Progressive Greetings September 2024

ON THE CARDS

“You can always hug everything out,” was the view of Annabel, an erudite tween who is one of the youth ambassadors for the Winston’s Wish charity, aired in the concluding session of a workshop instigated by the GCA to confront the industry’s shortcomings when it comes to suitable cards for bereaved children, on the design, words use and tone.

I felt very fortunate to have been a part of that afternoon’s meeting, held at Moonpig’s HQ in London, during which, together with the GCA’s Amanda Fergusson and Adriana Lovesy; Rebecca Green of Raspberry Blossom, Nicci Gower of Hammond Gower, Donna MacGregor of Hallmark, Yvonne Candell of Little Giorgo's Designs and several members of the Moonpig team, we heard first hand from youngsters who had lost their parents or siblings, how they felt that the vast majority of greeting cards currently on the market are not relevant to anyone experiencing grief at a young age.

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I was shocked to hear from Paul Moore from the charity that one in 20 children in the UK have experienced the loss of a parent before the age of 16. Add to that, those who suffer the death of a grandparent, sibling or other close relative and you realise this amounts to high percentage of the population whose card needs are not being catered for at a very sad time in their young lives.

Seemingly even the industry’s adopted ‘sympathy’ genre for such cards which graces the point of sale in the majority of card retailers, is just “not understood” by grieving youngsters, the word ‘condolences’ being even more alien, while the common use of ‘sorry’ within the editorial, irks. As 14 year old Daisy, who lost her Dad two years ago pointed out: “If a card says ‘sorry’, it suggests it is the sender’s fault, which of course it isn’t, and you then have to assure them that it isn’t, which turns the receiving of a card from what should have been a positive into a negative.”

We, in the industry, do get an awful lot right in appropriateness for the general public’s needs, as testified by The Henries 2024

finalists ranges (see pages 34-77), but, just as in life, it is a constant evolution. I expect that, as a result of the guidelines that are currently being drawn up based on the insights from the recent workshop, that next year’s finalists will have less sympathy and more hugs.

Left: (left-right) Jackie Lomax, Cheryl Sandbach (Cardfactory), Maxwell Reynolds (Headrow Gallery) and PG’s Jakki Brown on The Henries Judging Day at London’s Business Design Centre.

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booked your ticket to this year’s GCA AGM and Conference yet?

Annabel, one of the Winston’s Wish’s youth ambassador with her ideas of what makes a good card for a bereaved child.

27 24

8-19 News

All the latest happenings and developments in the trade.

21-23 Over The Counter Foreshortened Future?

David Robertson, co-owner of JP Pozzi reflects on how change is all around us, embrace it.

24-25 Cardsharp Not All Cuddles

In view of the current Jellycat developments, PG’s columnist ponders on the ups and downs of past plush phenomena.

27-31 Viewpoints Unleash The Judges

Retail buyers who formed The Henries’ live judging panel channel their inner Gladiator as they battle with the industry’s ills.

33 The Henries’ Judging Process The Judging Colossus

Arriving at the finalists and winners for The Henries 2024 product categories.

34-77 The Henries 2024 Finalists

See which ranges, designers and companies have made it into The Henries 2024 finals.

78-79 In Conversation with…Paper Salad Salad Cream

PG talks to the sole owner of Paper Salad, Karen Wilson and son Jack, the newly appointed operations director about their plans for the business.

81-83 Innovations

A host of new ranges and designs.

84-85 Industry Issue A Cardmitment Full Hand

Retailers pool ideas with the GCA on maximising the Cardmitment 2024 campaign.

86-89 Licensing Focus Just Do It

In the run-up to the fast-approaching Brand Licensing Europe show, PG looks at some of the licensing action in the greeting card field.

91 Art Source Hill Walking Artist and illustrator Sophie Jonas-Hill shares her creative story.

92-93 What’s Hot?

A trio of retailers lift the lid on their best-selling ranges.

94-103 Sources of Supply

TOP STORY

Aussie Billionaire Buys 8% Of Cardfactory shares

Share price soars following the investment

Shares in the UK’s largest greeting card retailer, Cardfactory are on the rise, with a 20p climb over recent weeks – following Australian billionaire Brett Blundy’s decision to buy 8.17% of the company’s listing, making him one of the retail group’s largest shareholders.

Brett Blundy is the founder of the BBRC private investment company. He is recognised as a leading global retail expert with business magazine Forbes estimating his current wealth at £1.72billion.

The move, made through Brett’s BBFit Investments business registered in Singapore, makes him the third largest shareholder in Cardfactory, behind the Britishbased pair of Aberforth Partners with 8.984% share and Artemis Investment Management with 8.572% shareholdings.

Brett Blundy taking this significant investment followed only a few days after Swiss investment company, Teleios Capital Partners sold off its entire 9.92% shareholding in Cardfactory.

At the time of PG going to press (in mid-August) shares in Cardfactory, which now trades from 1,060 outlets as well as online, were trading at 124.60p, 14.29% up since January 1.

