Orchard Publishing who are launching their unique fragranced card collection, Scent With Love. MD Jackie Collins was inspired by ● Mi nt perfumer Jo Malone’s talk at Autumn Fair, spending months working to take her breakthrough scented book page that step further to have the long-lasting fragrance impregnated into the card, and released when the insert is rubbed. The show will be opened by saxophonist Grame Airth, from Curiosity Killed The Cat, while Percy the very tame tawny owl will be making an appearance with Springboard exhibitors Owl My Love, and The Art File have artist Anna Hymas on their stand on the opening morning. Over 100 Springboarders are making their debut ● Hotchpotc at PG Live, while a number of known names are also h taking the plunge, including Ohh Deer, JellynBean, Cardigan Cards and BrownTrout Publishers, and Widdop And Co are returning for the first time since the inaugural show seven years ago. Attracting buyers from more than 40 countries, PG Live also has an international fl avour on the exhibitors’ front with Austria’s Pabuku , Alljoy Designs and Garlanna from Ireland, Artige from the Netherlands, Switzerland’s FotoeigenArt, Finland’s Lovi and Maarit Kontiainen, and A rmations and I Ended Up Here making the trek from Australia. There are some fantastic special show offers, including discounts and free carriage, plus Cath Tate Cards are
’
● Instawrap
● Seco
nd Na
ture
● Grass Roots
30 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
N
EW names, an international fl avour, trends and special offers are just some of the reasons to attend PG Live 2017 – which is their biggest show yet, with more than 280 exhibitors.
making the news on the big birthday front as they celebrate their 35th anniversary, and will be serving cake and entering all visitors into a special prize draw so everyone can join in. Lagom Design are marking their first decade in business by sponsoring the lunchroom, Clear Creations are also 10 and will be making sure bubbly glasses are kept topped up, while Greats Honorary Achievement winner David Hicks’ company Soul turn 20, and Carte Blanche hit the grand age of 30. Having made an impact with the release of the first lick-and-stick wrapping paper – as promoted with a free sample in the April issue of Greetings Today – Instawrap are keeping up the momentum by sponsoring the complimentary tea and coffee trollies that will be making the rounds at the show. Jonny Javelin and Wendy Jones-Blackett are launching a number of new collections at the show, as are The Art File, who have three fresh ranges including Anna’s London one, while Widdop will be featuring their new social stationery and greetings card collection from Californianbased Studio Oh. Other names to check out at the show include Abacus, Belly Button Design, Bexy Boo, Cinnamon Aitch, Dandelion Stationery, Danilo, Davora, Gemma International, Grass Roots International, Hallmark, Hotchpotch, JellynBean, Laura Sherratt Designs, Mint, Museums & Galleries, Real & Exciting Designs, Really Wild Cards, Redback Cards, Scott & Robson, Second Nature, Tomcat Cards, and UK Greetings, while Enveco and The Imaging Centre are among the industry suppliers who will be promoting their services. Exciting initiatives for PG Live’s eighth outing include the Greeting Card Association’s Surgery, which will be taking place just outside the Gallery Hall. And the show has the now traditional complimentary lunch for all on both days, plus the drinks party at the end of the first day.
T: 01635 297070 www.progressivegreetingslive.com
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PGLIVEREVIEW
New UKG director looking forward to first outing
U
K GREETINGS’ new director of field sales is looking forward to attending PG Live for the first time as the publishers plan this year’s spectacular stand for the show.
Darren Cave has replaced long-serving director of independent sales Tony Roberts with immediate effect at the Dewsbury-based company and said: “This will be my first time at PG Live and I’m really excited to see what it’s all about. “It’s going to be a good opportunity to introduce myself and start building relationships with key customers from across the industry, but most importantly it’s going to be a great chance to meet with customers face to face and learn more about their businesses.” Tracy McMinn, UKG Regional Sales Manager, will be showing Darren the ropes at PG Live, one of his first industry events in his new role. He started working in the industry in 2005 at Watermark Publishing where he moved on to become associate commercial director and then in 2014 secured the position of UKG’s director of merchandising.
Aardvark Press – 136 Abacus Cards – 300 A rmations – 541 Alicorn Cards – 799 Alljoy Designs – 770 Aloha Calling – 866 Always Sparkle – 148 Amy Louise Design – 740 Angela Chick – 778 Anzu – 870 April Rose – 854 Arabesque – 228 The Art File – 200 Art Lana – 794 Artcard La Collection – 812 The Art Group – 325 Artige – 330 Artpress – 306 Barley Bay – 872 Belly Button Design – 316 Bespoke Verse – 751 Best Of Wishes – 103 Bettie Confetti – 871 Bexy Boo – 160 BIRA – 435 Black Olive – 523 Blank Inside – 716 Blue Eyed Sun – 524 Boggy Made This – 652 Bold Bunny – 824 BPAK 360 – 237 Brainbox Candy – 334 Bree Merryn Art – 870 Bright Group – 242 BrownTrout Publishers – 326 The Buddy Fernadez Co – 530 Cardigan Cards – 310 CardMix – 211 Cardology – 838 Cardooo – 305 Carte Blanche Group – 122 Cath Tate Cards – 307 Catherine Kleeli Cards – 764 Catherine Winget – 86 Cats & Roses – 863 Chau Art – 836 Cherry Orchard – 239 Choco Greetings – 768 Cinnamon Aitch – 231 Clare Maddicott – 300 Clear Creations – 114 Comic Art – 678 Corrina Rothwell – 94 Cotton Letterpress – 858 Coulson Macleod – 112 Dandelion Stationery – 820 Danilo Promotions – 513 Darren Coldwell Art – 864 Davora – 521
Tracey said: “PG Live is such a nice event to attend as it’s all about the cards. It’s a slightly smaller venue which means you get chance to chat with everyone which will be great for Darren as he’ll get to know everyone. “I’m really excited to see what we come up with for the stand as last year’s was so impressive. “I helped out there and many visitors commented that if there was a prize for the most creative display we would win hands down, which is such a compliment and really pays credit to the talented team we have at UKG.”
EXHIBITOR LIST
Dean Morris Cards – 438 Deckled Edge – 85 Decorque Cards – 800 Designed By Mrs Lovesy – 686 Deva Designs – 331 Diogenis Kyriakdis – 654 The DM Collection – 786 Drawn To The Moment – 724 Earlybird Designs – 111 East End Prints – 754 Elaara Islamic Greeting Cards – 758 Eleanor Stuart – 780 Elspeth Thomson – 706 Emotional Rescue – 412 Enveco – 519 Fearless Steps – 663 Fedrigoni – 542 Feelgood Images – 750 Field And Fur – 738 Fitzwilliam Museum Enterprises – 91 Five Dollar Shake – 425 Forever Funny – 685 Fotoeigenart – 535 Frankie Whistle – 109 Gaeltag Keltika – 527 Garlanna – 229 Gemma International – 400 Georgia Breeze Designs – 99 G.F Smith – 672 Giftwrap UK – 232 Glick – 424 Go La La – 826 Go Stationery – 121 Goforitgames.com – 681 Graphite Creative – 508 Grass Roots International – 312 Groovyart – 728 The Grumble & Co – 776 Hallmark Cards – 416 Hammond Gower – 505 Hartdeco – 153 Hassett Green – 730 Hearts Designs – 534 Heather Alstead Designs – 102 Hedge And Hog Prints – 859 Hoppy Bunnies – 687 Hotchpotch – 122 Hunky Dory Designs – 340 Hype Associates – 120 I Do Not Careds – 869 I Drew This – 92 I Ended Up Here... – 675 Icon Art – 208 The Imaging Centre – 659 Instawrap from Wrapnation – 868
Intelligent Retail – 431
International Cards & Gifts – 303
Ivorymint – 832 Jaab Cards – 673
32 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
Jellynbean – 441 Jelly Armchair – 138 Jemma Banks Design – 742 Jessica Hogarth – 105 Jimkins – 84 Johnsons Printers – 222
The Jonny Javelin Card Co – 526
Obody Design – 737 Ohh Deer – 413 Olive & Belle – 782 Originaliart – 808 Owl My Love – 665 P & G Cards – 337
The Juniper Tree Co – 748 Jupp Illustrations – 874 Jusna Ahmed Designs – 828 Just A Little Note – 788 K Jenny Tyas – 875 Kali Stileman – 162 Kapelki Art – 797 Kate Guest – 702 Katie Phythian Design – 720 Keyhole Collection – 784 Koko Designs – 407 Lagom Design – 225 Lanther Black – 744 Laura Sherratt Designs – 405 Linen Prints – 865 Linoking Cards – 796 Little Lynch Designs – 677 Little Paperie – 712 Lola Design – 335 Lorna Syson – 762 Louise Mulgrew Designs – 704 Louise Tiler Designs – 118 Lovelyday Gallery – 721 Lovi – 850 Loxleys Print – 538 LS20 Letterpress Studio – 860 Lucilla Lavender – 520 Lucy Ledger – 806 Maarit Kontiainen Art – 708 Made By Man – 156 Many Cards – 660 Marina B Designs – 661 Mask-Arade – 536 Maurice And Maude – 822 Meany-Bo-Beany – 132 Megan Claire – 504 Meraki – 668 Miko Greetings – 736 Mint Publishing – 217 Modern Toss – 842 Mr Men – 336 Mu n & Me – 840 Munkychip – 679 Museums & Galleries – 218 My Design Collections – 227 My Greeting Card – 852 My Little World – 873 N Smith & Co – 339 Nigel Quiney – 424 Noel Tatt – 301 Noi Publishing – 506 Objectables – 658
Pabuku, The Queer Paperie – 772
Pango Productions – 746 Papagrazi – 792 Paper Bird Publishing – 88 Paper Pipit – 818 Paper Plane – 752 Paper Rose – 325 Paper Salad – 207 Paper Sole – 774 Paperlink – 201 Paperwhale – 722 Passenger Press – 784 The Peakridge Photography Co – 723 Pearl Of A Girl – 656 Penny Kennedy – 318 Pennychoo – 170 Philippa K Wright – 655 Pickled Cat – 726 Pickmotion – 848 Pigment – 313 Pioneer Europe – 236 Pippi & Me – 154 Poolcat Cards – 830 Popshots Studios – 244 Port And Lemon – 787 Portfolio – 321 Pressed & Folded – 682 The Proper Mail Co – 226 Proud Couture – 802 Quitting Hollywood – 324 Raspberry Blossom – 834 Real & Exciting Designs – 219 Really Wild Cards – 540 Red Berry Cards – 700 Redback Cards – 421 Rocket 68 – 760 Rosa & Clara Designs – 664 Rose Hill Designs – 662 Rosie Made A Thing – 150 Rubies – 536 Rush Design – 166 Ruth Jackson – 518 Ruth Martin – 781 Sadler Jones – 756 Saffron Cards & Gifts – 204 Sarah Boddy – 798 Sarah Kelleher – 98 Sarah Lovell Art – 846 Scott & Robson Designs – 95 Second Nature – 117 Sensations International – 417 The Sherwood Group – 429 Silk Hat Greetings – 329
SJ.Vickery – 790 Smiley World – 531 Solutions Polska – 445 Sooshichacha – 517 Soul – 320 Spring Fair – 428 Stationery Tra c – 684 Stephanie Dyment – 430 Stockwell Greetings – 227 Stop The Clock Design – 221 Stormy Knight – 814 Stripey Cats – 732 Studio Spilsbury – 857 Supa Dupa Designs – 653 Susan O’hanlon – 439 Sweet Design – 856 Tache Crafts– 89 Tallon International – 503 Tangoo Artisan Products – 730 The Taste Buds – 830 Tess Cards – 676 Thingmeabob – 867 Thinkls – 861 Tigerlily – 766 Tiggy & Tim – 680 Tillovision – 97 Toasted Crumpet – 804 Tomcat Cards – 502 Totem Tiger – 844 Tracey Russell Design – 241 Tracks Publishing – 401 Transrap Packaging – 338 Twizler – 501 Two Beans – 710 U Studio Design – 205 UK Greetings – 240 Uniquely Yours – 657
The Unique Paper Company – 220
Unknown Ink – 862 Velvet Olive – 318 Veronica Dearly – 100 Wendy Jones-Blackett – 235 Whale & Bird – 500 White Cotton Cards – 319 Widdop And Co – 436 Wildberry Letterpress – 683 Wildcards – 810 Willow Cairn – 852 Winged Hat – 119 Wishing Well Studios – 122 Woodmansterne– 317 Woollytales – 666 Words ‘n’ Wishes – 406 Wraptious – 115 Xystos – 529 Zizi – 407 ZZ Designs – 670
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Oh flock, it’s a flamingo! THE Hotchpotch team are excited to be exhibiting at PG Live this year with a stand that’s twice as big as they had at either Top Drawer or Spring Fair, and will also be giving away some of their amazing enamel pin badges where designs include a mer-mazing mermaid, spike-tacular cactus and, flock yeah, a flamingo! They are launching exciting hot-off-the-press ranges as well as new additions to their oh-sopopular enamel pin badge range Flair as well as the bright, vibrant and oh-so playful Hello Neon collection where each card is printed with two vivid, neon inks and finished with rose gold foil. Champagne is a delicate mix of handsketched florals and watercolour washes finished with satin gold foil and clear crystals for special anniversaries, and the designs are paired with their most luxurious envelope to date, which is beautifully foiled in gold.
