20-21_David Robertson.qxp_Grid 02/10/2023 18:19 Page 1
OVER THE
COUNTER
BY DAVID ROBERTSON OF JP POZZI, ELGIN AND BUCKIE.
A Sense of
Perspective
Inset: Things are not always as they first seem.
Perspective is a word that we sometimes overlook. Invariably, there is of course no right or wrong, it really comes down to how you feel or think towards a subject. In the past month there have been several topics, about which I have been asked for my views – notably The Ladder Club, exhibiting at trade shows, Clintons, Connect and copying – all of which called for a sense of perspective. How many times have you thought you have had a great trading week in the shop and then you look back at the takings and it wasn’t as good as you thought? How many times have you thought you had answered the email or had done that piece of work and then find that quite simply you hadn’t. And it works the other way round too. The old adage of ‘is your glass half full or half empty?’ springs to mind and this will usually come down to either the subject or your state of mind.
This month there have been many things that I have been asked my perspective on and I wanted to share some of them with you. The return of The Ladder Club (taking place on December 1) for fledgling publishers (with support from several key
Right: Two ways of looking at things. Below: Like marathon runners, running a business is best taken one step at a time.
suppliers) is one that was easy to give my comment on. The Ladder Club has been responsible for making so many designers’ dreams a reality. Whether it is one range or long-term success, the nurturing aspect of this one day seminar and the resultant 20 PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE
friendships made has been missed for the last four years and is much needed. I was also asked to join a Zoom meeting with a group of newbie exhibitors preparing for their first Autumn Fair/Top Drawer arranged by the GCA who do so much to promote and protect the industry. This was easy for me in so much as I have been attending trade shows for many years and gave my experience of what I like and don’t like on a stand, how you are welcomed, how you are left to view the cards and what is the best way to follow up that initial interest. The recent controversy around Hyve’s meetings initiative Connect also cropped up. So glad that since that meeting, Hyve cancelled Connect for next year’s Spring Fair and Autumn Fair. I couldn’t see why or how it would ever work in our sector as most indie buyers, me included, just want to walk a show, immerse yourself in it. They don’t want to rush from meeting to meeting. Another thorny issue which seems to have raised its ugly head again in the card trade is copying. Certainly, we have all looked at a range of cards and thought “wow that is so like x.” Whether companies use the words “inspired by” or “our interpretation of” or that