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The Ladder Club
“Informative, fun and well worth attending” was the verdict on from many of the 40 would-be and newbie greeting card publishers who attended The Ladder Club’s recent annual seminar organised by PG with support key industry figures and companies. Taking place for the first time in four years, it was a day full of learnings, insights and sense of belonging, all united in the mission to help progress the next generation of greeting card publishers.
Climbing Back Up “I’ve really enjoyed it,” was artist Georgina Whitelock’s view of The Ladder Club seminar, which took place recently at London’s Business Design Centre. “Getting the info from all the different companies for paper, printing, envelopes etc was great because it’s a real minefield,” she added. And Ladder Club alumni Hannah Dale, who attended the sessions herself when she was setting up Wrendale Designs back in 2012, was a star of the show with her presentation on her company’s journey from the kitchen table to the present awardwinning £multi-million-pound business. Utterly Conkers’ Emma Harrison admitted: “Hannah was my favourite speaker because she started where everybody else did, and she’s an icon. I liked that she shared the highs and the lows because you can look at someone like that and think it’s just happened, but it’s been hard work – and also, she still doubts herself, which is unbelievable, she’s absolutely lovely. I also loved retailer Sally Matson of Red Card’s insights very much too.” Emma summed it all up as “a brilliant day, perfect for what it’s meant to be. It’s pitched just right for newbie publishers and people thinking about it.”
Above: The class of The Ladder Club 2023 and presenters. Above right: Some important advice on costing out your cards from Ben Hickman, done in his own sweet way. Below middle: Brainbox Candy’s Ben Hickman (left) with agents Jo Bannister and Adam Lawrance. Bottom left: Wrendale’s Hannah Dale was an inspiration to many attendees. Bottom right: The Imaging Centre’s Bob Short explained why colours can look different on screen compared to on printed cards
Heather Trefusis, of Heather Trefusis Art, added: “A big thank you for The Ladder Club. It was an absolutely fantastic day. Packed with really valuable content. I’ve already been making changes to my business as a result of some of the advice!” It was an “informative and inspiring” day for Julie Loydall, who said: “As a complete newbie, it was a unique opportunity to hear from the experts and to chat to other aspiring publishers - I came away buzzing! I'm looking forward to being part of the industry next year and hope to see everyone again in the future.”
After being started by the late publisher and gallery owner Lynn Tait with PG’s Jakki Brown over 20 years ago, the first Ladder Club seminar in four years continued the winning formula of including the nuts and bolts of production and industry workings as well as insights from publishers, a leading retailer and agent. Bob and Adam Short, founder and md of The Imaging Centre, explained the digital print side of things, Loxleys’ md Tony Lorriman chipped in with litho info, G.F Smith’s paper consultant Mark Jessett explained about board choices and sustainability while Enveco’s sales support Lucy Glover talked trends in envelopes.
PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE 49