Stand 122 – T: 01243 792600 www.hotchpotchlondon.com
Playful illustrations
Enter a wonderful world UK GREETINGS are very excited to be at PG Live again this year! Each year they showcase their amazing product and innovative design talent – they like to keep surprising visitors with their creativity and new product directions, and this year will be no exception with lots of new and exciting designs. UKG are renowned for the creativity not only in their product but on the stand itself and visitors this year can expect to be blown away as they’ve raised the bar yet again! They are firm believers that if you can dream it, you can do it, so join them their stand at PG Live, and let them welcome you to the wonderful world of UK Greetings.
Stand 240 – T: 01924 465200 www.ukgreetings.co.uk
34 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
The Good To Glow occasion cards are printed with electrifying neon orange or neon lime ink – they absolutely love neon and these super-fun designs include elephants, snails and happy crocodiles that are sure to stand out on the shelf. The Luxe collection is ever-growing, and Hotchpotch will be launching beautiful new handlettered designs for birthday and female relations in a modern and sophisticated colour palette of blush pink and peach mixed with inky brush lettering and finished with a scattering of luxurious rose-gold foil. Hotchpotch will also be launching trend-led Christmas and Spring designs in customers’ favourite everyday ranges including Jam Sandwich, as well as having brand-new Summer Supplement and Spring Seasons trade catalogues available.
ANGELA Chick is making her PG Live debut this June with her playfully illustrated greetings cards and gifts with old favourites as well as a number of new additions. Her designs feature strong recurring themes of friendship and fun, with a number of designs inspired by best friends, pets and more. A variety of occasions are catered for with the ever-expanding Angela Always range perfect for sending “just because”.
Stand 778 – T: 07828 432859 hello@angelachick.com
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Call the sales hotline on
01926 747935
sales@isitart.co.uk www.isitart.co.uk
16/05/2017 15:03:30
PGLIVEREVIEW
Messy, stupid and funny WITH lots of fabulously funny brand-new designs for PG Live, Cath Tate Cards are launching their new range Dunk & Disorderly. The 14 new designs in the range are humorous handdrawn text cards with each having a patterned image to go with the caption and pastel power runs throughout the range. Messy, stupid and funny is the general feel of the range, a bit like life itself! Also launching at the show are new additions to the popular Look & Learn and History Notes ranges as well as additions to Cath Tate’s bestselling Photocaptions and Life Is Rosie ranges.
Stand 307 – T: 0208 671 2166 www.trade.cathtatecards.com
Colourful animal characters THE unusual and vibrant animal characters from the world of Kapelki Art will be making their debut at PG Live Springboard. Bright and different, these cards stand out and quickly find their fans. Alongside the colourful bestsellers that have already proven themselves popular with British buyers, the new Christmas pack range will be launched at the show.
Stand 797 – T: 07761 778144 www.kapelkiart.com
36 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
Rhyme your way to an order TO COMPLEMENT Vicky’s snowy cats, Tomcat Cards now have some Christmassy designs from Kim, their Blue Eyes artist. Tomcat owner Lynne Thomas thought a bit of Christmas spirit wouldn’t go amiss, so their show offer is: “Come and choose six Christmas cards, they’re absolutely free, By placing an order at PG we’ll give these six to thee, This poem about our cat cards is bound to start a trend, It’s always good to receive a card and just as great to send.” In other words, place an order with Tomcat at the show and six different Christmas cards will be added to your order.
Stand 502 – T: 01243 837300 www.tomcatcards.co.uk
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New designs have been added to our much-loved children’s range, 100% Kids. Presented in a standard 5 x 7 format, the cards are printed on art board and finished with embossed details. These new designs cover age birthdays from 1 to 5 for both boys and girls. The latest introductions also include four open birthdays specifically for this younger age group.
Come and see the entire range, as well as a whole host of other new products, on the Abacus stand 300 at this year’s PG Live:
The Studio, Oaks Drive, Newmarket, Suffolk, CB8 7SX | Tel: 01638 569050 Web: www.abacuscards.co.uk | Email: info@abacuscards.co.uk
PGLIVEREVIEW
Scent of a great concept CHERRY Orchard will be at PG Live this year to unveil a totally new concept in the greetings card world. Inspired by Jo Malone’s talk at Autumn Fair, about the scented page in her book that publishers and printers insisted couldn’t be done, the team have worked tirelessly over many months to put together a fragranced range of greetings cards, in collaboration with one of only six independent perfumers who has designed fragrances for the Queen. Combining the knowledge and expertise of fine fragrances with a team of print experts, this is a top quality card range that will release a delicate but lingering scent of rose and vanilla when the card insert is rubbed, with scents that will last up to twelve months. The range is called Scent With Love and will be sold as a package on a stylish spinner display with a collection of cards with beautiful designs of roses in pretty pastel shades.
Stand 239 – T: 01684 295500 www.cherryorchardpublishing.co.uk
Exuberant portfolio debuts BEST Of Wishes are coming to PG Live for the first time! The venture is the artistic partnership of Christina Williams, an artist and printmaker with an eye for bold, decorative designs, and Jo Litchfield, an illustrator whose daft humour and trademark models have appeared in hundreds of children’s books. After 20 years of friendship they teamed up professionally in 2016 to pool their considerable publishing experience to create an exuberant portfolio of designs for the greetings industry.
Feathers, art and jazz
Stand 103 – T: 0115 960 4041 www.bestofwishes.co.uk
MY FINE Feathered Friends are the colourful, fun-loving birds from Miko Greetings along with their bright, flowery, music loving animals of All That Jazz. They also have Artistic License for art lovers with a sense of humour and A Taste Of Life featuring beautiful, sensitive photography. These will all be on show at PG Live along with three new ranges – Just Look At You’s bright, appealing, children’s age cards, Off The Record’ and The Cats Muse.
Stand 736 – T: 020 8693 1011 www.miko-greetings.com
38 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
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Lighting up with glitter MINT are launching two brand new ranges at PG Live this year – Lightbox and Glitterati! Lightbox is inspired by the craze for light-up letters in homewares and party decorations where each design features light-bulb wording with on-trend phases. The fresh contemporary palette of hot pink, mint green and fashionable holographic foil covers general birthdays, occasions and ages 11 to 40. Glitterati is petite and precious, finished with a beautiful rose-gold foil and flitter combination plus coordinating rose gold or pearlescent white envelopes. Featuring sophisticated and chic imagery combined with textured watercolour, this dainty range includes captions and birthday titles. Also new for the show is a luxury version of Mint’s stunning Chantilly range in a larger size for those special occasions, finished with gold or silver foil, embossing and beautiful hand-adhered pearl attachments. Wrapped with a gold or silver envelope, these cards are truly special. Make sure to visit Mint’s stand 217 to see these gorgeous new ranges, plus additions to Pow, Ha Pea Times and Knit & Purl.
Stand 217 – T: 0116 230 4197 www.mint-publishing.co.uk
Masked heroes take centre PJ MASKS is Gemma’s hero brand for PG Live, and willll feature as the centrepiece on their stand as they offer it across cards, wrap and party. This brand really is the one to watch this year, and they are already experiencing a high demand for product. Care Bears is also a great addition to Gemma’s portfolio – 2017 has been coined as “the year of the hug” and they are excited to launch their new range of Care Bears product across cards, wrap and party. They will also be showing a huge range of Emoji product which is a bestseller for Gemma. This is a really versatile brand, spanning gender and age ranges so there is something for everyone.
40 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
Emoji Em E moj o i brand b and has sold phenomenally br nomenally well wel for Gemma, and retailers have reported excellent rates of sale on the launch range, so are now working on refreshed designs to bring to market. Other brands Gemma launched this year will also be on show including Num Noms, Animal Jam and Pokémon, as well as their classic evergreen licences Peppa Pig and Thomas & Friends, which continue to be popular.
Stand 400 – T: 01264 388400 www.gemma-international.co.uk
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PGLIVEREVIEW
Simple and succinct SEVEN-T-7 is the new humour range being launched at PG Live by JellynBean – a very simple and succinct humour style captures modern life. Printed on a high quality textured board and individually cello-wrapped with complementary envelopes, the initial launch contains 20 open humour cards and 10 caption cards including milestone ages.
Stand 441 – T: 01423 871881 www.jellynbean.com
Enjoy spicy recipe TAKE a spoonful of gold foil, a cup of good design, a bowl of bright colours, mix well and you will have Spice, Portfolio’s newest range launching at PG Live. As the name suggests, Spice is full of colour, inspirational design and the passions of the East. There are 16 designs to choose from in the 5x7in range that’s printed on textured board with raised foil, with cards individually wrapped with a white envelope.
Stand 321 – T: 020 8960 3051 www.portfoliocards.com
www.facebook.com/greetingstodaymag @greetingstoday
Unique cards inspired by the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum See us at PG Live – Stand 218 Please contact your agent or request a brochure for more information:
sales@mgml.co.uk
museumsgalleries.co.uk
Tel: 01373 462165
www.greetingstoday.co.uk 41
PGLIVER PGLIVEREVIEW RE R E EVI VIEW VI E
Pop by for a new era SECOND Nature Pop Ups have gone from strength to strength and will be featuring 35 brand-new designs in the collection, launching at PG Live. Having won several awards, including a coveted Henry Cole Classic at the Henries, these breathtaking Pop Ups are a real keepsake card to treasure, crossing the bridge between gifts and cards. With more than 50 folds and cuts, powered by a unique elastic band, they’re a real feat in paper engineering. With 30-odd years of selling, there are also lots of easy merchandising solutions available and the range now includes some relations and occasions, so be sure to pop by their stand to sneak a peek at the new era collection. A stunning new kids’ range from Second Nature is Eye Spy, where bright and beautifully hand-painted characters bring these adorable children’s age cards to life. Embellished with goggle eyes and sparkly flitter, these designs have a broad appeal to the age of eight and have performed tremendously well at retail since their launch at a very competitive price point. Second Nature continue to be recognised in the industry for their leading design and innovation, following the latest trends and fashions with creative flair. They are very proud to have been awarded the prestigious Henries Award for Best Contemporary Trend Range 2016, just one of many honours attained over 35 years in the industry. Buttoned Up is one of their new leading handcrafted collections, just one of the many hand-crafted and-crafted ranges in their vast portfolio that can be viewed at the show.
Stand 117 – T: 020 8960 0212 www.secondnature.co.uk www.secondna
United front has pizazz! FOR THE the first time at PG Live, Nigel Quiney and Glick will be presenting a united front with the successful combination of cards and wrap designs from Pizazz. Pizazz male will be highlighted at the show as, having become an important part of NQP’s offering, it’s about to make its mark within the world of wrap. Obviously there will also be the most recent and the best-selling designs that Pizazz has to offer, all extensively flittered giving it the Pizazz touch of magic! Nigel Quiney are also launching 12 new Pizazz Gallery designs, their design-led floral range, a collection of beautifully painted artworks finished with pearl foil detail.
Stand 424 – T: 01799 520200 www.nigelquiney.com
42 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
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Great sound of a discount SOUNDS Of London is the latest range of audio greetings cards from Really Wild Cards launching at PG Live – and there’s a fantastic show discount offer too. There are 12 iconic London sights such as Big Ben, the old Routemaster double decker bus, the Tower of London and the Bells of St Paul’s Cathedral, which are brought to life as you open the card to hear the associated sounds! You will also be transfixed by the stunning imagery and the beautiful sounds of the wonderful music from Swan Lake, Nutcracker and other famous ballets in the Ballet range. Also being showcased is the new Locomotion range featuring six classic British railway engines such as Flying Scotsman and Mallard, produced in association with the National Railway Museum.
PG Live Stand 540
Europes leading supplier of Audio greeting cards and bespoke Video brochures
www.reallywildcards.com | 020 3174 1144 sales@reallywilds.com
come and see us at
PG LIVE
6-7th June 2017 Stand No.312
GRASS ROOTS INTERNATIONAL
Keepsakes
12 *NEW* Titles Code 70/IJ R.S.P £1.89 Size 6.25”x 6.25”
Heartwarming words of FRIENDSHIP, LOVE and SUPPORT With a sparkling flitter finish and removeable keepsake attachment.
For further details contact our Customer Service Team on:
Tel: 0151 541 0448
E-mail: sales@writefromtheheart.co.uk
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Web: www.writefromtheheart.co.uk
23/05/2017 15:12
PGLIVEREVIEW
All will be revealed THERE was a soft launch of Wendy Jones-Blackett’s Paper Diamonds Bijou birthday cards in December and the sell-through rates for those 25 designs have been fantastic! The Bijou are smaller than their award winning Paper Diamonds Deluxe, at 165x165mm as opposed to 220x220mm as they realised not all retailers have the space for large-format cards. Wendy said: “However the demand for a luxury, top-notch card hand finished in the UK is most certainly there, so we’re finally launching all the other titles for this collection with ages, occasions, relations and weddings. “All 85 new designs are being revealed at PG Live in London on June 6 – and not a moment sooner!”
Stand 235 – T: 0113 288 8468 www.wendyjonesblackett.co.uk
Sparkling special delivery GET yourself along to Clare Maddicott Publications at PG Live to see the Suffolk-based publishers unveiling lots of lovely additions to their Lemongrass and Piece Of Cake ranges. Not only can you rely on Maddicott to deliver the goods but, for customers spending £350 or more at the show, there’s a special sparkling addition of three bottles of prosecco which will be included with their order.
Stand 300 – T: 01638 569050 www.maddicott.com
Clue is in the name THE CLUE is in the name of Bexy Boo’s new Christmas Cross Words range – it’s a contemporary festive collection with words that cross to create unusual and different designs. These 12 cards are printed in the UK on FSC 350gsm board and carefully hand finished with either an acrylic heart or snowflake to offer lots of festive loveliness to show off at PG Live.
