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OVER THE COUNTER
Pack In The
Pre-Packs! Independent card and gift retailer, David Robertson, co-owner of JP Pozzi in Scotland, bristles over the unfairness of business pre-pack administrations, also known as phoenix activity. As you read this the Spring Fair at Birmingham’s NEC will almost be upon us with the many new delights that I am hoping it will serve up. As always we will descend on the show’s halls with a touch of dread mixed with enthusiasm in the hope of finding the next winners from both the card and gift worlds. However, I’m writing this in the difficult period between Christmas and New Year; when the days merge together and you never really know when or what, or even if. This was traditionally the time in retail that two things happened. Firstly, you felt elated because the money had come in from Christmas and the business would be in a strong position, and secondly, you would get unwell, as you basically had pushed aside all the bugs and colds etc until you got to Christmas Eve, and with a massive sigh your body would give up. So far I have not been hit by either fully. Christmas was okay. It was on a par with previous years - we got our share and the customers came out to shop. I also, so far, have avoided any major illness, suffering instead from restless legs and an overactive brain. In fact, this seems to be worse than usual. My brain seems to be ticking over with the Christmas knowledge. Here are just a few of the thoughts whizzing round the grey matter… l Single Christmas card sales are still massive - boxed cards are not. l Gift dressings seem to be most at home in the bargain retailers. l Gifts are crucial but the price people are willing to spend is widening. 28
PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE
l We, as retailers, invest in lines and get little longevity from them as they land in discount retailers quicker and quicker. l Gifts are either fun and quirky (around the £20 mark) or luxury. That middleground doesn’t seem to be there quite as it once was. l Customers are aware that they need to shop local but the price and easiness of online is still tempting. l We are all kind of selling the same thing not through choice but necessity. l Customers are liking ‘story’ products local brands, but this eschews margin. l The once mainstays of indie retail, such as Yankee, are gone as they literally are everywhere. l The feeling of relief that 2019 is over is one thing but what will 2020 bring? While clearing up the Christmas decorations and my house I found PG magazines from 2008 (my debut year as one of its columnists) right through to the current day. Flicking through my Spring Fair article from 2010, a lot of what I was writing Above: Phoenix activity from businesses is unfair on competing companies and suppliers. Left: Jellycat’s Amusable plush range has been a big hit. Featured is Silly Succulent Jade.
about then is still what we are discussing now… death of bricks and mortar retail, the rise of online shopping, and I had even joined a thing called Twitter which had been getting a lot of hype. In some ways this reassured me as here we are ten years on and, for the most part, the retailers that were in that magazine are still here and trading. It is definitely too early to tell what the new year will bring but one of my resolutions for 2020 was that I was going to be less grumpy, more positive and concentrate solely on my own challenges. Well that didn’t last long as early January 2020 brought further stories to annoy: l Hotel Chocolat stating that it wants its rents reduced inline with these companies doing CVA’s - I actually think that this is right. l Cafe Nero paying no Corporation Tax on over £2 billion of sales in the last decade due to losses elsewhere in the group. l The Daily Mirror has been highlighting many issues through its High Street Heroes stories and it has started 2020 with massive coverage. Now these are just the beginnings of what could shape up to be a very interesting