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Heart To Heart
Spotlight On... Valentine’s Day
If the pandemic has taught us anything it’s to show and tell those we love how we feel about them. Given that Valentine’s Day gifting includes family members buying each other gifts, and girls buying gifts for their closest female friends (Galentine’s Day), we asked some of the leading gift companies what’s trending. Although Valentine’s Day will never be as big, or as important as Mother’s Day for gift retailers, the event continues to gain ground each year. Galentine’s Day, which came over from the US a couple of years ago, and takes places on February 13, is increasing in popularity, with women buying gifts for their closest female friends, as well as for their partners, while mums and dads enjoy giving gifts to their much loved offspring and vice-versa. While there’s now a more contemporary twist to this special occasion, one thing that hasn’t changed is that hearts are still the No. 1 ‘go to’ when it comes to telling a loved one how much they’re adored. “Customers love being able to use personalisation to give a unique and thoughtful gift, especially when it’s for a loved one,” says PMC’s Felicity Colbert. “We are embracing this with one of our most well-known licences, Me To You, with the addition of traditional hearts and a modern font to keep it feeling fresh.” As Enesco’s marketing and product director Helen Cottrill puts it: “Valentine’s Day is one of the constants in our world, and one of the biggest gift giving occasions on our calendar, with traditional hearts, flowers and cute and truly romantic themes key to our collection.” She continues: “Valentine gifts speak louder than words and
become a constant reminder of a loved one for years to come. Plus, post Covid, and given our eco responsibilities, consumers don’t want fast, throwaway products, preferring timeless quality which is much more important to them.” Also confirming that hearts are a permanent trend when it comes to Valentine’s Day is Joe Davies’ jewellery buyer and designer Mary Caputo,
who adds that there’s no better way to portray our feelings for those we love than with a piece of jewellery. “Jewellery is a firm favourite for a Valentine’s Day gift, with our Equilibrium collection including a multitude of pieces featuring hearts in all styles,” she confirms. “The new Galantine trend, whereby girls buy Valentine gifts for friends and family, as well as partners, fits perfectly with heart jewellery, as a heart can convey our love in so many different ways.” Sarah Watmore, founder of Miss Milly, also emphasises the ongoing popularity of heart designs. “We always have a selection of heart jewellery in traditional reds and pinks, as well as in more unusual colours such as lime green, grey or turquoise,” she explains. “Our products also work for Galentine’s Day, such as our heart compact mirrors, enamelled animal and bird keyrings and bag charms.” At Crumble & Core, director Louise Pike concurs that more and more people are now
Top: A Me To You hanging heart from PMC. Above: Equilibrium heart jewellery from Joe Davies. Left: Heartwood Creek by Jim Shore: ‘Gnomebody Loves You As Much As I Do’ from Enesco. Right: A heart pendant from Miss Milly.
Progressive Gifts & Home Worldwide
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