T: 01565 830546 www.bexyboo.co.uk
44 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
www.facebook.com/greetingstodaymag @greetingstoday
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PGLIVEREVIEW
London goes to the dogs! THE ART File plan to launch three brand-new everyday collections at this year’s PG Live show. London is the stunning collection by talented designer Anna Hymas containing nine beautiful London-based designs, which are sure to turn heads inside, and of course outside of the capital. The second is by established illustrator Ben Rothery on the back of his hugelysuccessful Natural History and Dog Yoga collections. Anthropomorphic is a stunning range of 10 male-orientated animal designs, widely described as the evolution from The Art File’s award-winning Trinkets & Trumpets collection. Lastly, they are absolutely delighted to announce a brand-new Frank the sausage dog-orientated collection of nine playful and contemporary everyday designs, lovingly designed with The Art File’s cute office mascot in mind! The team can’t wait for you to see them so do pop on to their stand at the show.
Stand 200 – T: 0115 850 7490 www.theartfile.com
Flying high on Cloud Nine A DOZEN new additions to Redback’s hugely successful Cloud Nine range will be launching at this year’s PG Live. These bright and fabulously foiled cards for everyday and occasions are eye-catching and are certain to raise a giggle or two! The 150x150mm designs are printed on G.F Smith board and come cello-wrapped with a premium white envelope.
T: 01803 712793 www.redbackcards.com
46 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
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come and have a chat with us at PG Live
Stand Springboard 820
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Get in touch
dandelionstationery.co.uk info@dandelionstationery.co.uk 01332 659 359
BRAND NEW CARDS FOR 2017!
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V&A licence goes live AFTER over a year of development, Museums & Galleries’ licensed ranges of V&A cards are now live! Previewed earlier in the year, PG Live marks the first time at a trade show the two main ranges – the Museum Collection and the Luxury Collection – are fully available. The Museum Collection is a new art range offering an unrivalled mix of imagery from the world’s greatest museum of art and design. Featuring a globally respected art brand and more than 100 carefully-selected new or bestselling designs across three cards sizes, it’s the ultimate heritage art range. The Luxury Collection offers a boutique curated designer selection of 12 premium art cards. Original archive works have been sympathetically reinterpreted with contemporary colourways and gold or silver foil on textured board, delivering stylish impact with sophistication. All of M&G’s other card ranges will be at the show, including the new extensions for the Matthew Williamson card ranges, the new Cressida Bell licence, and new Classics, Mezzanine, British Library, Art Of Print and Illustrators.
So much newness on offer
Stand 218 – T: 0116 230 4197 www.museumsgalleries.co.uk
THERE’S lots of newness on the Pigment stand as they return to PG Live with bags full of brand-new cards hot off the printer. Their little studio in Harrogate have been working as hard as ever to bring you the constantly evolving and consistently hilarious cards people are used to seeing from them. As well as adding lots of new funny stuff to bestselling and beloved humour collections such as Animal Antics, Rib Ticklers, Fleet Street and Riff Raff, trend and sentiment have also had plenty of attention with new additions throughout. All this is alongside much much more – some of the updates include brand-new The Happy News filled with all kinds of magic, sunbeams and twinkles, hilariouslyrelatable new Thing About Dogs cards and new Etched – Pigment’s punniest collection – which is guaranteed to tickle your chuckle muscles. As well as all this, Pigment are also previewing two brand-new ranges at PG Live – fresh new florals and an original, unique new trend collection. Visit them at the show to find out more!
Stand 313 – T: 01423 520098 www.pigmentproductions.com
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Mint presents Two brand new ranges for PG Live 2017! Stand 217
Going serious on weddings THE main items they’ll be pointing customers to on the Jonny Javelin stand with regards new product will be their weddings and anniversaries cards. They are showing 29 new Velvet titles and 12 new Velvet Moments in this genre – it’s been a couple of years since they had a serious release of wedding cards as a collection and this is their biggest yet. MD Jonny Spears said: “We’ve tried to put out a wide-ranging set of captions so, as well a good selection of the open Happy Wedding Day cards, we’ve included more specific titles such as Niece And Her New Husband and Grandson And His Wife, etc.” The release is across four price codes so there should be something for everyone, and the collection is not sold as a package so customers can pick and choose to their space and budget. Jonny added: “As well as these new finished products, we hope to be showing some pre-release samples of new Fudge & Friends cards including brand-new characters and titles. We may even have a sneak preview on a new male range we’re working on!”
Stand 526 – T: 01423 563740 www.jonnyjavelin.co.uk
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(t) 0116 230 4197 (f) 01536 401 031 (w) www.mint-publishing.co.uk
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Enjoy a warm welcome GRASS Roots are launching lots of new designs across a number of their ranges for June 2017 which will be showcased at PG Live. There are additions to the highly-successful Jasmine Collection, as well as new designs throughout their classic ranges including Harmony, Sentiments and Celebrations. As usual, all feature a beautiful textured Italian board and these are highlighted with an array of stunning finishes including shimmering coloured flitters and decorative foiling. Visit the Grass Roots stand to see the fabulous new designs and you will be assured of a warm welcome.
Stand 312 – T: 0151 541 0448 www.writefromtheheart.co.uk
Lick the competition INSTAWRAP is the exciting new way to wrap your gifts without the need for sticky tape – you simply lick and stick the stunning designs, and can even make bows and shapes for extra decoration using the templates on the reverse. Having started with Birthday Boy, Birthday Girl, Hide & Seek, Funny Bunny, Spec-tacular, Sweet Thing, Harlequins, Retro Funk, Happy Days, Gifts Galore, Moorish, and Dotty Daisy there are plenty more in the pipeline. Developed with zero taste, Instawrap from Wrap Nation is a British
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invention protected by granted UK and international patent applications, and is classified as toy safe so is fine for everyone to use, including children. It simplifies the whole process of wrapping gifts, you no longer waste time dispensing or cutting sticky tape so presents can be wrapped more quickly, and will also look beautiful without the blemish of unsightly tape. Made in the UK, Instawrap has been designed with the environment in mind so, with no plastic take needed and no plastic contaminants used in the manufacturing process, it’s completely recyclable.
Stand 868 – T: 0333 355 1850 www.instawrap.co.uk
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Special little launch INTRODUCING the Plumette range of special little cards from Paper Bird, which they will be launching at PG Live. Plumette cards are 120x120mm and come cello-bagged with white or kraft envelopes. They are also releasing a splendid batch of new Christmas charity packs and some lovely additions to their most popular collections.
Stand 88 – T: 07766 164807 www.paperbirdpublishing.co.uk
PG Live 2017 - Stand 219 (E) SALES@REALANDEXCITINGDESIGNS.CO.UK (T) 01223 207 080 (F) 01536 401 031 www.facebook.com/greetingstodaymag @greetingstoday
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The wisdom of dads THE Henries-winning Words Of Wisdom collection from Dandelion Stationery has been extended with eight new designs in time for PG Live. It now includes a special Father’s Day card aimed specifically at all those single dads who do such an amazing job. They are are also busy working on some new children’s cards, including a collection of age cards for ages one to 13.
Stand 820 – T: 01332 695359 www.dandelionstationery.co.uk
All wrapped up AMONG the product on offer on the Hallmark stand, you can wrap up the perfect gift with the newest additions to their core gift presentation range. It’s a fresher look for Hallmark giftwrap, ranging from beautifully basic designs to bright and colourful patterns for any occasion or gender.
Stand 416 – T: 0800 902 0900 (ROI: 01 248 0104) http://hub.hallmark.co.uk/
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Inspired by Moonlight THE brand-new Moonlight range from Real & Exciting Designs features an array of contemporary cards, with stunning bright and modern artwork, and sentimental and inspiring messages for all occasions. These gorgeous designs are beautifully embossed and delicately foiled, with each card also finished with hand-placed diamantes for that special finishing touch. The collection is cello-wrapped with a bespoke monochrome, illustrated envelope to complement each design. Also new for 2017 are the ever-popular advent calendars – four new designs feature fun and jolly imagery including skiing, woodland animals and a festive London scene. Finished with encapsulated flitter, each calendar has die-cut doors that open to reveal a sweet Christmas picture. Make sure to visit Real & Exciting’s stand to see these beautiful designs and much more, including their Panache, Bijou and Woodland Wonderland ranges.
Stand 219 – T: 01223 207080 www.realandexcitingdesigns.co.uk
Giving men some pizazz GLICK are launching a beautiful new range of Pizazz and Pizazz Gallery flat wrap, bags and tissue papers at PG Live. The range includes some Pizazz Male designs which are selling very well on Cards for sister company Nigel Quiney.
Stand 424 – T: 01274 655980 www.glick.co.uk
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Special deal on Platinum AT BELLY Button they have created a fun eclectic collection of new birthday designs under their award winning Platinum brand for PG Live. This follows on from the huge popularity of designs released in January with 20 new designs initially inspired by the studio dog Mitzi and the current trend for four-legged friends. But they didn’t just stop with dogs – the rest of the collection reflects what’s trending in design and provides a colourful mix of new titles for retailers. For the whole of June they have made it easy to pick up all 20 designs, bought in sixes, for £100 carriage paid. Belly Button are also extending their distinctive and eye-catching Noir Everyday range, adding a further 19 cards to the original 14 birthdays and open sentiments that created a fresh approach to their portfolio. Based on opulent textures and materials accompanied by a palette of copper and brass accents in two different foil finishes to create a sophisticated style, Noir was originally made with men in mind but is proving hugely popular for all. For Christmas they have created a new Collection like no other; with iconic designs to inspire, empower and suitably express any personality in style. Channel the childlike freedom to do what you want, say what you want, ask what you want, with no holding back! There are a total of 106 individual greetings card designs and 30 Christmas packs, comprising Platinum, Paloma, Joy, and Noir collections plus new Estella, with its painterly effects that capture the heart-warming cosiness and concept of hygge, to produce illuminating and fun festive sends. At Belly Button, they believe their Christmas offering from the in-house creative mavericks will have the festive season truly covered!
Stand 316 – T: 0161 902 0200 www.bellybuttontradeshop.co.uk
Sharing love and fun PAPAGRAZI are adding four beautiful new ranges to their collection which will be showcased for the first time at PG Live this year. The ranges encompass Birthday Relations, Christmas, Mother’s Day and an everyday collection from The Brighter Times. Stylish and unique, the collections capture the brand’s ethos of sharing love and fun so that friends, family and loved ones feel special when they receive a Papagrazi card. The designs are all printed on premium quality FSC board, finished to give a distinctive sheen, and come cello wrapped with coloured envelopes.
Stand 792 – T: 07775 833065 www.papagrazi.com
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Busy designer fairies THE designer fairies at Davora have been busy! This year they have added almost 100 new designs to their portfolio, with the Jewish ranges receiving the biggest boost. Bar and Bat Mitzvah cards have doubled to 24 designs each, and there are new birthday and wedding cards too. But it’s the spooktacular new Halloween Party Invites that have got the fairies most excited – Halloween parties are on the on the increase in the UK, so these are definitely ones to watch! Don’t forget to pick up your handy wall planner too.
Stand 521 – T: 0161 641 0653 www.davora.co.uk
PG Live Stand 526
Love is definitely On The Cards!
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Thrilled at triple launch CINNAMON Aitch are thrilled to be launching three completely new collections at PG Live, Cherry Blossom, Forever and Este Macleod. Cherry Blossom is a joyous new collection of 20 contemporary floral designs, inspired and named after this traditional symbol of new beginnings and optimism. The C6-sized range is a combination of lively, optimistic colour and tiny florals, hearts and ditsy dots that flutter across the board like the delicate blossom for a glorious collection of birthdays and occasions in bloom. Delightfully feminine with a contemporary feel, bright contrasting satin ribbons or cords wrap around the design and secure a pretty message tag. Forever is a sparkling new wedding range of 22 sophisticated yet understated designs, in a luxuriously larger 160x160mm format. A perfect counterpart to Cherry Blossom, this is a quietly elegant colour palette composed in tones of ivory, silver and white, with pearlescent and embossed highlights. Coordinating satin and metallic ribbons wrap around the cards and sparkling gems decorate the dainty tags to celebrate special anniversaries and all things wedding – not forgetting the bridesmaids or best man!
Este Macleod is a vibrant new licensed range named for the artist. This beautiful collection of 16 designs is taken from her rich and colour filled paintings inspired by the natural world. Each flight of fancy is filled with magical imagery and sprinkled with a little Cinnamon Aitch charm, hand-drawn text and bright little buttons. These B6-sized cards are a mixture of birthdays and blanks, all individually cello-wrapped with an eye-catching jewel coloured envelope. There will also be six new Simply Tags little notebooks and half a dozen new Cornflower little notebooks, simple, modern geometric designs, wrapped with a printed kraft paper belly band – a handy, slimline format for note taking on the go.
Stand 231 – T: 0121 773 6833 www.cinnamonaitch.co.uk
Competition winners showcase NEW designs that Wraptious are showcasing at PG Live this year include the work of two of their latest competition winners, Kat Baxter and Este MacLeod. Kat’s Ivy design is part of her vibrant range of animal florals, guaranteed to stand out on any shelf while Este’s Sunny Day piece is part of her range of colourful bird and floral patterned work, inspired by textile design. They are the perfect mix of traditional art and contemporary design, printed on premium, thick 300gsm FSC board with a choice of envelopes.