Sir Cliff’s date with media

The return of Sir Cliff Richard’s officially licensed calendar has seen the news of the Peter Pan of pop’s 2025 title hit national newspapers and TV as part of a PR campaign driven by licensed card and calendar company, Danilo

The 40th edition of the annual licensed calendar, for 2025, includes a pic of Sir Cliff in the pool despite his vow a couple of years back to give up on topless shots. It has been featured on ITV’s Lorraine show as well as prominent coverage in Daily Mail’s print and online editions.

Danilo’s managing director Daniel Prince said the “carefully orchestrated PR strategy” had garnered significant media attention, “leading to a surge in both brand visibility and sales.”

UKG’s on a sustainable roll

Millions of rolls of sustainable roll wrap with paper tear strip are to be produced in Dewsbury as UK Greetings ups its commitment to sustainability for its greeting cards and gift wrap design and production. In the latest in a series of eco developments, the publisher has invested in state-of-the art machinery, including a Möller conversion machine, now housed at its Dewsbury site, that has been specifically designed to produce and apply paper tear strips to its roll wrap.

UKG’s CEO Ceri Stirland told PG: “Our new paper tear strip represents a significant step forward in our sustainable gift wrap solutions. By eliminating plastic from this component, we're furthering our mission to reduce environmental impact without compromising product functionality.”

Debuting in January, initially on 10 everyday SKUs, the paper tear strip will be extended across all of UKG’s branded everyday roll wraps shortly afterwards, followed by the 2025 UKG branded Christmas roll wraps also going to paper tear strip. This will include all single rolls as well as those supplied to retailers in dumpbins. This will mean that there will be no UKG branded roll wrap that is shrink wrapped or in a sustainable labelled format.

Given UKG’s wide retail distribution, this development is one of scale. As Julie Huntington-Dale, UKG’s supply chain director quantified: “We will be converting around five million rolls in 2025 to have a paper tear strip meaning that the roll wraps will be 100% recyclable.”

The 83-year-old pop veteran has made a date with fans since 1985, with his calendar regularly featuring in Danilo’s top 10 – his 2024 version came fourth in the publisher’s overall bestsellers chart, and second in the music list, behind Taylor Swift in the number one slot for both. Over five million of the licensed Sir Cliff calendars have been sold over the years, notching up sales worth more than £40million,

outselling licensed calendars from the likes of Elvis, Kylie, Madonna, and One Direction

In addition to an A3 version, Danilo also offers a square collector’s edition for pre-order, a slim calendar and slim diary, as well as various greeting cards, including personalised and sound designs.

Above: Brett Blundy’s stake in Cardfactory has seen the share price rise.

Below: Cardfactory now trades from over 1,000 stores.

Above: Shots for the A3 calendar were taken by Robin Williams at Cliff’s Barbados home and aboard a cruise liner.

Above left: Cliff topless in the Daily Mail.

Top: The tear strip leaves a neat edge on the roll.

Above: The Möller conversion machine.

Sharing the joy

Hooray Henries

Some 77 publishers are feted in the finals of the greeting card awards

After an inspiring live judging event, the finalists of The Henries 2024 were revealed, bringing joy to the 77 different publishers who feature in the product, designer and Best Service awards’ line-up.

From tiny newbies up to major brands are feted in these ‘Olympics’ of the greeting card industry. Each and every one in the 20 product categories has made it through a two-stage judging process to make it into the finals, having been scrutinised by over 100 retail buyers, first online and then at an inperson judging.

Buyers from Tesco, Cardfactory, Waterstones, Cardzone, Scribbler, WHSmith, Lark, Moonpig and Postmark were joined by leading small groups and indies, such as House of Cards, Red Card, Cardies, Highworth Emporium, Medici Gallery, Jo Amor, Hugs & Kisses, The Card Centre, First Class Greetings, In Heaven At Home, Sincerely Yours, Nor and Paperweight and many more to form the 40+strong Judging Panel at the live judging event which saw them scrutinise all the shortlisted ranges (arrived at from the first round of online voting) with their collective votes deciding the strong finalists line-up.

Tait Most Promising Young Designer or Artist award.

“As Team GB athletes were going for gold in the Olympics in Paris, our greeting card publishers’ creative prowess came to the fore as the stunning line-up of finalists testify. It proved no mean feat for the Judging Panel to decide how to place their votes, but their collective strength and experience ensured that the integrity of these important accolades are upheld,” commented Jakki Brown, joint owner of Progressive Greetings, which owns and organises The Henries.

In addition to the product categories, the judging panel also had the treat of considering all the entries in The Lynn

All winners of The Henries 2024 will be announced at a lavish awards event, the industry’s big night at London’s Royal Lancaster Hotel in London on Thursday 3 October 2024, which takes on an Ancient Rome theme this year. To book tickets head to www.thehenriesawards.co.uk/tickets

(See all the finalists on pages 34-77)

Scroll up for The Henries 2024 invitation

Publishers did not hold back in sharing their joy of being in The Henries finals. Whether it’s an established publisher such as The Art File, Ohh Deer and Woodmansterne who top the list with multiple nominations, or down to the tiniest of newbies like Brilliantly Brave making the finals, the delight is the same.

As Brilliantly Brave’s Stuart Cox and Jean Pryde said: “For a start-up like us, with just six months under our belt, this feels like a village team finding themselves in the Champions League final.”

