Top Drawer Preview

A chance to reconnect

It’s been a while, but Top Drawer is back at Olympia this month, ready to help the greetings industry get back in touch

As we head into the last quarter of a very unusual year, Top Drawer A/W 2021 offers a chance to reconnect the industry and also brings retailers a welcome buying opportunity for the new season, and of course the all-important Christmas period.

Clarion retail show director Russell Rule says: “We’re counting down the moments until the much-anticipated return of a live Top Drawer and are so thrilled to be providing our retail community with this important opportunity to buy, sell, learn, be inspired and connect.

‘’Passion for design is at the core of our DNA and shared by everyone who is part of the Top Drawer community - from retailers, exhibitors and designers to our curators, speakers and organising team. Nothing beats walking the aisles of the show and seeing the creativity and talent that abounds in this industry; we know how important touch, feel and in-person connection is for our network and we look forward to creating an inspiring setting for our network to do great business together.’’

The event will bring visitors new designs from more than 400 brands across greeting cards and stationery, interiors, gift, fashion, children’s, craft, and food & drink.

Top Drawer A/W also promises one of its most stellar content line-ups to date; offering visitors access to the expertise and insight from some of the industry’s leading names including Liberty’s Bryony Sheridan, Holly & Co’s Holly Tucker, and Net-A-Porter’s Evie Collins.

You will also be able to explore trends presented by Clarion Retail’s new digital marketplace, REVEAL.

It’s back!

First time exhibitors include: David Fussenegger, Deluxe Home Art, Ela Life, HAM, House of Disaster, Orla Kiely (Allied Imports Ltd), Oyoy Living Design, RJB Stone and Wondercandle.

You can also expect to see greeting card brands including: James Ellis, 2ToTango, Apple & Clover, Middle Mouse, Alljoy Design, Artpress Publishing, Cath Tate cards, Five Dollar Shake, Earlybird Designs, Lorna Syson Pressed & Folded, Lottie Murphy, Rosie Made A Thing, The DM Collection and many more.

Covid safety

‘’Passion for design is at the core of our DNA and shared by everyone who is part of the Finally, as restrictions are lifted, the pandemic, safety and confidence has Top Drawer still been uppermost in the organisers’ mind. It surveyed its community of community - retail buyers and interior designers to from retailers, gauge enthusiasm for the show - with 82% saying they planned to attend. exhibitors and The team that brings together Top Drawer is the same team that was designers to responsible for sister show, Home & Gift, which ran in July – the first retail exhibition our curators, to take place following the pandemic. speakers and “The event was run safely and successfully, exceeding everyone’s organising expectations – and we can’t wait to bring the same opportunities back to team’’ London,’’ says Clarion’s Russell Rule.

Zoë Bonser, portfolio director, adds: “We are delighted to be returning to Olympia London in September and will continue to work in partnership with the Association of Events Organisers (the AEO), who is liaising directly with the government, to ensure the safest and most successful event for our community.” Visitors must show proof of their Covid status in one of two ways,

which can be either: Two vaccines (first and second dose), with the second dose at least 14 days before the show, or a negative lateral flow test taken within 48 hours prior to attending the event – this can be displayed via NHS App, SMS text, or email. For details see www.topdrawer. co.uk/safety-information. Top Drawer A/W returns to Olympia If you haven’t bagged your ticket yet, registration is open at London from 12-14 September 2021 www.topdrawer.co.uk.

On trend

With design and newness at its heart, the show is always the place to spot the latest trends. For this year, organisers have identified four main design trends: ● An Opulent Addition: Expect to see glinting accents and a touch of metallic. ● Cottage Cool: As we have all spent more time at home, we want to surround ourselves with cosy, calm comforts, so expect traditional design to be all around. ● Modern Mirage: Bring warmth with a new take on previous

Palm Springs or Oasis trends, this time focusing on textures, tones and natural patterns of the desert. ● The Power of Prints: Pattern is back with a vengeance!

James Ellis

James Ellis will be showing their entire Christmas 2021 range at Top Drawer, including six brand new designs by artist Kate Mainard. These hand-finished Paper Shakies cards have coloured borders and are filled with festive paper confetti. All of the cards are plastic free and 100% recyclable. trade.jamesellis.com

Middle Mouse

Modern Botanicals is a new range from Middle Mouse launching at Top Drawer 2021 - inspired by vintage botanical drawings and brought up-to-date with a bold illustration style and modern colour palette. This range features a number of familiar fruits and flowers, from brambles to apricots, with a recipe on the back too! Printed on luxury FSC approved stock.

Middle Mouse are also growing their range of cute riverbank characters with this new range inspired by Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows. The Riverbank and Beyond collection features hedgehogs and rabbits, and the two Christmas designs are already going down a storm. Watch this space for more designs coming soon. Printed on luxury FSC approved stock. www.middlemouse.co.uk

Lottie Murphy

Stand T21

Lottie Murphy’s Christmas range Merry & Bright includes 12 designs, featuring festive scenes with subjects ranging from penguin skiers, to hares and pheasants. Their blank nature makes them perfect for sending to a variety of people. The cards are available singularly or in packs of six.

Distinguished by their unique hand-illustrated style, each card is proudly printed in England on FSC certified board and measures 125mm x 125mm, and comes with a brown kraft envelope. www.lottie-murphy.com

Earlybird Designs

Stand U20

Earlybird Designs are launching the new range Honey featuring the work of artist Linsey Kelly.

The range has 16 rich, botanical-inspired card designs printed on 100% recycled board with a craft fleck envelope. Linsey’s works is well-known in the fabric industry and has been reworked into card designs especially for Earlybird.

The team are also extending their Elena Essex designs with six new illustrations featuring bears, llamas, tropical birds and some wonderful neon dinosaurs. The range is printed on 100% recycled board and comes with a craft fleck envelope. www.earlybirddesigns.co.uk

Alljoy Designs

Gift of the Year 2021 winner products, Message in a bottle Christmas collection from Alljoy Designs, has over 50 designs to choose from. These dimensional cards are hand-made with a patent pending process. They offer simple, diverse messages for a variety occasions and are blank on the inside. The new designs play with six-layered, laser and die cut paper technique. Flat pack, pop up image and information sheet on the front packaging.

Also available are these charming Christmas cards with wooden Christmas ornaments. All of the wooden Christmas ornaments are attached on shimmering paper with silver foil details. The ornament is reusable, making it the perfect keepsake. Blank inside for your own message. The card size is 135mm x 185mm. www.alljoydesign.com