Stand 115 – T: 0161 221 0109 www.wraptious.com
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half page advert laura sherratt pre pg.indd 1 Page 57.indd 1
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Bubbly, warm welcome A WARM and bubbly welcome awaits customers at the Abacus stand, where the publishers will not only be unveiling a brand-new range, a host of new designs as well as showcasing their Spring Season 2018 collection but they are also giving away three bottles of prosecco to every customer who places a show order to the value of £350 and above. Placing an order will be easy, as Abacus will have lots of tempting new products on display, including their brandnew male range Bold As Brass, additions to the humour ranges Frank By Name and Happy As Larry, as well as some adorable new children’s cards from their 100% Kids range. What’s more, to qualify for the fizz giveaway, orders can be combined with those placed with sister company Clare Maddicott.
Stand 300 – T: 01638 569050 www.abacuscards.co.uk
Today I will be… making an offer BACK for a second year, award-winning artist Jo Scott will be showcasing her brand-new Scott & Robson range of 1930s inspired designs featuring a mix of art cards and general occasions. Her dog ranges have been expanded as has the bestselling Today I Will Be… collection, where pets narrate their own naughtiness. Jo has a no minimum order and free postage offer for all orders taken at the show. All cards are 150x150mm, come cellowrapped and are designed, made, printed, packed and shipped in the UK.
Stand 95 – T: 07506 630626 www.scottandrobson.com
Talking hearts and handmade LAURA Sherratt have lots of new handmade additions launching at PG Live, with many designs extending the bestselling, long-standing 120x120mm Talking Buttons cute collection. Talking Buttons Love sees 12 new small cards, all designed with Valentine’s Day in mind but suitable for sending all year round, with many unique titles as well as the more traditional and poplar ones. The new additions to the Talking Buttons range sees Laura adding black, hand-stamped text and some adorable little illustrations to the usually font-based cards. Every card in this cute and quirky range is embellished by hand in the Staffordshire Moorlands, each design has a red, heart-shaped button on the front and comes complete with a bright red envelope and cello bag wrapper. As with every card from the Laura Sherratt range, these designs are printed on to a heavyweight FSC-certified board before being hand finished in the UK.
Stand 405 – T: 01538 384566 www.laurasherrattdesigns.co.uk
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Peek at the portfolio MAURICE And Maude are excited to present their portfolio of distinctive greetings cards alongside their newly-launched gift wrap and art prints. Their products can already be found in iconic department stores such as Liberty and Fenwick. They are proud that all their products are designed and made in Britain, under the big skies of Norfolk to be precise! A brand-new collection will be making its debut at PG Live so they hope you will pop by to take a peek!
Stand 822 – T: 01379 652242 www.mauriceandmaude.co.uk
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PGLIVEREVIEW PGLIVE ER RE EVI V EW W
Make a good g impression FIRST impressions cou count unt so,, with cards,, that means the envelope as first thing anyone s it’s the first sees when they receive a greeting – and Enveco are one of the UK leaders in both manufacturing and trends. Many Enveco colours are determined by the fashion colours of the season – a recent launch was developed after a fact-finding trip to Top Shop where their autumn collection had just arrived with a definite vibe of gunpowder, raspberry, mustard, teal and burnt orange. All these colours are now part of the collection, with gunpowder proving a popular alternative to kraft as an all-rounder, while eco-kraft and textured are still used by a lot of publishers. Neolights is Enveco’s exclusive range of eight colours that are also hot now, used where the envelope picks up on the neon colours featured in the card design or to totally clash. For 2017, the colour swatch saw the launch include Peach, Chartreuse, Copper, Rose Gold, Hazelnut and Pearlescent White Ribbed, while pearescent is the latest popular request in all shades and copper is proving to be favourite so far. With embossed foil logos, borders and patterns all being requested, it’s clear publishers are now taking their envelopes seriously and Enveco are always at the forefront of developments.
At their Milton Keyn Keynes factory, they coat their own colours by buying huge reels of paper, which are run through a machine that coats the entire reel in the selected colour, before the paper is attached to a sheeting machine to be cut down for the size of envelope required. The sheets are transferred to Enveco’s second site in Dewsbury, where they are stacked 100-150 sheets at a time on a cutting board where a mechanical arm with a steel knife cuts the blanks (open envelopes) out of the sheets – this is why it’s important to have the correct sheet size to avoid wasted paper. The blanks are then fed in to the envelope folding and gluing machine, which can be up to 15 feet long with heaters to dry the glue that’s eventually licked to seal the final product, as that’s applied first. The blank then runs through the top length of the machine to have more adhesive applied to hold the envelope together as it’s then folded into shape – machines can take two hours to be set up to ensure the folds match the envelope size as there’s only a 2mm margin of error. Enveco’s Julie Brightley said: “This is partly why stock envelopes are cheaper than bespoke. We can set the machine to run size C6, for example, and run off our stock envelopes 20,000-plus in a dozen colours at a time so
there’s only one machine set up cost.” It’s a similar process with bespoke printed envelopes, once the flat sheets have been printed with the design either single or double sided they go through the gluing and folding process, and all stock is then boxed and shipped to the customer. For more fancy finishes, there are extra processes which take more time – for an emboss on the flap, a die must be made first matching the required design, this is then attached to the envelope machine and, as the blank is fed through, the die will stamp the flap prior to being folded. Flexo stamps are prints made while the blank is feeding through the envelope machine, and is useful for simple designs such as a logo to a flap or face. To find out more about the fascinating world of envelopes and see the array of colours available – there’s even a swatch book – pop along to Enveco’s stand at PG Live.
Stand 519 – T: 01908 378866 www.enveco.co.uk
Charming jingles in tinsel town BLUE Eyed Sun have launched three gorgeous new ranges of handfinished Christmas cards called Charming, Tinsel Town (pictured) and Jingles. Based on original artworks by textile artist Jo Corner, these 72 new designs are all hand-finished with jewels and include grandma, granny, nan, nana and nanny captions. Sold in sixes to trade buyers only, the cards are blank inside, barcoded and cello-wrapped with a colour co-ordinated envelope. All are printed on board from sustainable sources to retail for £3, trade price £1.25 each. Blue Eyed Sun’s cards are available to order through their easy-touse, trade-only website, their 2017 Christmas brochure and they also have a team of sales agents.
Stand 524 – T: 01273 823003 www.blueeyedsun.co.uk
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Four corners North, south, east, west, wherever you go, retailers know their business the best. Four shop owners from the corners of the UK give their opinions on this month’s Greetings Today features. NORTH – Jenny Morrison, Top Drawer, St Andrews, Fife
● Pink Pig
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E ● Swing Cards
● A Farmer’s Daughte
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e Art Fil
EAST – Caron Naylor, The Gift House, Blacker Hall Farm, West Yorkshire
I quite like this time of year…spring seasons shop moves are almost all done and out of the way, summer is round the corner and I normally do a good stock refresh, bringing in new suppliers and fresh lines. It’s the ● The Art Fil e part of owning Creased that I enjoy the most. This year will be even more special, as I shall be ● Re db using PG Live as a key part of the stock selection for our new and Cards ack much larger store, launching later in the summer. We’ve outgrown our bijou Brighton store and are making our first step towards expanding Creased! So, you can imagine, I’ve lots of very enjoyable stock selection work ahead. PG Live is my favourite show of the year for lots of reasons, but key among them is that it is almost exclusively cards. Other than the odd wrap display and EPOS sales stall, it’s chock full of cards – delightful! It was also the first show I ever visited in the industry, visiting before I even opened Creased and using it to learn a lot about the industry, when I knew very little. I also found some of my first suppliers there, many of whom I still work with, so I owe it a lot. Chris from Redback cards was one of the first publishers I chatted to at the show – and they are still one of my best-selling suppliers. It’s when I also first stumbled across The Art File – another company I really enjoy working with as I love their focus on great service for indies! What more could you want from a show? Well, I won’t be so crass as to mention the lovely all-inclusive lunch, complimentary ● Redb tea and coffee, and free beers after the first day! ack Ca rds For anyone who’s primarily interested in greetings cards and doesn’t find other shows particularly engaging, I’d strongly suggest you get yourself to London for PG Live…it’s well worth a visit. ● The
I’m hoping to go to my first PG Live this year. I’ve not been able to before as I’ve always had to work in the shop during the show but, this year, so many of my card suppliers are exhibiting and it would be great to catch up with them and see all their ●T rac new designs. Rus ey We stock cards from ages of one sell Car to 100! I’m always keeping my eye out ds for good children’s cards, especially Daughter/Son and Granddaughter/ ● White Grandson on a special birthday as we get Cotton Cards asked a lot for the younger ages in these titles, but White Cotton Cards, Wendy Jones-Blackett, Pink Pig and Tracey Russell Cards have it well covered for us, with a range of designs and price points. Hand-finished cards are my absolute favourite – I love them! I suppose I’ve always been a bit of a magpie and I ● Wendy Jones-Blackett do love the ones with a bit of glitter and gems on them – these days some of the cards are like a gift in themselves. My go-to hand-finished publishers have to be Wendy Jones-Blackett, White Cotton Cards and Tracey Russell too, as my customers love them. WJB’s large Paper Diamonds Deluxe range has been getting a lot of attention, in particular the beautiful Daughter 40th Birthday design. WCC’s Love Lines collection has been going down a storm – I’ve had to re-order some designs quite a few times already this year. We just took delivery of TRC’s new Vintage Love collection and these have also been getting a lot of attention, especially the Wedding Day designs. There’s nothing quite like sending a beautiful card but, when it’s hand-finished, it really makes it that little bit more special and unique.
SOUTH – Paul Jarman, Creased Cards, Brighton, East Sussex
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● Janie Wilso
With wedding season now in full swing for us, we were pleased to have three new card collections in, from Swing Cards from Santoro, A Farmer’s Daughter and Life And Soul. Many of the ● Nigel Q uiney large cards are a sell out day after day. We enjoyed visiting the London Stationery Show, and found plenty of new notebooks and pencil cases from Container Group and Wrendale Designs to add to our shelves. All of a sudden, age cards and humour cards are in demand. I’ve not noticed any specific trends at the shows but perhaps that’s because the supermarkets are snapping at our heels – anyone noticed how many have grown their card aisles? We know customers see the many varieties there but want to support us. The supermarkets are strong on humour but have now gone down the handmade, 3D cards route too. hes s ’n’ Wis ● Word We found Life And Soul at the BCTF, their handmade cards are like a little book and I was a bit worried about how to display them but I’ve just put them on the shelves and they’re selling. We continually look at ways to extend and improve sales. We have plans to start an Occasions Card Club to give customers a one-stopshop to help them remember all birthdays and events! Already we’re setting up an online club, so our customers can click and collect from a small selection at first, but hopefully this will grow.
www.facebook.com/greetingstodaymag @greetingstoday ● Life And Soul
WEST – Alison Allen, Conway Cards, Garstang, Lancs
From a very young age, it can feel like the kids are being invited to a birthday party almost every other week, so price is a very important factor when mums have so many children to buy for. The new Jelly Beans range from Grass Roots is selling really well, they’re bright, fun and topical. Another great new range is Cute As A Button from Nigel Quiney, the price point is perfect and the cards are cute but not too childish, particularly when you get to eight years old and upwards. Kids are growing up way too fast these days! Words ’n’ Wishes personalised kid’s range is a slightly higher price point but with each card having the option of attaching one of six relation banners to the front, it gives the customer the best of both worlds – a title and an age! Hand-finished cards are very popular, and our bestsellers by far are from Janie Wilson. Her artwork is beautiful and very eye-catching with brightly coloured ribbons, pom-poms and beads. Her latest foiled and fl ittered Silver Leaf range is very elegant and sophisticated, and is proving very popular.
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HOME&GIFTPREVIEW
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
Eco Collection
Reusing, recycling and reducing is at the forefront of everyone’s mind given the impact manufacturing products can have on the environment. This is why Home & Gift have created the Eco Collection – to highlight exhibitors who manufacture their products in an environmentally-friendly way so allowing you to make informed purchasing decisions.
Best Of British Collection
Perseverance and dedication are key attributes that all of the brands in the Best Of British Collection possess. They strive to keep their design and manufacturing processes as native as possible, both contributing towards the UK economy and celebrating the country with their products.
New Collection
Who doesn’t love new products? Look out for brands tagged with the New Collection logo to discover all of the latest products for the autumn/winter season before anyone else. Whether you’re looking for cutting-edge design, traditional gifts or homeware accessories, you’ll find all of the newest products at Home & Gift.
Christmas Collection
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas at Home & Gift 2017! The biggest gift-buying holiday isn’t that far away, so get into the spirit of the season and follow the Christmas Collection to make sure you’ve ordered your stock in time. Have yourself a very merry Christmas with the latest festive products.
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Voyage of discovery Five key sectors, four product collections and more than 1,000 brands make up the Home & Gift Buyers’ Festival which is heading for its annual outing in Harrogate this summer. Here we take an early look at what will be on offer at what’s become known as the most sociable of trade shows.
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ITH more than 1,000 brands exhibiting, there are plenty of new products of the voyage of discovery that is the Home & Gift Buyers’ Festival in Harrogate this summer.