With five nominations Stormy Knight’s Sarah Jackson was over the moon – and showed the power of the awards: “I’ve had three potential new stockists get in touch after the judging too, which is amazing. Long live The Henries!”

Laura Darrington joked: “Henry Ford, Henry Winkler, Henry the VIII, Henry the Hoover…Henry nominee! Proper chuffed that our latest male range has been nominated for a prestigious Henries award, basically the Oscars of the greeting card world, and something that makes us very warm and fuzzy inside.”

There was fun from Pickled Prints’ James Andrews, through in the Best Diversity & Inclusion Range category, who laughed: “Well slap me on the bum and call me Meryl! I made it to the finals of The Henries. Good luck to my other card pals! Rootin’ tootin’ for you all!”

There was double delight for Lil Wabbit with founder Georgi Doig in both the Best Art Range as well as being one of the seven Lynn Tait Most Promising Young Designer Or Artist finalists.

“We’re so thrilled that we paused our beachy dog walk to jump in the sea in our pants!” Georgi laughed. “We still consider ourselves a very young company so to be recognised alongside legends of the industry who have produced such incredible ranges is a real honour!”

Scroll up! Scroll up! There’s a unique experience for attendees at this year’s Henries awards as the official ticket is a fantastic boxed scroll keepsake befitting the awards’ Ancient Rome theme.

Designed and sponsored by Rani Moochhala, of Paper Mirchi, the invitation it features the same handcrafted tree-free paper, using the same techniques of pulped cotton rags and textile scraps which make up her greeting card and giftwrap products, that has been handmade in India specifically for The Henries ticket, though the recent monsoon rather delayed the drying time of the beautiful paper.

To complement the tea-stained deckle edge cotton paper all illustrations are by artist Emma Lawrence, and have been skilfully screen-printed by artisans in India.

The scroll, with its wooden roller, will all be encased in a gorgeous handmade satin-lined green box, with classic gold text.

Above: Rani Moochhala (right) has collaborated with Emma Lawrence to produce this year’s unique Henries ticket.

Left: The green and gold box sets off the scroll perfectly.

Above: Over 40 retail buyers participated in The Henries live judging round.

Below: Mark Janson-Smith and Shannon Fisher of Postmark, sponsor of The Lynn Tait Most Promising Artist or Designer category next to some of the submitted boards.

Top: Happy days at Dandelion, on hearing the good news.

Above: Roll up, roll up, Jemima and Kali Stileman are pretty happy too to be in the finals.

Kretinsky’s £3.6bn bid to buy Royal Mail on hold TOP STORY

Folke off from Folkestone!

Govt Calls In RM Takeover Bid

Daniel Kretinsky’s bid to buy Royal Mail and its parent company IDS is to face a government probe after a decision to call in the deal for an investigation under the National Security & Investment Act.

Despite fears that the decision by the IDS board to accept the £3.6billion takeover from the Czech billionaire’s company EP Group would slip through by September as the new Labour administration got to grips with running the country, the news released on 1 August, means the deal is now suspended as part of the process, with the probe expected to take up to two months.

The news came just a couple of days after a letter was delivered to new business secretary Jonathan Reynolds from the GCA and other likeminded partners (BIRA, Booksellers’ Association, National Federation of SubPostmasters, Voice Of The Postmaster and Bookshop.org) demanding that the government save the UK’s postal service.

GCA CEO Amanda Fergusson also issued an official reaction to the media which featured prominently in The Guardian and Daily Mail

his company’s stake in Royal Mail’s owner IDS found no issues but, according to the BBC this probe will be more thorough as EP Group wants to take over the whole business in a transaction worth £5bn overall, including assumed debts.

The new Minister held direct talks with the Czech recently and sources told the BBC that the discussions are “ongoing and have been constructive”, while the investigation will be run by the Cabinet Office with input from the Department For Business & Trade

“Whoever owns Royal Mail, we're all looking for lock-tight, long-term undertakings on affordability and reliability,” Amanda said. “Above all communities need a postal service that performs, serving the needs of small businesses and consumers.”

The call-in means the government could block the deal, although a previous review when Daniel increased

The BBC said the Czech’s business links to Russia, including a company that carries Russian gas into Europe with permission from the European Union, will be scrutinised, as well as whether the UK could be hurt by the private purchase of the 508-yearold mail delivery service. The main fears are for the universal service obligation (USO) under which Royal Mail is legally obliged to deliver letters and parcels anywhere in the country for the same price six days a week which is already under threat following industry regulator Ofcom’s Future Of The Universal Postal Service consultation earlier this year which mooted possible reforms, including cutting the second class service to five or even three days, and hiking first class prices for next-day deliveries.

Two For Joy’s founder sees red over King Charles’ post box

Normally known for their wacky humorous ranges, Objectables’ Tim and Annie Gould have been getting to grips with folk art –actually, that’s Folke Art!

And the tie-up with the Folke Art project has resulted in a brand-new locally-themed postcard range for the Folkestone-based publisher and indie retailer, with a Christmas card pack now in the pipeline.

Run by Community Art Kent, the free art group meets in a community room in the seaside town every Monday and is aimed at over 55s who rarely access the arts.

Above: Some of the artists with their winning cards which are now on sale in Objectables shop.

