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VIEWPOINTS Right: Bunnies and eggs signify freshness and the Spring Seasons that are so important in the greetings world.
Springing forward Ceri Stirland and Lois Holcroft customer & channel director and director of product management & insight, UK Greetings How important are Spring Seasons sales to you? “Spring seasons are very important to the industry as it keeps greeting cards front of mind with the consumer and the retailer. It is an opportunity to try new styles, new captions, new editorial. It is essential that all publishers invest in the seasons to drive engagement across the year.” Is there anything you feel retailers could do to further Spring Seasons? “We know from research that for Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day for those buying into the event, the number one purchase is a greeting card. Therefore, by bringing cards, gifting, confectionery, BWS (beer, wine, spirits) - ie affinity categories - together will drive engagement with the consumer.” Have you seen any extra occasions coming through and are there any you’re being asked for? “Yes, we’re definitely getting new requests for cards to celebrate Eid, Diwali, Galentine’s, and to also broaden our existing seasons to make them more inclusive, eg To My 2 Dads On Father’s Day, To Mum On Father’s Day, to and from the pet on Father’s Day, Braille cards - and, of course, we’re also creating cards which represent people from all backgrounds and ethnicities.” Top: UKG’s Ceri Stirland (left) and Lois Holdcroft (right). Above: Cards from the pet has been a growth area in Spring Seasons and generally. Right: Diversity and inclusion is a key consideration for UKG.
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PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE
After several years of upheaval, card retailers and publishers were relieved to be able to trade normally for all four Spring Seasons, but what does the new normal look like for these significant card sending events? PG asks greeting card retailers and publishers about their Spring Seasons developments and what potential is out there for other occasions.
Daniel Prince managing director, Danilo Promotions What changes in design trends with Spring Seasons have you tracked? “A key trend that’s continuing to grow is the demand for cards from the pet. People in the UK love their four-legged friends so much that cards from pets are now big business. The boom in pet ownership under lockdown has helped companies Above: A Secret Life of Pets design from Danilo. to increase sales of From The Pet cards and this applies to key seasons such as Valentine’s Day. Not only does this work with pet-related licences, such as NBC Universal’s The Secret Life of Pets, but it also adapts well to lifestyle brands such as Brightside, where the caption Love From Your Furbaby has performed well for us. Galentine’s Day, held on February 13, has also become prominent over the last few years, and seems to get more popular each year. A day which celebrates female friendship and empowerment has shown us that friendship-style designs from licences such as Wonder Woman, Grease, Friends, Barbie and L.O.L Surprise! are becoming increasingly in demand. Another change in the greeting card industry revolves around increased sensitivity to loss of parents or being a single parent. To accommodate this, we’ve seen caption changes for Spring Seasons cards such as Mothering Sunday cards being made available for fathers. We’re continuing to incorporate this into our seasonal ranges and one way will be adding new captions to our ranges such