Whether you’re on the lookout for design-led or traditional gifts, homeware and interior accessories, jewellery, fashion products, greetings cards or stationery, you’re sure to find your next bestsellers at Home & Gift. You can start planning your visit for the show, which runs from Sunday to Wednesday, July 16-19, by exploring the five key sectors – Gift, Design-Led Gift, Jewellery & Fashion, Home & Interiors, and Greetings & Stationery – checking out the exhibitors’ list to date, and taking a look at the curated product collections covering Eco, Best Of British, New and Christmas. Now in its 51st year, Home & Gift is organised by Clarion Events and has built a strong reputation as a very social show among retailers, designers and manufacturers and provides a friendly and professional backdrop for sourcing products as well as networking and meeting industry leaders. The event will include the Great Northern Retail Forum across the first three days of the show, offering leading industry speakers, panels, advice and insights. More details on these are to be announced nearer the time. Over 1,000 brands will be exhibiting this year, with
a record 25 per cent of the stands new to the show at the Harrogate International Centre – fresh exhibitors on the greetings and stationery side include Dilly & Pink, Elaara Islamic, I Like Birds and LS20 Letterpress Studio, with Cherry Orchard and Museums & Galleries returning after an absence and regulars such as The Art File, Belly Button Designs, Berni Parker Designs, Blue Eyed Sun, Dandelion Stationery, Emma Ball, The Handcrafted Card Co, Holy Mackerel, Jonny Javelin, Natural Partners, The Pop Out Card Co, Rush Designs, Tomcat Cards and Two Little Boys already booked in. Show Director Cleere Scammell said: “We’re very excited to welcome so many new companies to the show this year as they provide a fantastic complement to the returning familiar brands. “We also have a packed schedule of inspirational speakers being lined up and I can’t wait to share these with you nearer the time. “The fact that brands return time and time again is testament to the value of the show – whether you’re a large retailer or an independent trader, we offer a one-stop-shop for sourcing great products in time for Christmas and further ahead.” And while you’re there for work, the highlight of Home & Gift is the social experience, bringing together buying, selling, fun, sun, great food, Betty’s famous tearooms, all in the unique setting of the beautiful Yorkshire location – it’s all about mixing business with pleasure.
www.homeandgift.co.uk
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HOME&GIFTPREVIEW
Yoojoo – stand GS39
Art Nouvovative – stand GS3A
This just-launched new design from the Kentbased greetings publishers is entitled Pricilla and is a print of a vintage fashion design by artist Mo Welch. On gaining her degree in fashion design, Mo worked in the rag trade for Yuki and Frank Usher in the late 70s. The collection is a mixture of stylish and elegant Art Deco and vintage with a few quirky and fun elements added for good measure.
With the BBC reporting on a resurgence in popularity of print books it’s a great time for bookmark cards from 2016 BCTF greetings card award winners Yoojoo. Following on from the popular Birdies range, which was shortlisted for the 2016 Gift of the Year award, Yoojoo have turned their attention from the sky to the sea in 2017 with the new Tails for Tales range. A collection of eight quirky fish set against the backdrop of a page from a book, each card is completed with a handmade origami tail which transforms into a corner bookmark to be used when you dive into your next book.
Made By Leah – stand GS1A
Let Them Eat Cake is a new card range inspired by Leah’s love of baking, with 19 fun illustrations of cakes with a little saying matching each one. Perfect for a cake lover and blank inside for any occasion.
Rush – stand GS22
Woollytales – stand GS10
The launch of the Daisies occasions range at the show will expand the collection of warm and cuddly textured cards on offer.
Rush will be launching additional designs to their ever-increasing collection, which has been very popular since the launch at the Spring Show. They have more than 150 designs, with also special bespoke cards made for their customers.
SHOP TALK
“Selfridges has visited Home & Gift for over four years. We visit to hunt for exciting new Christmas Gifts, Stationery, greetings cards and wrapping, along with catching up with our current suppliers and talking through their new ranges. The new trend driven areas that showcase new brands are my favourite parts of the show.”
Eleanor Gregory, Assistant Buyer, Home Accessories, Stationery & Christmas, Selfridges “We find Harrogate especially good, there’s a wide range of good companies – small suppliers who offer something different. We always aim, or hope, to pick up a new line each year. We may contact the company later rather than waste time buying at the show. It’s well organised and you get fresh air. It’s also a relaxed setting.”
“My time is precious and I can get everything I need for the coming season in one place at one time. A lovely environment, nice people and great business deals – what more do you want?” Pamela Hun, Partner, Catgotthecream “I’ve been coming to Home & Gift since 1982. The atmosphere is great – both buyers and sellers seem to enjoy the show like no other. The chic town of Harrogate is so welcoming to all who visit making this show more like a gathering of old friends, and the opportunity to do great business too!” Suzie Bull, Owner, Ziel Design For Living
“Home & Gift is a very convenient show for us. It’s an ideal platform to get the very latest trends and find new, eye-catching products.”
“I love Home & Gift because of the variety of product on offer. I source new suppliers and new products across all show sectors and each year I leave having found something different. I’m confident these newly-sourced products will do well in the buying year ahead.”
Susan Lusted, Dalegarth Holiday Cottages
Diana Goddard, Gifts For You, Cumbria
Jill Nicholson, Chief Buyer, Gordale Garden Centre
Flying Teaspoons – stand GS38
Flying Teaspoons are quirky, animal-themed card publishers shortlisted in the 2017 BCTF greetings awards. Artist Laura Clamp combines a keen eye for detail, a steady hand and a lot of patience to create collaged imagery from magazine cuttings, and she’s launching cushions and a fine art range in Harrogate. With a touch of humour mixed with charasmatic creatures, smiles all round are guaranteed!
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Old English Company – stand GS45
The new English Gentleman range combines hand lettering with illustration and a touch of gold foil – and everything is in keeping with the company name as it’s all proudly made in England.
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HOME&GIFTPREVIEW
Belly Button Designs – stand DP2-30
Hannah Longmuir – stand GS69a
New exhibitor Hannah is celebrating her company’s fifth birthday at the show, having quit her library job in 2011 to pursue her goal of drawing and making full-time. In the past five years she has developed a business that combines her three great loves – drawing in pencil, the countryside, and beautiful paper goods.
Cherry Orchard – stand GS51a
Looking forward to an exciting time at Harrogate this year, Cherry Orchard will be showing off their brandnew concept in greetings cards that’s sure to be a talking point. The top secret project has been kept under wraps for many months while the technical team of experts involved made sure the finished fragranced card product would be a first class offering that will add something very new, fresh and exciting.
Always a strong mix of original illustrations, fresh colours and contemporary patterns Belly Button are among the market leaders in design-led cards. Driven by trend, Belly Button Designs and their sister company Belly Button Bubble make their mark with fresh and inspired new collections that have won many prestigious awards. They’ve pushed printing technique boundaries and added new ranges to give plenty of choice and difference. Licence opportunities are available.
GREETINGS & STATIONERY EXHIBITORS 1790 Cards – G105 Adornment By Gill Reeves – DP1-35a A Gift From The Gods – DP2-21 Alljoy Design – GS46 Alternative Image Co – GS53 Art Cards Ireland – GS69 The Art File – DP1-23 Art Nouvocative – GS3a Artebene – DP1-45 Belly Button Designs – DP2-30 Berni Parker Designs – GS27 Bertoy DP1-55 Bespoke Verse – DP3-19a Blue Eyed Sun – GS58 Bree Merryn Art – G183 Caroline Gardner Publishing – DP1-113 Caryl Halstead – GS29 Caspari DP1-51 Cath Ward – GS32a Catherine Kleeli Cards – GS56 Character Shop – G68 Cherry Orchard – GS51a China Betty – DPD9 Chloe Gardner Art – G83 Claire Louise – GS54 Clanna Cards – GS68 Claire Vaughan Designs – DPD61 Clementine Designs – GS2 Colcards – GS48b Comic Art – DP3-13a Coulson Macleod – DP2-37b Dandelion Stationery – GS3 Davidt’s – C19 Dilly & Pink – GS5 East Of India – DP1-43 Eatsleepdoodle – DP2-4 Elaara Islamic Greeting Cards – GS93 Element – DPD50 Elsie & Nell – DPD68 Emma Ball – DP1-4a Ezen – GS34 Flying Teaspoons – GS38 Forever Cards – GS18 The Fragrance Lounge – DP2-56 Fred – M21 The Gifted Stationery Co – DP2-44 Giftisimo – GS76a Gift Time Products – Q51 Go Stationery – DP2-24 Grace And Favour Home – DP4-44 The Grumble & Co – DPD63a Hairy Coo – G168 Half Moon Bay – DP1-12 The Handcrafted Card Co – GS32
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Hannah Longmuir – GS69a Heathcote & Ivory – A13 Heather Alstead – GS63 Heritage Cards & Souvenirs – DP1-3a Holy Mackerel – GS19 House Of Crafts – G121 House Of Marbles – DP1-39 I Drew This – GS71 I Like Birds – GS55 Iona Buchanan – DPD67 Janie Wilson Cards – DP1-26 Jean Barrington – B19 JellynBean – G31 Joe Davies – Q50 John Austin Postcards – GS67 Jonny Javelin Card Co – GS13 Julie Dodsworth – DPD23 The Juniper Tree Card Co – GS16 Just A Little Note – GS75 Keep This Cracker – G127 Keyhole Collection – G150 Kind Compliments – GS3c Lanther Black – GS6 Laughenirs – GS77b Laura Darrington Designs – GS64 Lauren’s Cows – DPD65 Leonard Smith – DP21-28 Life Styled Planners – DPD18a Lime Stationery & Art – DP2-36 Little Blue House – DP1-11a Lola & Gilbert – DP2-23a Lola Design – G71a Louise Mulgrew Designs – GS73 Louise Tyler – GS5b Love Your Nation – DP3-13 LS20 Letterpress Studio – GS9 Lyn Evans Designs – GS51 Made By Leah – GS1a Make A Wish Candle Co – DPD61a Mary Ann Rogers – GS1 Mary’s House Designs – G97 Megan Claire – GS59 Meha Art & Design – DPD62 Memelou – GS3b Molly Mae – DP1-44 Moongazer – GS12 Mosney Mill – DPD24 Museums & Galleries – DP1-32 Music Gifts Co – DPD1 Natural Partners – GS25 NJ Products – DPD40c Norma & Dorothy – GS73d Old English Prints – GS45 Onetenzeroseven – DPD71
Ooh I Like That Design – GS66 Paper Art Viet – GS35 Paper Plane – DPD74b The Peakridge Photography Co – GS60 Peel Cards – DP1-111 Penny Kennedy – DP1-101 Petra Boase – GS43 Pigment – DP2-31 Pomegranate Europe – DP2-47 The Pop Out Card Co – GS62 Popshots Studio – A19 Pop Up Designs – GS77a Portico Designs – DP1-12b Pulp – DP1-108 Rachel Ellen Designs – DP1-13 Räder – DP2-28 Really Good – DP1-16 Redback Cards – GS2a Richard Lang & Son – B18 Roger La Borde – DP1-94a Rush – GS22 Ruth Jackson – DP2-15 Ryland Peters & Small – DP2-57 Santoro – DP1-2 Sarah Gee Fine Art – G26 Sarah Kelleher – GS11 Seasonal Soul – G27 The Silver Studio – G98 Simply Special – GS57 Sophie Allport – DP1-70 Sophie Morrell – GS73a Soul – DP1-17 The Stamford Notebook Co – G35 The Steel Rooms – G120 Suchak And Suchak – D18 Sue Fenlon Art – GS77 Tatty Co – GS73b Temporary Measure – DP1-62 Tomcat Cards & Calendars – GS25b Tracey Russell Design – GS25a Two Little Boys – GS30 Two Little Monkeys – GS24 Voyage Decoratiuon – M4 Wedding Handbook – G113a Weekend365 – DP2-37d White Cotton Cards – DP1-37a Wild And Wolf – DP2-3 & DP2-30 Wild Whiskers – DPD73a Woollytales – GS10 Words ’n’ Wishes – GS49 Wraptious – DP1-1 Wrendale Designs – DP1-4 Yellow Publications – GS48A Yoojoo – GS39
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ON THE SHOP FRONT
VIEWPOINT FROM AN INDEPENDENT
A
S A EUROPHILE resident of leftleaning South-East London, where I both live and run my shop, to say the outcome of last year’s Brexit referendum was a shock would be a massive understatement.
Embarrassingly, I cried when I heard the result! And it certainly seemed as if my customers felt the same – in place of the healthy zig-zag I’ve come to expect on my spreadsheet showing each week’s takings, the last week of June 2016 is a depressing flatline. I even remember a few customers saying they were self-gifting to cheer themselves up about the result! Perhaps this is as much a result of my location firmly within the metropolitan bubble of London as much as anything else but the days just after the referendum were some of the worst we’ve had. But what about the longer-term effect of Brexit on the card and gift industry, and on independent shops like mine? Well, it’s a mixed picture. As my experience shows, the shock and uncertainty surrounding a political event like the referendum can cause a short-term drop in sales as consumers hold on to their money while stock markets sort themselves out. The press coverage was predominantly negative, which I’m sure depressed the retail sector even further; an unhelpful catch-22 for an industry predicated on remaining cheerful and positive in the face of adversity – there is nothing more unhelpful for trade than acknowledging everything is not business as usual, even when that is the truth. The doom-and-gloom rhetoric of Brexit reporting wasn’t all hyperbole. For shops buying stock from abroad the sudden drop in the value of the pound was a real, not imagined, pain. I found an order of beautiful porcelain from a designer in Ireland suddenly became a lot more expensive than anticipated as my pound bought far fewer euros than it had the month before. I didn’t want to pass this hike on to my already-squeezed customers so I absorbed it myself which, in a climate of rising energy prices, higher raw materials costs and rent hikes, is far from ideal. The conversations I had last summer with other retailers showed a similar picture – whether in London, rural idylls, tourist hot-spots or seaside resorts, the gift and greetings shop owners I spoke to were all having a hard time. So what can we do in the face of such gigantic political upheaval? In some ways I think my small size is a blessing, because I’m a small independent I can be extremely agile. I know my customers, how much they’re willing
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Bigger picture Guest columnist Hannah Plant opened Honeybourne’s in Ladywell, South London, almost two years ago and has discovered being an independent retailer has engendered quite strong views on Brexit.