Tim joined the group, the oldest member of which is 90, to talk about postcard design. As Tim explained: “The collaboration has been great. From the many postcards created, Annie and I chose our seven favourite designs.”

Below: Tim (right) in teaching mode at the Folke Art project.

Objectables has printed the postcards which are now being sold in its shop, with a percentage of the profits going back to fund further Community Art Kent’s projects.

At the launch party, held in the store recently, each winning designer was presented with 25 of their own designs.

“Having the opportunity to partner with Objectables on this project has been amazing,” Charlotte Chapman, of Community Art Kent, said. “The project has enabled members to feel more connected to their community and this has had a direct impact on wellbeing and belonging.”

And Tim said the collaboration has been such a success the group members have been invited to design Christmas cards, the winning designs of which will be made into a pack to be sold in Objectables store, with all profits going to Community Art Kent.

Britain’s red post boxes are an iconic part of the landscape but Louise Richardson, founder of Two For Joy Illustration, and post box enthusiast, has something to say about the latest King Charles III incarnation – she is “horrified” at “the shoddy craftsmanship” of this new box.

And the publisher hasn’t been shy about making her views known, venting her frustration in an Instagram reel on the subject which went viral, clocking up over 1.5million views to date, plus more than 700,000 on TikTok.

In her post Louise said: “Someone at Royal Mail needs a lil trip to Specsavers because this absolute monstrosity has been revealed today as the first King Charles cyphered post box. Post boxes are a beautiful part of our street architecture (well mostly) and a part of British history.”

Explaining that they’re traditionally made in cast iron with the royal cypher and Royal Mail brand working as an integral part of the design, she said the new one has been made from sheet metal with “a strange cypher box” and an “awfully messy welded Royal Mail plaque stuck on”.

Above: Daniel Kretinsky (left) has been in talks with new business secretary Jonathan Reynolds about Royal Mail.

Below: GCA CEO Amanda Fergusson orchestrated a letter to the new Minister from interested parties.

Above: Two for Joy’s Louise Richardson has made her feelings known on the new post box.

All designs are 7x5” Code 60 and come supplied with gold envelopes.

Sophisticated deep flute foiled icons, including Bees, Sunflowers, Cats and Cakes on a textured cream board, in a mix of blank, Birthday and 2 Special Friend.

Autumn Fair Treats

Merchandising masterclasses and live pop-up shops

Among the highlights of the Autumn Fair, which takes place at the NEC 1-4 September, will be live merchandising masterclasses with visual merchandiser Debbie Flowerday. “The shop window is the face of your business, it's the cheapest form of advertising,” states Debbie.

With extensive knowledge and experience of the display and visual merchandising industry, working globally for well-known retailers including Max Mara, Mary Quant, Estée Lauder, Top Shop, Gucci and Royal Worcester, Debbie will host live merchandising masterclasses in the Buyers Lounge three times a day, followed by audience Q&A’s on

the Sunday to Tuesday of the show. A pop-up shop will be created by cardboard maestros N Smith who are exhibiting at the show.

For each of the three days, Debbie will host a live installation session dressing a shop window within a specific theme.

In between sessions, she will offer some 1-2-1 personalised masterclass sessions with buyers.

“Visual merchandising is one of the most important elements in creating the look, feel and culture of a store,” states Autumn Fair’s event director Soraya Gadelrab.

Over 800 exhibitors will be revealing their newest launches at the show, with the majority of greeting card companies in Hall 6, including a Cardgains Village. To register for Autumn Fair visit www.autumnfair.com/visitor-registration.

Cardfactory x Just Eat for home delivery

Cardfactory has joined with online food delivery company Just Eat to offer on-demand delivery of greeting cards, gifts and celebrations products from an initial 19 of its stores across the UK, with 21 more to follow later this year, as the retailer looks to grab a slice of the increasing appetite for on-demand delivery.

The partnership covers over 200 products, including greeting cards, gifts, candles, balloons, gift bags, confectionery and stationery.

Amy Heather, Just Eat UK’s strategic accounts director, said: “Increasingly, rapid delivery is no longer deemed a luxury, but an expectation by busy consumers, and this is demonstrated by the fact one million UK customers are now regularly getting groceries from Just Eat. As we expand further into the retail space, this exclusive partnership with Cardfactory signals our commitment to serving customers whenever, and wherever, they need us. Through our extensive delivery network we’re working to make gifting and celebrating as convenient for consumers as ordering a takeaway.”

A study of 4,000 European customers identified eight key moments which drive grocery/retail orders on the Just Eat app and one included gift giving and care packages for loved ones.

“Celebrating life’s moments is an important part of the way we live, so we want customers to be able to interact with us in whichever way they choose, whether that’s in store, online, or through one of our partners,” said Sam Davies, Cardfactory’s executive digital director. “Delivering great value, choice and convenience is key to Cardfactory’s growth strategy and, through our partnership with Just Eat, we look forward to bringing our unique proposition to more customers in more places.”

Teaspoons fly again!

The power of social media has resulted in Natural Partners Art resurrecting artist Laura Clamp’s greeting card designs after she took the difficult decision to close her publishing ‘baby’ because of her actual babies! And all will be show at Autumn Fair on the Natural Partners Art stand (Hall 6B15).

