14 minute read
Shop Talk
Greetings card retailers tell it how it is during the Golden Quarter, with Christmas round the corner...
Name Sally Wilde Shop Planet Sal Address Honiton, Devon
How did you get into greetings card retail? My first ‘proper’ job was in a fantastic cookshop in Bristol. I loved it and went on to be a rep, staying within the housewares industry for many years.
After a redundancy, I decided to move on to being self-employed and met up with an established card agent, who was interested in taking on a sub-agent.
She was so helpful and suggested I set up on my own instead. She was also really enthusiastic about the greetings industry and how friendly everyone was.
I had been to art college and liked the creative side of cards, so went for it! What a great move that was for me. I just love everything about the world of cards.
My first visit to find agencies was Spring Fair 2009 and I was really taken with the brightness all around me. Housewares is also a great industry, but quite traditional. They always put grey carpet down in that hall at the NEC and suits were the order of the day. Here was the card hall with a bright pink carpet and everyone in jeans! Far more my style.
I had many happy years as an agent and worked for some fantastic people, including lovely Avanti in their UK distribution days.
Opening Planet Sal was a natural move when I decided to settle a bit and work nearer to home, just over three years ago. I am proud to be the winner of the Prestige Awards Card and Gift Shop of 2020 in the South West.
What are the best and worst things about working in retail? The best is, of course, the customers, bless them. I am in Honiton, which is a smallish market town. The locals are very supportive of their independent businesses, so I have lots of regulars here.
Another great thing is that I have a ‘naughty corner’ with all the cheeky cards and gifts. Customers love them and all I hear are gales of laughter (it’s happening as we speak, coincidentally!). This tends to set off other visitors in the shop and everyone else starts to giggle. We all so need this at the moment.
I like to think I have created a bright and welcoming little oasis from all the daily worries.
Not many negatives, but I suppose that more gift shops opening in the town recently and the budgeting at seasonal times can be very stressful, plus I don’t enjoy the admin!
Sometimes I do miss the open road and am quite tempted to just keep driving on a lovely, sunny morning, but am fine once I open the shop doors and realise how much I love it all over again.
What cards are selling well? Always the humour for me. So many publishers get that just right now. I sell Rosie Made A Thing and she has a huge following, so they fly out. Also, Dean Morris, Brainbox Candy, Bold & Bright, and Whale & Bird all do well for me.
I have had customers in daily waiting for my rude Christmas offer - which is now unpacked at last!
I like to work with small, independent companies, especially for my Occasion cards. Cinnamon Aitch, Art File, Louise Mulgrew and Jelly Armchair are all go-to’s for me, but there are too many others, who are just as important, to list.
I also do like Woodmansterne for humour and all across the board, especially for Christmas.
What card range or category do you always ensure you keep in stock because of its popularity? Always humour and cheeky: by far my best categories. What’s in your window? At the moment Christmas is sneaking in more and more, obviously! I am aware that birthday shoppers do get a bit miffed about lack of choice about now, so I introduce it as gradually as I can until the second week of November.
I have about half Advent calendars and charity cards in the window, and the other half general cards and gifts.
What’s by your till? Sadly, Covid safety measures have meant that most of my till display area is now given over to a clear screen. I do have a jewellery cabinet and my gift wrap by the till, but the cards are all around the walls of the shop and on spinners at the front and outside. I always sell more cards than anything else in the shop every day.
What’s the most surprising thing a customer has asked for? With cards, it always surprises me how many customers want relation cards without ‘special, loved, wonderful’ etc on them, because they don’t really get on! They are quite hard to source, too. In-laws are the usual suspects….
If you could send anyone a card from the past or present, who would it be and why? I know it sounds a bit sentimental but it would be a Thank You card to my Dad. He died when I was in my 20s and just starting out in my career. He had a great sense of adventure and was not afraid to take risks, which he encouraged me to do, too. He also had an artistic side and taught me to love cars and the sea - both passions of mine ever since. He would have been proud to see the shop.
How do trade magazines like Greetings Today help you? I do love a trade magazine! Apart from at show times, it’s not easy to find out what’s coming up as a trend or find small publishers to support. Greetings Today is a great source of information. The agents and reps are also vital but, of course, we have had all these months with fewer visits, understandably. With no reps and no trade fairs, I have really relied on you!
Name Fiona Thorn Shop Cool! Cards and Gifts Address Skipton, North Yorkshire
How did you get into greetings card retail? My first job was at the National Maritime Museum gift shop, where I have many fond memories. After a while I fell into an administration job and continued in that line for many years. About 15 years ago my partner and I came to Skipton and the Yorkshire Dales on holiday and fell in love with the place. When we returned home, we packed up and relocated to the area. Two children later I was looking to get back into full time work. I remembered my happy times working in retail and looked for an opportunity, so when Cool! Cards and Gifts came up for sale it was perfect.
What are the best and worst things about working in retail? I love meeting people; many customers who come in for a card have a little story or life event to share and I love being a part of that. Dealing with supply problems at the moment is the worst! It can be difficult when your suppliers are unsure of when things are going to arrive, although the advantage of being a small shop is that you can just turn around and change tack at a moment’s notice.
What cards are selling well? I’ve recently brought in a larger range of Umbellifer Cards, a local Skipton company who produce the most vibrantly beautiful botanical cards. They are selling really well. They also have fantastic charity Christmas packs.
What card range or category do you always ensure you keep in stock? Rosie Made a Thing is always popular. I love Redback Cards’ Shine range for recommending to tweenie/teenage years. Lastly, Cherry Orchard – Down Memory Lane cards are a go-to for age cards.