● Strong views –
Hannah’s store in South London
to pay and what they want to buy and, more importantly, I know immediately when any of these things change. I can spot trends quickly and react to them before the bigger High Street chains can. I can implement flash sales if something isn’t selling well, and I’m always working with my community which embeds us in a way that I think huge chains struggle with. The benefits of being big enough to hedge against fluctuations in currency, bulk buy stock, or spend millions on marketing are obviously not to be sniffed at, but size can be a hindrance when you need to react with speed to a changing market. Ultimately, despite my personal reservations, I have to admit Brexit could become an interesting stimulus for the industry to cause it to recalculate its value to the customer. In a country where wage-growth is stagnant, we
I have to admit Brexit could become an interesting stimulus for the industry
’
Philip Downer is MD of Calliope Gifts, owner of Front Of Store retail consultancy, an experienced public speaker and the former CEO of Borders bookstores. He writes bi-monthly for Greetings Today with guest retailer columnists taking up their pen in between. T: 01306 889914 www.calliopegifts.co.uk www.facebook.com/greetingstodaymag @greetingstoday
as retailers have to work a lot harder to convince our customers to spend their money with us on discretionary purchases such as gifts and cards. We have to be creative in thinking about the value we add to our businesses without charging the customer more. I’ve personally had to think very carefully about the type of shop I want to be and the sorts of things I want to sell. I can’t compete with High Street giants on the price of a birthday card, for example, but I can provide a beautiful hand-crafted card from a local designer that can’t be found anywhere else. Adding value doesn’t necessarily mean reducing prices but it could mean providing a delightful shopping experience, remembering a customer’s preferences, providing a gift-wrapping service or curating idiosyncratic stock purposefully, with an eye for the story it tells. It could mean selling products that cost more but which showcase the best of British independent design and craft and are therefore worth every penny. It means a lot of hard work – work which has just got harder because of Brexit. But, if we indies are flexible and can think creatively about this hurdle, the work we do could become a lot more fulfilling and meaningful as things often do when we are challenged to adapt and overcome adversity.
– Hannah Plant www.honeybournes.co.uk
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HANDFINISHEDCARDS
Gotta hand it to ya A special card for a special person needs that special something, and it’s more about the finish and detail than the price. Hand-finished designs offer that something extra that’s really worth seeking out and here are a few of the really good ones that are around now.
THE HANDCRAFTED CARD COMPANY
UK GREETINGS
At UK Greetings they believe it’s the personal touches that make their cards special, which is why they’re proud of all of their hand-finished designs. From confetti-like decorations and innovative 3D formats, to premium rose-gold frames and foil, UKG are constantly looking to incorporate beautiful and exciting elements into their product. It’s these extra special touches that define their collections, even their traditional cards offer fresh 3D formats to really make them stand out on the mantelpiece. These elegant touches complement their meaningful words and looks because, when it comes to cards, UKG think you should expect more. T: 01924 465200 www.ukgreetings.co.uk
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All ranges from the Handcrafted Card Company are proudly designed, printed and hand-finished in The Potteries, and they have something for everyone. There are 79 designs in Ewe And Me, with cute, whimsical imagery covering all relations and occasions including those all-important cards for men. Finished with diamante stars and flowers plus a sprinkling of glitter, and teamed with coordinating printed envelopes. For Easter 2018 Spring Bloom is a bright and cheery range with 12 designs covering the seasonal sentiments and cards for children with bright stripy ribbon and sparkling diamantes, combined with bright neon yellow. Antique Romance is a striking yet romantic release for Valentine’s Day 2018 with 16 different designs. Bold reds, blacks and soft greys on a softlytextured pearlescent board stock ooze modern sophistication with satin rose bows and three designs are available in larger 215x215mm cards. T: 01782 639733 www.thehandcraftedcardcompany.com
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christmas all wrapped up
t 020 8288 9696 f 020 8288 9697 e luca@carolinegardner.com www.carolinegardner.com
HANDFINISHEDCARDS
CAROLINE GARDNER
Making you think of dazzling, luxurious evenings sipping Champagne, the Putting On The Ritz ranges scores a first for Caroline Gardner with the designs being hand-finished with festive gems. The brandnew collection of luxury Christmas cards is also highly embellished with silver foiling and gold glitter, printed on 350gram textured board and supplied with a gold envelope. The range consists of 12 cards covering open Christmas singles, and relations such as To My Lovely Mum Merry Christmas and Merry Christmas To The One I Love. T: 020 8288 9696 www.carolinegardner.com
SNAPDRAGON DESIGNS
The award-winning Cityscape cards from Snapdragon Designs are the perfect gift and card in one. Lit from any angle these cards use light and their own shadow to bring the scenes to life. Precision laser-cut from British-made ethically-sourced 300gsm card and mount-board, each is carefully hand folded and assembled. Exclusive designs are available to fit your shop, using your vision as inspiration. A range of othe-shelf designs is also available. All cards are sold in multiples of five. T: 07905 453552 www.snapdragondesigns.co.uk
BEXY BOO DESIGNS
The Inky Alphabets is a new range from Bexy Boo with a contemporary ombre background featuring 24 designs including birthdays and all the important occasions you need. Each card is hand finished with hand-cut shapes, bow, sparkly crystals and lots of love and care. T: 01565 830546 www.bexyboo.co.uk
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HANDFINISHEDCARDS WENDY JONES-BLACKETT
These hand-finished new Christmas ranges from Wendy Jones-Blackett are looking good. The first is Paper Diamonds Bijou where Ice Crystals is one of the 32 165x165mm designs, and the second is from Paper Diamonds Deluxe 220x220mm collection of 22 designs including this one, Ice Crystals In The Snow. They’re all hand-finished with gems, glitter and stars by Wendy’s Christmas elves up in the north – that’s Yorkshire, not the Pole! T: 0113 288 8468 www.wendyjonesblackett.co.uk
CINNAMON AITCH
There are 22 elegant designs in Cinnamon Aitch’s new wedding range Forever, which is in a new luxuriously larger 160mm square format and handfinished with satin and metallic ribbons prettily wrapped around the card, and sparkling gems to decorate the die-cut message tags. Individually cello wrapped with a coordinating silver, white or pearlescent envelope, this a very special range for that special occasion – titles include all things for engagement, wedding and anniversary. T: 0121 773 6833 www.cinnamonaitch.co.uk
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HANDFINISHEDCARDS GRASS ROOTS INTERNATIONAL
BELLY BUTTON DESIGNS
The Paloma collection has always been one that Belly Button Designs are immensely proud to show and is one of their bestsellers as well as one that’s become award winning. From their original designs to now, they have followed current trends and styles to create a contemporary collection centred on luxurious style. Beautifully embossed in an excitingly mixed palette of colours and finishes, Belly Button complement the designs further by hand finishing with deluxe gems and crystals. Femininity is truly personified for female sends through elegance and style; distinctive and gorgeous cards to celebrate every occasion. T: 0161 902 0200 www.bellybuttontradeshop.co.uk
Lovely hand-finished ranges feature in the portfolio of Grass Roots International. Vintage and the Debbi Moore Collection are both beautifully highlighted with an array of stunning finishes including shimmering coloured flitters and decorative foiling. Pretty attachments add the final flourish with each card presented in its own individual box protected by an clear acrylic cover. Each design s furnished with a beautiful individual verse full of the perfect words for the special people in your life. T: 0151 541 0448 www.writefromtheheart.co.uk
LAURA SHERRATT
Buoyant Birthdays is a new handmade greetings card collection from Laura Sherratt Designs. The range of 120x170mm cards is made up of 58 designs for birthdays, and 2018 seasonal cards for Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. This is the first of Laura’s collections to be embossed and cold-foiled, which adds both shimmer and depth to the designs, and can be seen for real at PG Live. As with all of the cards in Laura’s portfolio, every design is handmade in the UK, and Buoyant Birthdays is printed on a 320gsm board, hand-finished with gems and a bow and comes with a heavyweight envelope and cello-bag wrapper. T: 01538 384566 www.laurasherrattdesigns.co.uk
SECOND NATURE
Buttoned Up is one of Second Nature’s new leading handcrafted collections which uses a clever combination of photography, etchings and illustrations. These designs are unique and beautifully hand-finished with super-cute miniature buttons as well as sequins and other delicate embellishments. Each card is complemented with a stunning watermark envelope which has a silver shimmer on the surface and a sophisticated floral monotone inside. This is just one of the many handcrafted ranges in their vast collection of on-trend cards. T: 020 8960 0212 www.secondnature.co.uk
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THE ART FILE
The Tag collection is one of the very popular collections from The Pocket Typewriter brand that have been a huge hit with retailers over the past year. Using premium board in a natural shade that complements the delightful illustrations on the individually cut tags, the designs are finished with hand-tied paper bows. The collection of 20 designs houses a number of birthday and occasions captions, making this range a must have for the discerning retailer. The Tag collection, along with other ranges under the Pocket Typewriter brand such as The Good Life, Wild Style, and Portrait, will be proudly on view at PG Live along with The Art File’s award winning collections. For more information about stocking their award-winning product, get in touch and visit their stand at the show. T: 0115 850 7490 www.theartfile.com
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TALKOFTHETOWN
Talk of the town The voice of the people who matter, greetings retailers tell it like it is.
Claire Rumary & Christine Longworth, Cards Plus, Westbury, Wiltshire
‘
What’s the story behind your business? I run it with my mum Christine, she started 19 years ago and I joined five years ago so she could go into semi-retirement, but we have her back for holidays and sickness, whenever we need her. I do ask her when I get stuck but it’s mainly me that does the buying now. I used to work in an opticians and was actually about to go on a uni course to go further in that field when mum asked if I would join her so she could retire. I didn’t want the business to close as she’d had it for such a long time so I joined. Now I’m my own boss, we’re Cardgains members, and it’s not bad at all. Currently, which is your top-selling design, publisher or genre? Noel Tatt has been a winner since we got it, there’s never a bad design, I can’t fault them. We’ve only had them a couple of years and they’ve been brilliant. Originally it was the Help For Heroes range that went best because we’re near the army barracks at Warminster, that’s the next town. And then it’s been the 1920s ladies that are very popular. Those two ranges go particularly well. On the trends front, what have you seen coming through in 2017? We just tend to go with what works for us and what we like. We’re in a small town and a big part of the population is older so we just stick with what we know, like jewellery. We don’t go with what’s too hot at the moment because then we get stuck with it.
Which trade shows do you attend and how do you approach them? Every now and then we will go to a trade show, but we get lots of companies coming to see us and have a look around other shops to see what they’re doing. Sometimes at trade shows you get boggled and think ‘oh, that’s nice, and that’s nice, and that’s nice…’ then you can’t remember what you really liked. Spring Fair tends to be the one for us. Roughly what percentage of your store is greetings cards, and what else do you stock and how do these different products help with sales? It’s about 50-50 – and on the other products it’s probably easier to say what we don’t stock as we’re an Aladdin’s cave. We do lots of things, silver jewellery, Creation Express for the personalised gifts, all the milestone birthday gifts – we have the cards from Cherry Orchard for that, which are lovely – frames, new baby gifts like the stuffed teddies, and we have lots of things from Widdop And Co. This month’s other features are Children’s Cards & Wrap, and Hand-Finished Cards, what publishers do you stock there? For Children, Is It Art with all their licensed product sell best with the cards and the giftwrap on a roll. In Hand-Finished we don’t do that many but Tracey
Russell are new for us, we’ve only had them in for a couple of months and they’re going nicely. They’re lovely but it’s where me and Mum have different tastes. It’s something I like but Mum wasn’t sure until they came in and started selling. Of all the publishers you stock, which card would you like to receive for your birthday? I like all the ones we stock, that’s why we have them! But one that I do like and haven’t got in yet because I’m not sure how it would go down with our customers is the new Abacus one with the tattoos, A Touch Of Ink. I’ve looked at the range a couple of times now – I’d be happy to receive one.
Julie Greaves, North Shore Gifts, Seahouses, Northumberland
‘
What’s the story behind your business? It’s owned by me and my sister Caroline Lumley, and we’re from Durham City in the North-East. Caroline had her own shop on the Isles of Scilly, and I worked at Durham University for 27 years. After Caroline decided to make the move back up to the North-East we decided to set up in business together and carry on what Caroline had started. We decided on the name North Shore after many a childhood holiday spent in Northumberland, especially on Holy Island and the North Shore beach there, still a place where we go today. As well as running our on-line store, our shop in Seahouses, opened on December 1, 2016.
Which trade shows do you attend and how do you approach them? Since we only started our business in December 2016 we’ve only attended the one trade show and that was the Home & Gift Buyers’ Festival in Harrogate last year. We walked around to see what was there and engaged with some really good suppliers. We have registered to go again this year and will be taking a more structured approach. We’ll be looking at spending time at specific exhibitors who we know could potentially supply us with additional stock we know our customers are looking for.
Currently, which is your top-selling design, publisher or genre? We have several top selling products. The jewellery made by Caroline is proving to be very popular; our range of handbags and scarves sell very well, the Tracey Russell greeting cards have also proven a very strong seller as has our range of handmade wooden signs designed on the Isles of Scilly. On the trends front, what have you seen coming through in 2017? As the warmer months are now upon us it seems vibrant colours are definitely in with our brightly-coloured handbags, scarves and jewellery becoming our top sellers.