Having run the Flying Teaspoons card publishing business for eight years, as her family grew Laura, a former Best Young Designer contender in The Henries, found she wasn’t able to give enough time to the business, and so back in November, announced on Facebook that she would be closing down her card side.

Joe Cole, who runs Natural Partners with wife Karen publishing licensed art cards, saw the post and got in touch, “And the teaspoons are flying again!” he told PG, having recently launched an initial collection of 39 of Laura’s collage images, which all started with her favourite long-tailed tits, also known as flying teaspoons for the shape of their long tails.

Bradders digs deep for charity

Running isn’t agent and Rush Design ’s Ian Bradley’s forte so he adapted the MDNA charity’s August challenge to let him cycle and hike 260 miles to raise money for the cause close to greeting card folks’ hearts.

Ian, who helps wife Lorraine run publisher Rush Designs (which is exhibiting at Autumn Fair in Hall 6 on Stand B10), was one of 50 cardies who raised an incredible £50,000 for the Motor Neurone Disease Association with the 2023 Cardgains 25-mile charity challenge.

“I saw the post about their [MDNA] August challenge to run 60 miles in the month,” Bradders told PG, “And thought ‘why not” –but I’m no runner so I’m challenging myself to do something that I believe is even tougher for me. I’m going to do 10 hours on the Peloton, which is 200 miles, and 60 miles hiking to help raise funds to beat motor neurone disease.”

As PG went to press Ian had already racked up well over 40 miles on the static bike, and is going out walking with Lorraine and pals at the weekends to get in the steps for the walking part, with the aim of raising £150 for the charity which funds research into the condition as well as support and information for those living with MND.

Left: Visual merchandiser Debbie Flowerday. Below: Laura Darrington Design will be celebrating its 20th anniversary at Autumn Fair.

Above: Laura has been winding down Flying Teaspoons stock with craft fair sales.

Below: One of the 39 Flying Teaspoons designs in the initial release from Natural Partners.

Above: Cardfactory has partnered with Just Eat for ondemand delivery.

Above: Bradders has put his own spin on the MDNA August challenge

TOP STORY

Bereaved Youngsters Speak Out

Winston’s Wish collabs with GCA and publishers to sort card failings

“Please don’t include the word ‘sorry’ as it sounds like it is the sender’s fault”, “we don’t really understand ‘sympathy’, it’s words of support we want”, “brighter colours” and “fewer words, flowers and birds”, are just some of the requests from the Winston’s Wish charity’s youth ambassadors regarding what bereaved young people want to see on greeting cards that could be sent following the death of a parent, sibling or close relative.

of enthusiastic and erudite youth ambassadors to listen and learn as to where greeting cards are missing the mark.

Sarah-Jane Porter, global design and licensing director of Moonpig welcomed everyone, explaining how one mission of the afternoon is to “arrive at a set of guidelines that will be shared with the greeting card industry” as to how publishers can best cater for grieving young people’s card needs.

Finding fertile ground

British Garden Centres and Blue Diamond have both been on the acquisition trail.

British Garden Centres is already the UK’s largest family-owned garden centre group so its acquisition of the Langlands centres in Shiptonthorpe, Whinmoor and Loxley further strengthens its presence in Yorkshire and takes its estate to 65 UK locations. This trio of centres were previously owned by the Ducker family, who founded the business over 60 years ago.

Charles Stubbs, BGC’s founder and director, said: “Langlands has a long-standing reputation for quality products, expert advice, and a dedication to the communities they serve, values that perfectly align with our own.”

Meanwhile, Blue Diamond has added Frosts to its 45-strong roster of garden centre locations, with Frosts’ remaining Willington outlet expected to complete this month.

These insights were aired at a groundbreaking workshop held recently at Moonpig’s HQ, instigated by the Winston’s Wish charity for bereaved children in conjunction with the GCA and involving several publishers. The aim was to confront the seeming paucity of suitable cards for this very sad send and come up with guidelines to better inform publishers. Moreover, several of the youngsters made the point that they felt excluded, having not received any cards directly when their parent or sibling died, but would have liked to.

As Paul Moore, director of fundraising and marketing for Winston’s Wish explained: “One in 20 children in the UK experience the death of a parent before the age of 16. Expand this to the loss of a grandparent, sibling or other close relative and this number becomes immense. Winston’s Wish has supported 80,000 grieving young people in the last year alone”.

As Amanda Fergusson, ceo of the GCA added, speaking to the Winston’s Wish ambassadors: “Greeting cards are very special things to send when times are difficult as well as to celebrate. You have quite rightly identified that there is a gap in the market for which we need your input to address.”

All attendees were then divided into five groups to discuss the most appropriate tone, imagery and sentiment level for such greeting cards, with each then reporting back with their conclusions. All these and more will be fed into creating the guidelines.

The GCA’s Amanda Fergusson and Adriana Lovesy; Rebecca Green of Raspberry Blossom, Nicci Gower of Hammond Gower, Donna MacGregor of Hallmark, Yvonne Candell of Little Giorgo's Designs, PG’s Jakki Brown and several members of the Moonpig team joined the Winton’s Wish group

The last word went to Annabel, the youngest ambassador whose daddy died when she was just six months old. She was very focused in the most appropriate element to bring into a card for a bereaved youngster: “Hugs…you can hug everything out.”

