News

New addition to GCA team

Adriana Lovesey has taken on the part-time role of membership marketing co-ordinator at the Greeting Card Association (GCA). She is also one of its council members.

Adriana is the founder and creative talent behind luxury handmade greeting card brand Mrs Lovesy. She has a Fine Art degree from the prestigious Slade School of Fine Art, London, and launched her greeting card business in 2015.

GCA CEO Amanda Fergusson said: “It’s perfect having somebody with the knowledge of our industry - and the passion for it. Adriana is just such a good fit for us.’’

Adriana Livesy, holding her daughter, with GCA member Sarah Jackson from Stormy Knight

Gift of the Year winners announced

Congratulations to the card, wrap and stationery companies that picked up awards at the inaugural Gift of the Year Awards event in May.

Among the prizewinners were: ■ Shroot with its Greens & Greetings (greeting cards and plant pots in one) in the Cards & Wrap category. ■ Merry and Bright Village Advent Calendar DIY Craft Kit, from Two for Joy in the Festive Occasions category. ■ SUCSEED notebooks from VENT for Change in the Stationery category. ■ Willsow’s The Plantable Children’s Book won a number of awards, including The Judges’ Choice.

The black tie awards event was attended by suppliers and retailers, and celebrated 22 category winners from Gift of the Year, as well as the 11 winners of The Greats Retail Awards.

Sarah Ward, CEO Of the Giftware Association, said: “The two award programmes have seen both gift product excellence and retail prowess recognised and rewarded, and I can safely say that all the finalists here have made our whole industry proud. I am excited to see how the awards now shape the future of the finalists and winners, as they deserve every success coming their way. After such a tough few years, these awards have shown how resilient and creative our industry is.”

You can read the full list of winners at www.giftoftheyear.co.uk/2022-category.

Cards fit for a Queen!

The GCA is linking up with PG Live to collect and deliver greeting cards for HM The Queen for the Platinum Jubilee. Pictured is the card designed and made by GCA member Jane Buurman Handmade. GCA members are asked to design and write a card for The Queen, and send in an unsealed, addressed envelope. The cards will be on display at PG LIve, before being delivered to Buckingham Palace. Visitors to PG Live will be able to write their own cards, too. Cards should be sent by 30 May to Cards for the Queen, GCA/PGLive, United House, North Rd, London N7 9DP.

Stationery Matters winners

The Stationery Matters Awards celebrate the greatest products in the industry. This year’s winners and finalists include: Gift Packaging & Wrap of the Year: • WINNER: Storigraphic - Op Art 3 — Op Art Series • Reliable Source Ltd - CRE8 Iridescent tapes box • Okey Dokey Design - Bold floral wrapping paper • Paperfields - Gift Envelopes with Stick on Labels • Sylvia Prince - ‘Family’ Gift Wrap • Wrapuccino - Reusable fabric gift wrap (furoshiki) made from recycled plastic Diary-Organiser-Calendar of the Year: • WINNER: HELLO TIME - HELLO TIME Planner • BLOX Stationery - The BLOX Academic Planner • Exacompta Clairefontaine (ExaClair Ltd) - Rhodia Weekly Desk Pads • Nikki Strange Ltd - Lunar moon diary Notebook – Journal of the Year: • WINNER: Stone Marketing - MD Paper Notebook Journal Codex 1 Day 1 Page • Amaretti Design - Fold Notebooks • Coffeenotes - Stitched Notebook Gift Pack • Exacompta Clairefontaine (ExaClair Ltd) - Rhodia Creation Goalbook • Manuscript Pen Company - Lego Locking Notebook red • West Design Products - Linen Watercolour Journal Social Stationery Product of the Year: • WINNER: Sun Star Stationer - Piri It Sticky Memo • Exacompta Clairefontaine (ExaClair Ltd) - Clairefontaine Triomphe

Notebooks • She Said It - Nothing Is Impossible Greeting Card Also a finalist in the Sustainable Stationery Product category is Ellie Good Illustration’s ‘Beautiful’ Modern Florals greeting card.

Blake sends aid to children in Ukraine

Henry Smith, Conservative MP for Crawley, joined Blake as the trucks left Kent

Envelope specialist Blake joined forces with School In A Bag and Rapid Relief Team (RRT) to deliver aid to children at the heart of the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.

Blake’s involvement saw enough funds raised to package 352 School Bags with essential learning resources for a child to learn for a year, as well as a hygiene kit, face cloth, water bottle, lunch box and spork.

The bags have since been sent to a team at Te Aud Romaina, a charity Blake partnered with two years ago, while distributing School Bags to children orphaned at Guru Humorului. Te Aud Romania’s location borders Ukraine and they are currently being inundated with families fleeing the fighting.

In recent weeks, Blake partnered with RRT, who recently launched Operation 322 to deliver emergency food and personal care supplies to those displaced.

With essential food and personal care products in high demand, RRT loaded trucks with food boxes filled with non-perishable food items, care kits and baby care kits.

So far 28 truckloads of emergency aid have now reached displaced Ukrainians, and Blake has donated seven pallets of food parcels, totalling 5,292 meals.