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’
Roughly what percentage of your store is greetings cards, and what else do you stock and how do these different products help with sales? About 10 per cent of our store is cards. We also stock handbags, scarves, handmade jewellery, sunglasses, fl ip fl ops, and a wide variety of gifts from humorous signs and clocks, to money boxes, photo frames, manicure sets and novelty wine racks which have proved most popular. We’re finding customers want an array of gifts that give them the fl exibility of choice. So far our sales have shown that, although customers enter the shop, or go online with one thing on their mind to buy, our different range of products mean on most occasions they buy more than one item. Our jewellery is all handmade and created by Caroline herself, some of which incorporates sea glass that’s sourced from the Northumberland beaches. This month’s other features are Children’s Cards & Wrap, and Hand-Finished Cards, what publishers do you stock there? In keeping with our north-east roots we only stock the Tracey Russell greetings card range as they’re all handcrafted and designed by her and her team in County Durham and they now are one of our top sellers.
’
Of all the publishers you stock, which card would you like to receive for your birthday? It would have to be a Tracey Russell card!
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CHILDREN’SCARDS&WRAP
Love the little stars Children are stars in the lives of those who love them so picking the nicest and most fun card for their special day is very important. There’s a huge selection on offer, here we cover a few of those around at the moment.
JONATHAN GLICK
Children’s cards and match wrap are the speciality of the house at Jonathan Glick Designs with bunnies, owls, dinosaurs, and elephants among the delightful creatures featured. Everything is designed and made in Stamford, England, and the giftwrap is sold in packs of 25 with matching tags. T: 01780 461260 www.jonathanglick.co.uk
UK GREETINGS
With colourful captions, adorable characters and gorgeous illustrations, UK Greetings’ new pre-school ranges are perfect for those little stars in your life, and full of colour across all ages with all of their favourite animals. Their exciting new girls’ ranges feature age numbers across fun designs, with lots of magic and glitter. With cool icons such as rainbows, horses and butterflies, through to brand-new style guides within Flower Fairies, they have something to offer for every girl. From emoticons to hashtags, UKG’s new boy’s ranges are on-trend, colourful and cool. These striking designs are the perfect balance of fun and quirky, making them perfect for the birthday boy. T: 01924 465200 www.ukgreetings.co.uk
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CHILDREN’SCARDS&WRAP
CLARE MADDICOTT
The popular Clare Maddicott children’s range has had 14 new designs, 10 age birthdays for boys and girls covering ages one to five, plus four open birthday designs, also suitable for this younger age group. Featuring the delightful artwork of artist Linda Tordoff, A Piece Of Cake is presented in a 140x140mm format, printed on art board and finished with spot raised flitter varnish details. All designs are blank inside and accompanied by white cartridge envelopes. T: 01638 569050 www.maddicott.com
REDBACK CARDS
This adorable collection of children’s cards is based on the character Goose from Laura Wall’s picture books with simple, bold and colourful designs created for the pre-school market. The 120x170mm cards are finished with a soft touch laminate and spot UV varnish. There are 32 designs, including party invitations and thank you notes. . T: 01803 712793 www.redbackcards.com
OLIVIA GODDARD DESIGNS
GRASS ROOTS
The JellyBeans Range from Grass Roots International has been a highly successful longstanding range which has been updated and refreshed over the past nine years. Featuring an array of titles from Grandson and Granddaughter through Son and Daughter to Niece and Nephew and more, the range of ages features from one to 10. With all the usual lovely finishes including flitters, foils and embossing, this extensive range will be featured on their stand at PG Live. T: 0151 541 0448 www.writefromtheheart.co.uk
GLICK
At Glcik their children’s wrap and bag range is the best it has ever been with two fantastic licences in Paper Salad – known as Paper Salad Juniors – and I Drew this. The Superheroes, Girl Superheroes, or Sheros as Gick call them, and unicorns are the order of the day. All their flat wraps have an RRP of £1.10 and are printed on high quality papers – what’s not to love! T: 01274 655980 www.glick.co.uk
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With bright colours and a bold style, Olivia Goddard Designs cards are a firm favourite with children of all ages. In particular the seasideinspired range Fun In The Sun has seen its age cards among their bestsellers, with new designs added alongside existing favourites. All card designs are reproduced from original artwork and are enhanced by the original colours and textures. T: 01206 304555 www.oliviagoddard.co.uk
FAY’S STUDIO
A new exciting, fun-filled children’s birthday card range illustrated by Fay Miladowska at Fay’s Studio. Each 145x145mm card is printed on to 270gsm FSC white board and left blank inside. The Leapfrog range is hand-finished with lots of iridescent glitter and comes wrapped individually with a bespoke red and white spotty or stripey envelope at £1.05 trade. T: 07817 412086 www.faysstudio.com
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THE PACKAGE INCLUDES • Coffee and bacon rolls on arrival • 9 hole morning Texas Scramble • Lunch (ham, egg and chips)
• 18 hole individual Stableford and team, longest drive and nearest the pin • 3 Course Presentation Dinner
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LONDONSTATIONERYSHOWREVIEW
● Winning ways – Laura Stoddart, right, with Abrams & Chronicle’s Natasha Harjani and Naomi Peel
● The masked man – Chris Leonard Morgan with Ocean Media’s Tim Willoughby, and Tim with Henri Davis (below left)
Stationery unmasked There was a lot going on at the seventh London Stationery Show, where the legacy of founder Chris Leonard-Morgan was celebrated as the expansion of the event was announced, and there was the largest-yet entry to the awards.
● On display – all the entries in the Stationery Awards were at the front of the show
W
ITH visitor numbers up nine per cent and the successful introduction of several new features, the 2017 London Stationery Show has been declared the best yet.
● Let’s get crafty – Greetings Today’s ad manager Simon Davis shows his softer side
Consistent growth over the past seven years saw the event at the Business Design Centre in London, on April 26-27, attract exhibitors, buyers, dealers, stationers, gift retailers, supermarkets and department stores from 43 countries. And there was also the announcement that organisers Ocean Media Group are expanding with a show in Manchester on October 31 and November 1. With more than 160 exhibitors and 300 brands represented, the Stationery Awards saw a record number of entries, at 400 it was 100 more than last year. Abrams & Chronicle were the big winners as they scooped three trophies and a highly commended certificate when the presentations were made at the end of the first day. They picked up the Notebooks & Journals title with One Year Wiser and this year’s new Arts & Crafts category with Splash Of Colour Water Colour Pencils, as well as being commended for Diaries & Organisers, then hit the jackpot as one of the two Judges’ Choice winners along with new name Laura Stoddart. There had been a surprise masked tribute to LSS founder Chris Leonard-Morgan as new owners Ocean opened the drinks reception and awards ceremony at the Business Design Centre in London by acknowledging his legacy. Ocean MD Tim Willoughby said: “We acquired this show last year and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the sector and all of the people, and getting to know the fantastic product.
“Standing up here with the legacy of the work that Chris has done over the last seven years I do feel a little bit of an imposter. I thought how can I overcome that, then I had a brilliant idea,” and he brought out the mask of Chris’ face – before getting judges panel chairman Henri Davis to don one too, as the man himself smiled in the audience. Henri said: “It’s great to see companies and brands being recognised at these awards, and the number of entries steadily climbing year on year. “The time it takes to enter, and the effort of providing samples, is far outweighed by the benefit of getting your product in front of a fantastic line up of buyers and seeing your product on the New Product Display at the show!” This year the show introduced the LaunchPad competition to help aspiring stationery designers and companies get started in the industry, which resulted in 12 winners being given free stands at the show and one, Germany’s My Pretty Circus, also being awarded a free stand at the 2018 event to support their further development. The Creative Hub was another development, offering a range of workshops for visitors to try out, and there were quick-fire seminars and presentations aimed at retailers, plus online curated marketplace Notonthehighstreet.com staged a well-attended mini Stationery Pitch Up. The team was delighted with the response and left with details of four or five definite partners and having started many more conversations with interested designers and suppliers. Tim added: “The show continues to grow and attract more support from the industry and interested buyers. We’ve had an excellent response from exhibitors wanting to book for next year, and strong interest in our Manchester show.”
www.stationeryshow.co.uk
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LONDONSTATIONERYSHOWREVIEW
2017 STATIONERY AWARDS WINNERS
Judges’ Choice
Abrams & Chronicle Laura Stoddart
Art & Crafts
Winner: Splash of Colour Water Colour Pencils from Abrams & Chronicle Commended: The Book Of Mindlessness from Two Little Boys Commended: Colour in Tablecloth from Eggnogg & Stone Marketing
Desk Accessories
Winner: Aljava Pen Holder from GBA Commended: Cactus Desk Organiser from Mustard Commended: Mini Stapler from Romeo Maestri Commended: Brainstorm LED Timer from Lime Stationery & Art
Licensing
Winner: Matt Sewell Birds Garden Organiser from Go Stationery Commended: Matthew Williamson Grande Journal from Museums & Galleries Commended: Tesla Amazing Magnetic Notes from Tesla Amazing
Notebooks & Journals
Winner: One Year Wiser from Abrams & Chronicle Commended: Marbled A5 Notebook from Go Stationery Commended: Dog Days Sketchbook from Thames & Hudson
Novelty
Winner: Life Book by Boxclever Press Commended: Money, Money, Money Receipt Calendar from Abrams & Chronicle Commended: Mum’s Pregnancy & Baby Book from Mum’s O ce
Winner: Story Box by Laurence King from Thames & Hudson Commended: Alice Scott Stationery Set by Portico Designs Commended: Avocado Eraser & Sharpener from NPW Commended: Nail Polish Highlighters by Keycraft Commended: Pencil Pouch from Zipit
Everyday Writing
Social Stationery
Diaries & Organisers
Winner: CalliCreative Duo Tips from Manuscript Commended: Schneider Line Up Fineliners 32 Pens by Stone Marketing Commended: Pen & Case by Busy B Commended: 12 ABT Dual Brush Tip by Tombow from Stone Marketing
Filing
Winner: Darling Clementine A4 Folder from All Home Everything Commended: Darling Clementine from All Home Everything Commended: Rainbow Suspension Files from Snopake
Naomi ● Natasha Harjani & cle Peel, Abrams & Chroni rds Living Pattern noteca
● Claire H unt, Charli e Bassil & El oise Gray, Portico Des igns Alice Scot t List Of Enemies no tebook
Winner: In Bloom Postcard Book from Laura Stoddart Commended: Musical Chair Notecards from Laura Stoddart Commended: V&A Fold & Post by Quadrille
Writing Instruments over £25
Winner: Troika Construction Pen from Lime Stationery & Art Commended: Y Studio Desk & Portable Fountain Pen from Notable Designs Commended: Hand Lettering Set from Manuscript
Gift Packaging
Winner: Pink Elephant Wrap from Chase & Wonder (David Aspinall) Commended: Reversible Wrap – Birds from My Pretty Circus Commended: Herbarium Book of Wrap by Thames & Hudson
76 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
● Sabina Landari & mith, Graeme S d ar st u M en Pot Cactus P
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LONDONSTATIONERYSHOWREVIEW
● Emma Tracey, BrownTrout Publishers Graphique de France Follow Your Dreams notebook & Explorer Collection
● Ke v Matt in Longs ta S Inter outer, Py ff & natio ramid n a l Harr y Po t t (ope n do er Alohom or) d oorm ora at
rade Delab istine ● Chr es Bodiam, g c in & Fran ree Publish T ul Of Flame o S ll ine Wa book h p e s te Jo orn no A Unic
● Andy Gar rett, Scott Goodman, James Burgess & Stev Byfield, Map e ed Helix Limited ed ition coloured O xford Maths Set
● Pa u Enve l Collins, co Mun ki Woo Notes d co llectio n
tness, y Scho ● Trac urm1917 tt Leuch nary Cente tion a celebr range ic Metall
● Eddie Clarke, Debbie Wil Beth & N liams, iall Robson ,M & Galleri useums es V&A Flo wering Scroll W all statione paper ry collec tion
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s
RETAIL ADVICE
H
WITH HENRI DAVIS
Fresh and new
AVING visited the London Stationery Show I’m pleased to report there’s plenty that is fresh and new that will excite our customers.