“Frosts Garden Centre is a thriving and respected family business with a unique brand and excellent reputation within the local community,” said Alan Roper, ceo of Blue Diamond Group. “We intend to protect its heritage and core values while driving the business forward into the future and are delighted to welcome Frosts into the portfolio.”

Bearing up well at Jolly Awesome

The Jolly Awesome team is very happy to be more than Bearly Getting By, the name of its dynamic character brand that has been signed up with licensing agent Toikido, which will be showcasing the publisher’s IP on stand B191 at the imminent Brand Licensing Europe show, which takes place September 24-26 at London’s Excel.

The greeting card publisher is collaborating closely with Toikido on a consumer products programme for the original IP, which has seen immediate success in the greeting card category since its launch in January.

Created by Jolly Awesome founder Matt

Nguyen, 60,000 Bearly Getting By cards were sold in the first five months alone.

Toikido licensing director Sabrina Segalov said: “We’re delighted to partner with Jolly Awesome to bring Bearly Getting By to a broader audience. The character's humour and relatability have already resonated with many, and we see great potential in expanding its presence through various consumer products.”

“We’re thrilled to embark on this exciting journey with Toikido,” Matt said, “with Bearly Getting By joining an incredible portfolio of brands. Sharing similar values, Toikido are fast-paced industry disruptors, and their proven track record in driving brand recognition and revenue growth for their brands will build on the early success we’ve had with Bearly Getting By greeting cards.”

(For more on licensing and BLE, see pages 86-89)

Left: Charity Winston’s Wish and GCA saw a memorable meeting of minds on the issue of greeting cards for bereaved children and young people, which took place at Moonpig’s HQ recently.

Above: Frosts at Woburn Sands is now part of the Blue Diamond group.

Top: Winston’s Wish’s Paul Moore, Moonpig’s SarahJane Porter (right) and Chloe Allum with the three boards that prompted the discussions.

Above: A bright star of the show was young Annabel who was a strong advocate of hugs on cards.

Olympics To Olympia

More brands and more launches at Top Drawer

Top Drawer will open its doors at London’s Olympia from 8-10 September, with a larger footprint, lots of new exhibitors and product launches galore.

Over 10% of exhibitors will hail from overseas – notably Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Japan and the US. The exhibition is on course to showcase almost 10% more brands than in 2023, and over 30% of the 2024 exhibitors will be making their Top Drawer debut.

There will be eight sectors - Gift, Home, Fashion & Jewellery, Play, Greetings & Stationery, Wellbeing, Food Emporium and Launchpad – showcasing over 500 exhibitors.

Areas of the show enjoying especially significant growth include the Home and Greetings & Stationery sections,

with participating publishers including Earlybird, Stormy Knight, Cate Tate Cards, ArtPress, Penguin Ink, Roger la Borde and Susan O’Hanlon.

The Launchpad section which celebrates emerging talent, is set to host over 30 new suppliers, selected by show manager David Westbrooke.

“There’s so much going on at the event this September,” says David. “More brands, more launches, more newness.”

Show highlights include Retail

Revealed, Business Hub, Product Pitch, Spotlight Awards and an after-show party on Sunday 8 September. Register at topdrawer.co.uk

(See page 82 for more launches)

Speakers unveiled for Products Of Change Conference

The rebranded Products Of Change Conference (previously known as Sustainability in Licensing Conference (SiLC) is back at London’s Royal Geographical Society on 6 November Last year’s event was hailed as the “most inspiring and engaging industry event ever attended” by audience members, including several from the greeting card world.

For 2024, the Products Of Change Conference – Sustainability On Brands, Licensing, Products & Retail will be setting the tone with a strong line-up of speakers.

POC founder and CEO Helena MansellStopher said: “As Products Of Change enters its fifth year, we are honoured to showcase the industry’s innovative solutions and achievements. By continuing to push the boundaries of what is possible, we demonstrate the power of collaboration.”

With the great strides made on naked cards, biodegradable glitter, the use of recycled and recyclable board and envelopes, sustainability is high on the greeting card industry’s agenda.

Attendees at previous events include card and calendar publishers UK Greetings, Danilo, Eco-friendly Card Company, and Carousel Calendars – all POC members and each making encouraging sustainability headway.

Tony’s Chocolonely, Lego Group, Primark and Asda are among the first speakers to be unveiled for the 2024 POC conference. Carousel Calendars will join in an exploration of the EU’s new Deforestation Regulation and its direct impact on the publishing sector.

Ticket options are available from www.productsofchange.com/all-events/poc-conference-2024

FSB’s vision for retail

The Future Of The High Street report from the Federation Of Small Businesses aims to create a plan to help businesses in and around High Streets across Britain by transforming them into places that meet future needs and support the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Among the findings are:

• Plummeting consumer spending (70%), falling footfall (47%) and crime or anti-social behaviour (47%) are the biggest risks to High Streets.

• Over half of local businesses (57%) say a diverse range of independent businesses is one of the most important features for the long-term sustainability and future of their local High Street.

• Good transport links are also key for the future of the High Street, according to almost half (43%) of small businesses.

