Retail Interview

Prints of Wales

Sandra Jervis, owner of Creative Cove in Lampeter, Wales, tells Greetings Today about her mission to source more Welsh language cards

What is your background? I’ve always worked in the retail sector, usually as a small part-time job while at school or studying for my degrees (I’d planned on teaching!). I had a bit of management training and was always progressing. I took time out of work when I had my first child and stumbled across this route in life purely through a chance conversation with a friend! How long have you been running the shop? I have had the shop five years. There’s lots of areas: childrens section, art supplies, giftware section - before you get to stationery and greeting cards. The cards are my biggest department - they really fly out with all the other things that go with it. If you don’t have cards you don’t have much of a shop because people don’t shop. How did you come to run the shop? After having my first child and becoming a stay-at-home mum, I became friends with a group of women at a local Homestart group in Lampeter where I live. We used to go on a regular weekly walk and cake meet (cake being very important!) and my friend mentioned that she was putting her shop up for sale. I literally told her to wait and legged it home to my husband to see if it was something we could do. Being in Wales and not speaking Welsh meant that our choices were limited. I had wanted to teach but obviously language was an issue if I wanted to stay here, which I very much did. I’d moved here at the age of 18 to study and was so in love with the place that I really didn’t want to leave. And I was never content with just doing a job. I always wanted

‘’My Welsh language selection has more than trebled in size and people have come to recognise that the selection I have is as good as the English ones’’

to go further. This was perfect; my own business, being my own boss. It was literally a dream come true. How is trading for you at the moment? Card sales are phenomenal for me at the moment. It is my biggest single department in the shop and in November compared to 2019, I had taken £10k more in cards this year. The pandemic has absolutely changed what people shop for; cards being the biggest victor in that shift. My Welsh language selection has more than trebled in size and people have come to recognise that the selection I have is as good as the English ones. How do you source products? These days it’s mostly through trade shows. I used to sit up for hours at night desperately searching for new suppliers (usually trying to keep myself awake while feeding a grouchy child!). Which trade shows do you attend and why? Do you look for different things at different shows? Top Drawer – this is a lovely and classy trade show. It is small but beautiful. The products on show are really exquisite. I’ve usually only searched card suppliers here.

Spring Fair – I do this one to cover nearly all aspects of the shop – greetings, stationery, arts and crafts, and giftware.

London Stationery Show – for stationery and greeting cards. This is my favourite as so many of the group of stationer friends I have come to know go to this one! What is your selection criteria? It has to be modern and classy. I have really moved away from the generic tat that is out there. If you want that, then you can go to the chain stores and bargain outlets. The supplier has to offer exclusivity – if they don’t, I won’t go near you. I’ve been burned before when investing in a company and then find them in the other shops in town (we’re an extremely small town, rural and miles from anywhere). So if it’s not exclusive, I walk away. I have to know that who I buy from will be giving me their best and then I can give that back. What are your key brands? Art File, Cinnamon Aitch, Paintbox Designs, Museums & Galleries, Little Dog Laughed, Two Bad Mice, Art Angels, Relieftprint Press, Driftwood Designs, Max Rocks, Claire Giles, and Draenog. What is your best-selling product? Blank cards, sympathy and Welsh language sell more than anything. Have you introduced anything new to your offering recently? Reliefprint Press has a blank card range, printed in Wales and offering lots of Welsh scenes. They are absolutely stunning. Rebecca Robinson Designs is my most recent addition. Her cards are again, designed and made in Wales. Simple but exuding elegance. They are flying off the shelves! Is there anything you have seen coming up from suppliers that you are particularly excited about? Art File has produced a small range of Welsh cards. It’s a relatively small selection but I really hope that they build on it.

They released Welsh language charity packs - and I bought loads of them. I got in touch and I put some ideas to them, they came back with

the proofs - and they sent them out in their new catalogue.

Everyone thinks the same range - the same amount of occasions and relations. You need more than one or two - people really need to think about how little they offer the Welsh language. I follow so many shops online. For me, having a modernised range - and the Art File ones are beautiful - is important. I’d like to offer that quality in both languages - the same card but in a different language. Is there anything you haven’t been able to source that you would like to find? Welsh Language charity packs for Christmas! Please can someone consider doing them?! We don’t need lots and lots of designs but a small offering would be much appreciated.

Cards are my biggest passion in the shop. My heart is with the cards, if I was only allowed to keep one section for some reason, it would be my cards. Without a second thought! Cards are so personal, they say something, they speak to the person buying it in a really deep and meaningful way, and hopefully that sentiment is then conveyed to the recipient.

So my time is reflected in that; the hours and hours spent searching for new and beautiful cards. The first thing I tackled when taking over the shop was the selection of Welsh cards. The suppliers already used weren’t very modern and I felt only spoke to one type of customer – the older ones. I wanted to change that so that the cards suited everyone, of all ages. Eventually I found Paintbox Designs, by the lovely Emma, based in Cardiff. Her range was the first splash of colour and fun in the Welsh section.

I also brought in Claire Giles, Max Rocks, Draenog and most recently, Rebecca Robinson Designs. These artists and suppliers show that Welsh language cards are not meant to be boring! They are as classy and beautiful as the English ones I do. It was my biggest frustration that you could have all the choice you wanted in the English offering, but to buy Welsh, it had to be cheap and tacky. And this is coming from someone who doesn’t speak Welsh themselves (my three children do though!). Why do Welsh language cards have to be second class? Well not in Creative Cove they’re not. Not a day goes by where I don’t get complimented on the quality of what’s on offer, and I get a real sense of pride having brought that to the shop and town. Tell us more about the stationery side of the shops. The stationery side of the shop has seen a massive change, particularly in the time since the pandemic started. People have really moved away from the office and boring stationery and are looking for the pretty and attractive lines, things that brighten their desk, especially if they’re now working from home. Which are your key brands and what sells well? EcoEco is my main supplier for the functional stationery, this is because the company uses mostly recycled plastic for its products, which is important to me.

Flametree is my biggest supplier of notebooks, I have two stands. Noi publishing is a great little company for really beautiful planners and notepads. Toasted Crumpet, Roger la Borde and Legami also offer the pretty stationery lines that people seek. For our greeting card retailers, who might include a small/add-on selection of stationery, - what would you suggest stocking? Look at Noi, Roger la Borde and Toasted Crumpet – you’ll see a beautiful selection of lines, all stunningly designed and the perfect accompaniment for a card. Often the stationery will match the cards and sell themselves. Have you been affected by price rises and stock shortages - if so how have you dealt with that? I’ve had to stay away from letterpress and embellished cards as they really push the price up and customers don’t want that. By sticking with printed designs that are quality, I have been able to keep the prices fairly stable. Do customers ask for eco-friendly product? Is this something you try to stock? Glitter on cards is something I have stopped doing. For a while people were asking for

‘’The pandemic has changed what people shop for; cards being the biggest victor in that shift’’

biodegradable glitter but I found that people didn’t realise it was biodegradable and complained about it. So I just stopped with glitter full stop. I try to source cards that are printed in the UK to be environmentally conscious. Finally… If you could choose the cards people sent you - which would you choose to receive for Christmas or birthday or other special occasion? I would always choose a blank card. So much more can be said with a blank card, you’re not limited to words and designs. There are always blank cards appropriate for the season and it means the person sending can put in writing anything they want!