Diary of a Card Shop

Diary of a card shop

Paul and Helen Southgate, who run Cards n Things in Hellesdon, Norwich, are celebrating record Christmas sales but already looking to introduce new ranges for 2023…

Phew! That’s the Christmas Season done. And thankfully after all the doom and gloom in the media it’s still been a busy one. So much scaremongering made it a nervy wait to see if customers would buy, and as the weeks went on through October and November, there was no drop in customer spend. In fact, we had record sales in October, November and December. We found our greeting card sales were on a par with last year, but what made the difference was our gifting range. We are very fortunate that we have a separate area in the shop for ‘Seasons’ so we never have to reduce our everyday offering to fit Christmas in.

Items from Gainsborough Gifts, Widdop, Rachel Ellen and Kikkerland have also been very popular, and all helped with sales. Our favourite customer comment to hear after buying quite a lot is “I only came in for a card!”.

We had a very successful launch of Katie Loxton and Joma Jewellery in October, which has proved a great addition. We had a special day in store with 20% off all Katie Loxton products, a giveaway and champagne customer evening including themed ‘handbag’ biscuits! We also re-launched our customer loyalty card at the same time, which was very well received. Customers collect stamps on each spend and then can redeem the card for 20% off any purchase.

Our confectionery offering also performed well with local (Norwich) supplier GNAW and Candyhouse with great Christmas gifts such as a chocolate Xbox controller and Vegan Chocolate Christmas Tree lolly. We also still stock Thorntons Chocolates, which are very popular, but unfortunately the range is getting smaller despite huge customer demand.

With news of Royal Mail strikes throughout December we again thought it would influence sales; to be honest I’m not sure they did, with card sales holding up it’s hard to say. The most disappointing thing is loved ones and friends not receiving their cards in time.

On a lighter note, Boris (our Sealyham Terrier) very much enjoyed roaming around the shop during our Wednesday late nights running up to Christmas, welcoming customers in and showing off his Christmas jumper!

The most popular titles in Christmas this year were again Grandson and Granddaughter together with partners titles. ‘From the dog’ was also another popular title! Assorted boxes of cards and charity packs were a little slower this year but certainly we found customers still buying the special individual title cards.

At the end of the year we had a decision to make… does the perspex Covid screen come down at the till?! Although it feels like a protective barrier for hygiene reasons, we just felt it also blocked that communication with the customer and let’s face it, that’s what sets independents apart - customer engagement. The screen came down and it’s made a world of difference and we have that connection back.

This year we’re planning to visit Spring Fair and PG Live. Unfortunately, we can’t make Top Drawer in January. We’re looking forward to seeing what’s new and meeting our existing suppliers. We’ll be looking into increasing our giftware alongside hopefully another soft toy range.

Our Christmas department has now become our Sale room but it will soon be all change again for the start of the spring seasons, and we’re definitely looking forward to those lighter, warmer days ahead!

In other news, my parents (Paul’s) David and Ruth Southgate, who started the business back in 1984, have been awarded MBEs in the New Year Honours list. It came as a complete surprise to them but is in recognition of over 50 years of continuous charity work and support for their local community. They started a local church back in 1975 that has seen hundreds of children and young people supported through youth clubs, thousands of meals for the elderly through luncheon clubs, and they have raised over £100,000.00 for charities through an orchestra they started, which is still going strong. All of this while running their own business. True heroes.

After a nice few days off after Christmas it’s all gone straight back into business. Already the to-do list seems rather daunting, from repairs to sorting utility issues and many decisions to make. As shopkeepers we may look like the swan gliding on the water to the customers, but behind the scenes there’s lots happening!

We want to thank our customers for shopping local and we wish all our cardie friends a happy, healthy and prosperous 2023.

‘’Boris (our Sealyham Terrier) very much enjoyed roaming around the shop during our Wednesday late nights running up to Christmas, welcoming customers in and showing off his Christmas jumper!’’