• Around half (49%) of High Street small businesses say parking facilities are managed poorly on their local High Street.

• Since the beginning of the pandemic, most local businesses saw a range of closures on their local High Street, including retail stores (72%), hospitality (69%), banks (58%), post offices (28%) and entertainment venues (20%).

“Our small businesses are an integral part of the High Street and will be central in leading the transformation of their local economies,” said Tina McKenzie, FSB policy and advocacy chair. “By providing the infrastructure, flexibility and digital connectivity that modern businesses demand, High Streets will have the resources available to become resilient, dynamic hubs ready for the future.”

Let’s talk cards

The GCA’s series of podcasts, hosted on its website is growing. The Art File md Ged Mace’s podcast has gone live on Talking Cards With Industry Leaders to join insights from Karen Wilson and Claire Williams of Paper Salad, Len and Issy Smith of Leonard Smith Publishing, and Alan Harnik of US distributor Notes & Queries

“The podcast series has now been heard by well over 500 cardies with listeners growing with each release,” said GCA ceo Amanda Fergusson. The series looks at key greeting card designers, publishers and individuals whose “passion, drive and talent has influenced and shaped the history of our industry”.

Left: There will be a stronger array of home products at Top Drawer A/W 2024.

Below: Stormy Knight, which has clinched five finalists’ places in The Henries will be among the exhibitors.

Above: The FSB report paints a picture of UK High Streets today.

Above: An infographic which highlights the importance of indies.

Above: Ged Mace is the latest release in the GCA’s podcast series.

Above: POC’s founder and directors Helena Mansell-Stopher, Ian Hyder, Rob Willis and Jakki Brown with editor and community manager Rob Hutchins, and Carousel’s Martin Rees-Davis collect one of the POC Members’ Awards last year Below: Eco-friendly Card Co’s Sue Morrish said last year’s conference “was not all about hugging Wombles and gave plenty of food for thought”.

DAVID ROBERTSON

All of us of a certain age feel that life is moving quicker and quicker. In fact, since I had my little boy, life seems to have gone on a crazy fast forward. He is now two! I can’t quite believe that. Perhaps because I am approaching my 50th milestone birthday, it has made me reflect on how every industry, be it hospitality, media or of course retail continues to change in this new world.

Foreshortened Future?

I enjoy a podcast called The Rest is Entertainment and recently they spoke about TV and all the challenges and changes that are evident in that medium.

The debate around linear TV (ie BBC, Channel 4 etc) was a very interesting one as they all believed that it would not be there in 15 years in any similar shape to what we know now.

That would mean the BBC, which started in 1936, would perhaps see its centenary while Channel 4 (1982) and Channel 5 (1997) would barely see 50 or 40 years!

While we could probably all see this coming true, change leads to more opportunities. Already we have seen the rise of the content

creator and that is what in effect is happening with media.

Today

YouTube content creators are perhaps more valuable than traditional TV producers. They produce content daily, target specific audiences and feed them with the knowledge that they want.

Many of them have literally built careers, whether it be Mark Goldbridge speaking about Man U on The United Stand, Mat Armstrong salvaging crashed cars, Brick Clicker launching the latest Lego sets or John Campea discussing all things film.

In a further discussion on The Rest is Entertainment they made the comparison with TV and the steam railways. In the 50s steam was king and then electric came along and made that obsolete. It didn’t matter if you were the best steam operator in the world, you would struggle. However, you were making the seats for those trains, your

business could continue whether the trains were being powered by steam, electricity or hydrogen. This very valid point will not be lost on the TV companies as they find ways to connect with the new audiences and change enough to remain relevant.

All of this got me thinking about retail and how they keep saying that the High St is dead.

If this is the case then why are Governments and Councils pouring money into it? Are they like the BBC and Channel 4 and just trying to eek things out for as long as they can? Or do they really think that shopping and retail still has a place?

Last month I highlighted the need for Govt, Councils and town centre organisations to think carefully about how they spend the money and what they do with things like parking, bus lanes and other rules that make it difficult to access town centres.

Making things easy for people to get what they want is key. Think about YouTube. If you want to watch content on women’s basketball

Above: Traditional TV companies are having to be switched on to new challenges from consumers.

Left: David with his two year old son, Hudson. Below: The Rest is Entertainment podcast is one of David’s fave listens.

Left: Mark Goldbridge and Mat Armstrong are among the many YouTube stars who deliver specialist content to their fans.

or theme parks it is simple, quick and has lots of choice. Normal TV cannot do that.

Retail is no different. The High St has changed and will continue to do so. In the early 2000s we were awash with phone shops which have now largely disappeared. Betting shops and banks are also now disappearing, but they are being replaced with experiences, be it children’s entertainment/soft play, coffee shops, ice cream parlours etc. And behind many of these stores are not massive pension funds or companies, but individuals with a dream.

To reinforce this belief American Express conducts a survey called Trendex. In the one published in May, 95% of small business owners reported that they were happy with their company and their long terms plans. Although many small business owners face uncertainty around cashflow, long working hours, employee challenges and indeed the many other headaches and stresses, they all want to do it because the decisions are theirs to make.