From the moment you walked in the door you could tell it was going to be a worthwhile visit because the New Product Stand at the front of the show, which showcases the products entered in the awards, was brimming to overflowing with great designs and innovative products. There were 400 products entered in to the awards this year – 100 more than last year! As a visitor if you only followed up on products from this display it would be a worthwhile trip. For someone who works in the industry every day it might be tempting to think there would be little new product to see, but that was far from the case. There were plenty of innovative products being shown for the first time. A significant proportion of the products were notebooks with lots of eye-catching designs – on the very first stand as you walked in Quadrille were showing their fabulous Lulu Guinness range of notebooks using a d striking combination of red, black and white with glossy red lips made even stronger by die-cutting (above left). Nuco had a fabulous range of notebooks with transparent plastic neon covers with an embossed logo that appeared to shine. They will be available for delivery from early July and are perfect for Back To School. The timing will be tight but well worth waiting for if you can get them on your shelves in time! (right) Journals for recording thoughts and moods were very evident, supporting the trend for self-awareness and mindfulness. This type of book is very personal so the cover design and layout will be a critical part of the purchaser’s buying decision – this means that retailers stocking these products must be really clear about who their target customers are and select designs and layouts that will appeal. Leuchtturm1917 Bullet Journals are part of this trend and, after a fascinating chat on the stand which helped me to understand how they should be used, the symbols and the way
‘
Notebooks, journals and gift stationery can form a very natural range extension for card retailers, as Henri Davis explains from her visit to the London Stationery Show. of working it supports really is very effective. After that I was fascinated to notice how many notebooks at the show had dotted or squared paper now and to hear how the sales of these rulings are increasing (main image). One of the new initiatives at the show this year was Launchpad, aimed at individuals and companies eager to break into the UK stationery industry. The judges were looking for products that showed clear thought and execution when it came to brand and offer, offered value commensurate with the retail price and which they thought would be of true interest to the UK stationery industry and its huge number of stationery loving consumers. Each of the 12 winners were allocated a free display space at the show so they had the opportunity to get their products in front of the huge variety of buyers. One of the winners was Trigg Life Mapper, which is described as “a productivity diary that transforms your goals into success…bringing planning, habit & mindfulness to a fresh journal format” (right). What was fabulous was the amount of product on show that was made in the UK, so retailers could take advantage of short lead times and avoid the hassle over exchange rates. One company who have significantly increased their manufacturing of notebooks are Enveco who most of you will know as excellent envelope suppliers to the card industry. There were several new exhibitors showing their capabilities at manufacturing own-brand stationery products too which is great for those of us who want to differentiate our product offer from our competitors. The Great British Notepad Company is a good example of this, having manufactured stationery in the UK for other industry sectors for many years as well as very well-known stationery retailers they are now coming forward to make
If you sell mainly cards then offering pens makes as much sense as selling stamps
’
Henri Davis is an independent retail advisor to businesses in the cards, gifts, stationery and heritage industries, combining 30 years of retail experience with her knowledge of trends and consumer motivation to analyse markets and identify new opportunities. Having worked at Habitat, Next, WH Smith and the National Trust, she now works with many small and medium-sized businesses, including multi-site retailers, national and international manufacturers and suppliers and is currently the first retailer chairman of the Giftware Association. www.henridavis.co.uk
78 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
themselves known so we can all benefit from their experience and expertise (top right). So, why am I writing about the Stationery Show in a greetings card magazine? Well, it’s because I believe notebooks, journals and gift stationery can form a very natural range extension for card retailers because they are paper-based in the main and carry strong and usually on-trend designs that link into the colour palette and imagery you’ll be offering on your cards. Museum & Galleries’ Matthew Williamson stationery range is a stunning example, with lovely details and extravagant finishes that pick up on all the best elements of the beautiful card originals (right). It’s also worth thinking about the impact of the current economic uncertainty on how consumers are feeling. It’s likely many of us will be valuing the support of our friends and family more as we search for a feeling of certainty and stability so we’ll be keeping in touch more either by sending a card, writing a letter or using a notecard to drop someone a line. Stocking some stationery that is relevant in design and function for your key customer groups is a great way of increasing sales and driving up your average transaction values. These types of product are a real strength of Portico Designs, who some of you will know as a card publisher too (left). Price point is also important.– if you sell mainly cards then offering pens makes as much sense as selling stamps but, if customers are coming in to buy a card, the pen should not be too expensive so it’s an easy add-on sale. There were all sorts of pens at the show from functional basics to Kaweco’s stylish fountain pens – and it was great to see Parker exhibiting in the UK again. The ones that caught my eye were the Uniball Air in fantastically bright colours, they’re individually barcoded and can be sold loose too so make the ideal range addition for a card retailer (right). Hopefully you can see the value of offering stationery as part of your product range – the great news is that Stationery Show owners Ocean Media are showing just how much they’re prepared to support this sector by announcing a new event in Manchester on October 31-November 1. Having a specialised stationery show in the UK has made a huge difference to the industry over the last seven years as it provides an excellent showcase for buyers and exhibitors – knowing this is now going to grow further is very exciting.
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Product & services directory greetings card publishers & party product suppliers To advertise call Simon Davis on 01442 289930
Abacus Cards Limited t: 01638 569050 e: info@abacuscards.co.uk w: www.abacuscards.co.uk
INDEPENDENTLY AUDITED & LARGEST CIRCULATION
print services
Products An exciting and innovative range of quality Birthday, Relations, Special Occasions, Art and Humorous greeting cards. Full range of Christmas and Spring Seasons merchandise. Comprehensive collection of handmade cards. Pizazz gifts.
Brand Names Pizazz Art of Nature What a Picture Pizazz Jewel
Pizazz Gallery Pizazz for Men Time Out Marshmallow
Cloudesley House • Shire Hill Saffron Walden • CB11 3FB T: 01799 520200 F: 01799 520100 www.nigelquiney.com
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www.greetingstoday.co.uk 79
meetthenewbies
bags
C means cute design GIVE YOUR
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CHANTAL Bourgonje is a Dutch freelance illustrator working under the name C For Design in the beautiful Wiltshire countryside, which inspired her to develop five friendly animal characters. “I used to draw little cartoons with a friendly, gently humorous message,” Chantal said, “when a graphic designer friend saw those, she immediately said, ‘Why don’t you turn these into greetings cards? They’re so cute, I’d love to send those as cards to my friends!’ “At the same time, the wife of a customer for whom I was doing an illustration commission, liked my style and asked if I did any greetings cards and whether I’d sell her a range for her gift shop. And that’s how the Horace & Nim range started. “For me it is pure joy creating the cards and I hope they spread some of that joy to the people who receive them.” The cards feature Horace Mouse, Nim Hare, Little Piglet Kay, Miss Edie Duck and Polecat Mac. You can read more about each character on the Horace & Nim website where each character has a little bio. The 150x150mm range now has more than 30 cards for all occasions with regular expansions as Chantal just can’t stop drawing these guys! T: 01380 816004 www.horaceandnim.co.uk www.cfordesign.co.uk
CALL US TODAY
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Polypropylene bag specialists
GREETING CARD
Over 40 years quality service to the trade Hot-foiling also available
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80 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
What friends are for FRIENDS are the reason behind Rebecca Harrison Designs, as the artist of the same name only set up the business because she’d been busy drawing for her pals. The human behind the company said: “Through a series of requests my business was founded. My flatmate Charlie – thanks Charlie :-)) – asked me to draw a baby giraffe to put on her wall. “By chance I posted a photo of it on Instagram and in came numerous commissions for sketches for children’s nurseries as I’m in that age bracket where all my friends are starting to have babies! “Since my little sketches were proving popular I thought I’d turn them into greetings cards – and so my new collection of Cute & Contemporary Animal Illustrations was born. “There are 29 designs in the current collection ranging from farm to woodland, safari to arctic and all inspired by the beautiful farm and countryside I grew up in and love to explore.” Rebecca already supplies several independent retailers and is hoping numbers will grow so she can extend the range which is supplied on kraft and grey backgrounds. Each card includes a kraft envelope, cellophane bag and is finished with a bow of twine because, Rebecca added: “I love creating a handmade rustic feel for each pack of lovingly-drawn animals.” www.rebeccamharrison.wixsite.com/portfolio
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NEW MEMBERS The latest publishers to join the Greeting Card Association include:
Artists’ directory I you are an artist/cartoonist/illustrator/verse writer or image library If and would like to be part of this feature please contact Simon Davis on 01442 289930 / simon@lemapublishing.co.uk for more details.
HUETRIBE Tineka Smith info@huetribe.com huetribe.com 07943 416562 LS20 LETTERPRESS STUDIO Unit 2A, Tong Park Ind Est, Otley Road, Baildon, Yorkshire, BD17 7QD Andrew Davis hello@ls20letterpressstudio.com www.ls20letterpressstudio.com 01274 596925 or 07850 539568 ALOHA CALLING Studio 39, 58 Chetwynd Road, London, NW5 1DJ Saskia Smith alohacalling@ gmail.com www.alohacalling. co.uk 07989 595279 LOTTIE MURPHY London Lottie Murphy lottie@lottie-murphy. com www.lottie-murphy. com
Bringing a press back to life WILDBERRY Letterpress specialise in creating striking tactile stationery all handprinted on a much-loved Victorian Wade Arab Letterpress. Established in 2016 by Claire Viner, her love of typography and print inspired her to bring an 1896 press back to life. Her interest in print stemmed from college where she studied for a BSC degree in publishing and subsequently submerged herself in all areas of print and design. Her experience of print is diverse – from the largest gravure presses in Switzerland to some of the oldest presses held at the Bodleian Library in Oxford. Modern designs are originated and fused together with the beautiful craft of letterpress printing from a studio located in an attractive village in the heart of Buckinghamshire. Using only the finest quality materials, all the stationery is created under the watchful eye of Scout, Wildberry’s golden Labrador mascot. Wildberry Letterpress will be showing at PG Live on stand 683. T: 07796 514353 claire@wildberryletterpress.co.uk
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www.greetingstoday.co.uk 81
PULSEPREVIEW
Simply the best Celebrating the best in innovation and design is what Pulse is all about, and the Clarion Events-organised show saw a first for the 2017 edition at London’s Olympia in the shape of the People’s Choice Award. Unveiled at the end of the first day of the show, which ran over May 14-16, the inaugural winner was the handpainted Bowie Doorstop from Wedgie, with Kate & The Ink’s 3D cards among the six finalists voted for via social media, and A L’aise stationery and greetings won Best New Product Makers. In this pictorial review, visitors and exhibitors pick their own favourites from the show.
, Russells ● Lesley Phillips near Garden Centre, Sussex Chichester, West sh gli En nd We’ve fou d really Graphics here an – especially like their cards e we love this one becaus whippets!
winner
gate, ● Sangita South Fawn & Thistle range Punny Animals
● Fra nk Tache & Pennie N Crafts icholls , Lione l, Fam ous Fa ces ra nge
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e Kent, ● Carolin & Daub Scribble card Sparkler
● Wedgie
● Sar ah Th om Sarah Lovell pson, Art Golde n Touc h rang e
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● Ana sta Neilslo ssia tova, Forev er Fun ny Unico rn card
● Lorn a Bartle y, Solo Gallery , She eld These C h from Sa ristmas cards ra Black a h at Pearl & re gorg eous an I’m pro d ba buy the bly going to se. I als o Brie Ha rrison a saw s well a I’ve bou nd ght her limited edition prints, it’s nice find so to methin g differe nt.
Knox, ● Julian Made IT Kazvare rd ca e Adel hancellor, ● Lizzie C cellor an h C e zi Liz n A imal Leopard, e g n ra t n ri P
82 www.greetingstoday.co.uk
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Window on the world
WINDOWONTHEWORLD WINDOWONTHEWOR
Eyes are the windows to the soul, so they say – in retail it’s the other way around as the windows themselves reflect what’s going on inside the store. Here we chat to greetings and gift retailers about how they present this face to the world.
Miriam Roberts, Celebrations, Dunstable, Beds How often do you change your windows? Usually every five-six weeks, depending on the season. Christmas windows are usually there for longer. What’s in there now? The small side window is a sale window at the moment, as we’re having a bit of a clear out. We’ve got lots of new products planned for the summer and into autumn, and we need to make room. The main window has a display tree with East Of India products. Which has been your favourite or most talked about? The Christmas window from a few years ago. It was based on the Yankee Candle pink Christmas. We had our big Yankee table in the window, decorated with the Yankee accessories on turntables, surrounded with bright pink Christmas decorations, pom poms, and sparkly candle holders – it looked beautiful, even if I say so myself! We had a lot of lovely comments from our customers and passers by. We’re on a busy main road, so it grabbed a lot of people’s attention. Where do you get inspiration from? New stock and the ranges that arrive, we need to show it off. The windows are a vital part of the shop. So many people come in, particularly at weekends, saying they ‘drive past the shop everyday and the windows always look inviting’. Also my mother trained back in the day as a window dresser – sadly she recently passed away. She gave me lots of tips on how to create things, and shortcuts for visual effects. She would often buy me little plants and props and things, saying to her friends ‘this would look good in Miriam’s windows’.
Teresa Sear, Expressions, Haddington, East Lothian How often do you change your windows? It varies, depending on the season and if new stock arrives that I want to promote. Our Christmas window will be in for over month, as this is the biggest show we put on for the year, but others might only be in for a week or two. We’re located in a small town and want to keep the regular customers coming back to see what’s new, while trying to attract new custom. What’s in there now? We’re in between big events at the moment. Easter and Mother’s Day are over and it’s a bit early still for Father’s Day. We have a spring/summer themed window with a bit of a teddy bears’ picnic birthday party going on. Which has been your favourite or most talked about? My favourite is usually the Christmas window, it’s all so twinkly and magical. We had a big reindeer statue which welcomes people in from the street and children love to stop and say hello to him while the mums take a picture on their phone – a great way to promote the shop and lots have people have commented on him. We also made a lovely autumn-themed window – I ended up painting lots of leaves and hanging them on cotton, and displayed our featured products on logs and pine cones. Our Valentine’s window display also made an impact. Actually, it’s hard to pick a favourite! Where do you get inspiration from? I often look online, on Pinterest and Instagram to see what trends and colour themes are cropping up. I also take a peek at the big department stores and see if there are ways we could use their ideas on a much smaller scale and budget. Sometimes simple ideas can work best, we had a window filled with UK Greetings’ new gift bags and the blocks of bright colour – yellow, blue and fuschia pink – really stood out. Which publishers do you stock? UK Greetings are our main suppliers. We supplement with Nigel Quiney, Carte Blanche and my customers really appreciate Pigment’s humour collections. Cherry Orchard’s Year You Were Born range is always a great seller. We also stock Pink Pig who produce some great cards, many with a Scottish twist which fills a gap in our local market.
Which publishers do you stock? Cherry Orchard, Nigel Quiney, Noel Tatt, IC&G, Pigment Productions, Kingfisher, and BGC Dunstable. They’re my main stockists and I use other smaller ones every now and then for something a little more specialised and different.
Stand
122
+ lots o f lo v e ly c a r d r a n g e s
6-7 JUNE 2017
Business DESIGN CENTRE, London
V ISI T US AT PG L I V E FOR o u r new SU M M ER 2 0 1 7 tra d e cata logu e info@cbg.co.uk
w w w. h otc h p otc h LO N D O N . c o m @HOTCHPOTCHLONDON
Stand
122