42-43_MUK.qxp_Grid 15/06/2021 12:13 Page 2
In conversation with... Words ‘n’ Wishes
A Principled Decade
“Where has the time gone? It certainly doesn’t feel like 10 years since Carl [Salt] and I took the plunge and started Words ‘n’ Wishes,” stated Rod Brown, joint managing director of the Wigan-based card publisher. “It was never our philosophy to reach for the stars or reinvent the wheel; we just wanted to create a middle market greeting card company that our retail customers liked dealing with.” While the product ranges have changed dramatically since the publisher’s early days – as the 112 new designs that will be on show at PG Live next month testify - PG discovered that Words ‘n’ Wishes’ core principles remain exactly the same today as they were when the company first launched onto the scene. Rod Brown must rank as one of the fastest talkers in the industry with a ‘go, go, go’ high energy to match. Yet the last year and a half of the pandemic has forced the joint managing director of Words ‘n’ Wishes to learn a new skill - to be patient. “We have all had to accept that there are some things that are beyond our control and that rather than get frustrated about the things that could not happen, we have all had to appreciate and be grateful for the things we do have, both in our business and personal lives,” admits Rod. With independent retailers being very much at the heart of Words ‘n’ Wishes, in common with so many other publishers, 2020 was the only year the company has not shown growth, but Rod is encouraged by how 2021 is shaping up. “While due to the lockdowns, 2020 didn’t really happen for many card businesses, 2021 is looking much better and we, for one, are ahead of 2019 levels. 42
PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE
And I have been so impressed by the tenacity of retailers, who have really dug deep to adapt to the changing landscape,” summed up Rod. As part of its adaptation to the changing landscape of
Above: Rod Brown (left) and Carl Salt, co-founders of Words ‘n’ Wishes. They own the 10-year-old publishing business with colleagues Brian Philips, Alison Traynor, Lesley and Denise Bishop. Below: Words ‘n’ Wishes Big Thank You All Round has seen the publisher reward its loyal retail customers as well as fanfare some local heroes. Bottom left: A Words ‘n’ Wishes Moments in Time design. Bottom right: A Zipadee Doo Da design. While in the early days of Words ‘n’ Wishes square cards were not accepted by its customers, now they are among the company’s best sellers.
opportunities, as well as its own broad product portfolio, Words ‘n’ Wishes now has two years under its belt as distributor of Danilo’s products to the independent sector, making the most of the publisher’s extensive sales force of 24 independent sales agents. “We learnt a lot about being a distributor when we carried a selection of Quitting Hollywood designs for a few years, meaning that we were very confident about working with Danilo. It has been a privilege to work with the Danilo team and bring their knowledge of the licensing industry to our retail customers,” elaborated Rod, reinforcing the importance of understanding your business’ core competencies and using these to deliver for the customer, something which has been at the core of Words ‘n’ Wishes since day one. “Being customer-focused is right at the heart of everything we do. This has been our number one priority since our very first day of trading,” states Rod Brown, joint md of Words ‘n’ Wishes. “Having the products that meet retailers’ needs, a strong sales support and an efficient service is not rocket science, but it has been the solid foundation upon which we have been able to grow Words ‘n’ Wishes over the last decade,” sums up Rod.