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Spotlight On... Face Masks & Hand Sanitisers
Facing Facts While product trends that existed before lockdown are still as popular as ever - home fragrancing among them - there’s been a wave of new gift-led products hitting the shelves in recent months, most notably reusable face masks/coverings - this year’s ‘must have’ face fashion - especially now that they have become mandatory in shops and on public transport, as well as in museums, cinemas, places of worship, banks, beauty salons and other indoor spaces. Unsurprisingly, gift shops are seeing masks sell out in minutes, meaning that suppliers are being inundated with re-orders. “With face coverings fast becoming mandatory in many public spaces worldwide, one thing is for sure, they’re here to stay,” comments Puckator’s designer
At the start of lockdown, who would have thought that the prosaic face mask could look so pretty or be such a money spinner for gift retailers? Or that hand sanitisers would be seen as a gift as well as a self-purchase item? PG&H took a look at some of the new wave of wellness gifts that have evolved from the pandemic. Above: Witty, washable face masks printed with ‘of the moment’ quotes from Five Dollar Shake. Left: A personalised, rainbow themed face mask from PMC. Below left: Puckator’s wide range includes masks for both adults and children. Below: Among the best selling designs from Eco Chic/Faye UK.
Laura Billingham. “They have quickly become a staple on the giftware shelves this year, and we have been working on exciting designs for both adults and children, with our colourful, fun designs for youngsters including Space Cadets, Cutiemals, Shark Cafe and Monstarz mouths. There are lots of new designs for adults too, covering a wide range of interests.” As Laura points out: “There’s no reason to be dull and drab when taking personal safety seriously.” At PMC, marketing manager Kristina Ruffell says: “We have seen increased interest for our range of face coverings, due to the fact they can be personalised with any positive message that the individual customer chooses. They’re an ideal way to spread some joy in an uncertain world. Increased sales have reflected that consumers are looking for an element of trend led design as well as function.” At Eco Chic/Faye UK, Richard Marsden confirms that since the launch of the company’s new recyclable face covers in mid-June, weekly sales have got stronger and stronger. “Consumer
feedback is very strong, with our quirky, colourful, cheerful designs capturing the mood of defiance as Britain braces to continue its fight against the pandemic.” Eurostick meanwhile, created a new reusable face masks brand, The Glasgow Mask Co, in response to customer demand during lockdown. “We were able to use our established supply base to fulfil some of the urgent demands,” confirms designer Louise Main Dalziel. “As a gift, souvenir and accessory company we are always inspired
by national tradition, but we were also very aware that our customers would need to pivot their usual buy to appeal to a purely domestic customer.” With that in mind, she says that it has been great fun sourcing ditsy florals, palm prints and paisley patterns, alongside the company’s Union Jack and tartan stories. “Our Tartan collection was an instant Progressive Gifts & Home Worldwide
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