What’s in your window? Humorous cards. They draw people to the window and I love hearing people reading them out and chuckling! And Second Nature 3D Pop Up cards. A bit more expensive than most but perfect if you want something special - and they catch people’s attention in the window. What’s by your till? I’ve recently launched an online store: https://coolcardsandgifts.co.uk, so by the till are some promotional coupons for 10% off any online purchases.
What’s the most surprising thing a customer has asked for? Mmm, nothing really unusual. We are in a tourist spot so I often get treated as an information point. Best place to eat, that takes dogs, and is open on a Monday. That kind of thing!
If you could send anyone a card from the past or present, who would it be and why? Without a doubt it would be a Thank You card for my Mum. She passed away a few years ago but I would love to thank her for her love and support over the years and always being there for me, good and bad. I would send her this Rosie Made a Thing Card (pictured above) as she loved Elvis and it would have made her laugh.
How do trade magazines like Greetings Today help you? I love reading through Greetings Today to make sure I’m keeping up with the latest trends and see how other shops are handling similar problems to mine.
Name Hana Garrett Shop Expressions Address Calne, Wiltshire
How did you get into greetings card retail? I had the opportunity as I left university to go into business with my auntie and to take over two cards shops - and here we are 13 years later!
What are the best and worst things about working in retail? The best thing is the customers. We are very lucky to have many lovely loyal customers, who we have had coming to us for years and can have a good laugh with. The worst thing is the short time off over Christmas and having to plan so far in advance!
What cards are selling well? We sell a large variety of cards but Words ‘n’ Wishes, ICG and Noel Tatt are continuing to sell well for us.
What card range or category do you always ensure you keep in stock because of its popularity? Special Friend is always a popular title and one of our best selling ranges is Whimsicals by Desito.
What’s in your window at the moment? Due to the time of year, mainly Christmas boxed cards and a selection of gifts.
What’s by your till at the moment? Some lovely local scene Christmas cards. For the first time we have managed to get a local photographer (Laura Anne Photography) to produce some cards of local scenes and they are proving very popular.
What’s the most surprising thing a customer has said? I once had a customer complain about a card that had an obviously Photoshopped image of a hedgehog hanging on a washing line. They felt it was inappropriate as people may start trying to hang their pets out to dry!
If you could send anyone a card from the past or present, who would it be and why? It would be my Auntie Pauline who sadly passed away in 2000; she would have loved the new Winnie the Pooh range from UKG.
How do trade magazines like Greetings Today help you? They help me keep up to date with the industry and are always helpful when looking for new ranges/suppliers.
Name Karen Nolan Shop Maddy Moos Address West Totton, Southampton
How did you get into greetings card retail? I first got into the industry when I became a merchandiser for UK Greetings and then left that position to open Maddy Moos with my husband Kevin in 2011. Sadly Kevin passed away in 2017 and our daughter Hayleigh wonderfully stepped into her Dad’s shoes to run the business with me.
We were unable to think of a name that identified us as a card and gift shop but that also involved an element of humour in the title, so we turned to the one thing that never fails to bring a smile to the face of everyone she meets - our Cocker Spaniel Maddy, affectionately named Maddy Moo. She is known as ‘the boss’, although she doesn’t do much work!
What are the best and worst things about working in retail? The best things are seeing all our lovely regular customers and unpacking fab new products.
The worst thing about currently working in retail is delayed deliveries and so many out-of-stock items; although a lot of it can’t be helped, it sure has affected many businesses, us included.
Also for us as a card shop the worst thing is missing envelopes… where do they go? They seem to disappear!
What cards are selling well? Cards that consistently sell well for us are Jonny Javelin - velvet range; UKG - Into the Meadow; ICG relation age combinations; Nigel Quiney - Pizazz ; Noel Tatt - decoupage, and Paperlink humour (among many others).
What card range or category do you always ensure you keep in stock because of its popularity? The card range that we sell most of and we always make sure we have in stock is Nigel Quiney - Pizazz, and the overall most popular category is new home.
What’s in your window? We have open Christmas cards on spinners.
What’s by your till? We have the popular Cocoba hot chocolate spoons by the till, which sold out last year - so we ordered extra this time. Along with charity pack Christmas cards.
What’s the most surprising thing a customer has asked for? A customer once asked for an ordination card because her sister was becoming a nun and much to our delight… we had one!
If you could send anyone a card from the past or present, who would it be and why? If I could send a card to anyone past or present it would be to my husband Kev to let him know that we miss him and that the business that he helped us establish is still going strong.
Name Chris Beards Shop Manton’s Gifts & Cards Address Port Erin, Isle of Man
How did you get into greetings card retail? After selling our previous business, we brought Mantons just over 13 years ago to save it from closing, and with the aim of helping to keep local independent retail alive. Since then, we have won 19 major awards including British Independent Retailer of the Year.
What’s the best thing about working in retail? I love working with fantastic team members, customers and of course our amazing suppliers.
What cards are selling well in your store at the moment? We are known for stocking quality cards for all occasions, so we’ve had lots of people coming in for our Diwali cards recently.
What card range or category do you always ensure you keep in stock because of its popularity? Again, because we are known for our range of cards, it’s vital that we keep every category in stock. Fortunately, we have lots of storage space, otherwise it just wouldn’t be possible.
What’s in your window? We have three windows, all with an autumn theme.
What’s by your till? We have just started stocking bamboo socks, so they are currently by the till.
If you could send anyone a card from the past or present, who would it be and why? My late Gran. I remember sending her a card as a little boy and seeing her delighted reaction. I have always wanted to be part of the greeting card business since then.
How do trade magazines like Greetings Today help you? They play an important role in keeping us in touch with industry news. After featuring in Greetings Today in the past we have been contacted by some fantastic publishers and have started stocking their cards.
