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Focus on...Diversity & Inclusion
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Left: The GCA is proud to be marching at Pride In London under the logo designed by Rachel Hare of Belly Button Designs.
to ‘unite the LGBT+ voice, amplify diversity and protest against inequality’, values that are supported by the GCA,” association ceo Amanda Fergusson explained. Mark Callaby, head of the GCA’s D&I sub-committee and md of Ohh Deer reinforced: “Greeting cards send a powerful message to anyone who receives them and, as an industry, we’re already producing a really rich and inclusive collection of cards that send messages of love and support.” As the finalists in the Best Diversity & Inclusion category in The Henries 2022 awards testified, card publishing activity
What makes us different is what makes people human and ensuring that everyone feels included is a major driver of the modern world, something in which the greeting card industry very much has a part to play. PG delves into some of the progress and developments on diversity and inclusion cards. Just as there’s a card for every occasion, there’s now also a design for every culture, creed, gender, language, and excluded group - the designs might not be as visible as many would like, but progress, thank goodness, continues to be made on the D&I front by mainstream and specialist publishers as well as major retailers, indies and online platforms. The GCA’s Diversity & Inclusion subcommittee has taken on a broad role, facilitating improvements, a better Above: (5th right) Head of the GCA D&I committee, Ohh Deer’s Mark Callaby with GCA’s Adriana Lovesy (4th right) and panellist Georgina Fihosy, of AfroTouch Design, (far right) with some of the Black-owned publishers who were pitching, including (3rd and 4th left) StreetGreets’ Siobhan Wauchope and Naomi Nicholas. Above middle: The rose perfume on this Dyson Design card is appreciated by those have lost their sight. Above right: Skin tones matter for Laura Niles. Right: Braille helps UK Greetings cards to be accessible to the poorly sighted.
understanding and fair representation within the industry. As detailed in the news section in this edition, this July sees the GCA officially participating in Pride in London, having secured 50 walking places on the march, which will see participating publishers distributing greeting cards to celebrate D&I in the industry. “The Pride in London mission is
continues to give a greater voice to all, irrespective of skin tone, sexuality, religion or disability, the trophy being won by Hallmark for its Feel the Love braille cards, developed in collaboration with RNIB. UK Greetings and Dyson Design are two other publishers who have taken the diversity theme to heart with card ranges for people with vision difficulties. According to NHS statistics more than two million people are living with sight loss in the UK so, when Dyson Design’s founder Helen Dyson’s mum joined that number, she deliberately worked on a collection her mother could still enjoy. “Each card is rose perfumed,” the Dyson Design founder explained, “I originally designed them with my lovely mum in mind who lost her sight towards the end of her life.” PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE 41