The NFSB speaks about struggling business, racking up debt, many facing recession but in reality many people still opt to own and run their own business.

single full face shelving we focus on other brands that have worked for us for literally years. These include Five Dollar, Belly Button and many other small publishers. In addition, companies such as Woodmansterne or Paperlink can now sit their product next to the smaller quirky publishers and look entirely at home or sit on the main control if the sky lining is right.

Right now I am feeling very conflicted as there is literally so much product out there that I would like to try and sell, but am not sure if it appeals to my customer.

Cards allow you to change the look and feel of your store quickly and for not huge money, but I do believe that for cards to get a true crack of the whip, they need to be displayed and pushed in the best way possible.

survey were from people in their 20s and 30s which shows you the shift in mindset. Some 20% had gone straight from school into starting their own business, some 84% were inspired by personal passion, 65% by a need in their community while 44% wanted work flexibility. Over half (56%) were inspired through social media and all felt new tech was an enabler.

We operate in small towns where most of the footfall is regular and a bit like a YouTube algorithm, we know what they want and we give them that.

Woody, Five Dollar, Cinnamon Aitch, Belly Button, Hearts Design, Paperlink, WJB, White Cotton, while all different are all similar in terms of the customer that they appeal to. It’s what you can throw into that mix and still make it work that is interesting. We have tried certain other publishers and they simply fell flat as the product just didn’t work in our environment, at the time.

Now when people speak about start-ups and business goals we cannot all be Brewdog or Gymshark. These are the exceptions not the rule. Most of us are making sandwiches or cakes, fixing cars, tidying gardens or in our case, selling gifts and cards!

At present I really like my shops. We really know who we are and we feed into that with the choices in stock that we make.

The cards on our main controls are very traditionally-focused (UKG, IC&G, Cherry Orchard, Words n Wishes etc) while on the

In much the same way you can’t put Froggy Flips (retro toy hunter) on the BBC, sticking a wonderful publisher like Jade Fisher, Brainbox Candy or Ohh Deer into our mix just hasn’t worked for us so far.

However I want to be known for being different and ahead, yet in card terms it is all about giving our customers what they want.

Now of course we do introduce new publishers to see what works, but I also have an idea in my head for a really quirky shop with a different type of look and feel to what we do currently.

Maybe this urge to try something new is related to my looming 50th Birthday on the 13th of September, unlucky for some!

I look with a little envy at youngsters nowadays as YouTube and social media has allowed them to be far more money and business savvy than any childhood in a small town in Scotland could allow me.

Many of the responses in the recent AMEX

To me this is fantastic as quite simply all of that seemed a little out of reach when I left school back in 1992.

Getting back to the 50 years thing, milestone birthdays are arguably our best sellers in cards, which signals another change as Sympathy cards were the undoubted winner for a long time, until social media posts changed that.

I believe retail will continue to evolve just as we do as humans, but the positive thing is that even with the passage of time I think we still want to go into a store and be greeted, helped and left to browse. This has been evident over the last few months as we have seen all our stores busy with visitors to our towns, sharing positive comments, such as “We don’t have shops like this at home”, “I can’t believe the choice of cards, gifts etc…, “It was lovely to be helped in a store”.

Mum and I take great satisfaction in all of these and will continue to try and provide that special shopping environment, now and in the future.

At the beginning I spoke of time moving quicker and many people class this as a foreshortened future, which can be seen as a negative thing as you feel life is flying past.

However, for me life is for living. I just want to make sure that i get to do all the things I want with my family, with my friends and with my business. Not a huge ask I know!!! I wonder what retail will be like in 2074? Perhaps though I need to get my 50th out of the way first!

l To contact David email: jppozzi@btconnect.com

Above and right: David’s Mum and business partner, Lynda recently celebrated her 80th birthday with some of JP Pozzi’s 42 employees. David’s 50th is next on the cake list!

Above: A young David with his Mum and Dad, when times were a bit different.

cardsharp

Not All Cuddles

‘Ah…the ‘aah factor,’ mused Cardsharp. That vital ingredient for a successful range of soft toys or ‘plush’ as we in the industry refer to them. And as plush has always had a very symbiotic relationship with greeting cards, Cardsharp reflects on the ups and downs histories of past plush phenomena, especially in view of the current Jellycat developments.

planned changes to the sales team structure and retail distribution policy at Jellycat has been the talk of the greeting card and gift community of late. In essence, with the sales of the quirky collectable ranges or the ‘renowned luxury soft toy company’ as the business refers to itself, booming as never before, the company has decided to part company with its sales agents at the end of this year, many of whom have been with them since the company started 25 years ago, replacing them with an in-house sales team.

In addition to this controversial move, the company is closing a number of independent accounts, some that were not performing as Jellycat would have liked and some that the company perceived did not fit in with its luxury designled brand image. Who knew plush could be so precious? In addition, there are also tales of payment terms being changed by the company, moving established indies to proforma basis after many years of decent payment terms. Not surprisingly this has not gone down at all well with many independents.

Now Cardsharp appreciates that a company has every right to pursue

its own sales strategy. It seems a pity though that the very people who have helped build the brand from nothing are being jettisoned. In the statement that Jellycat issued informing of the change, it made the points that independent accounts are ‘a vital part of the Jellycat family’ and the company’s dedication to these important partners remains ‘steadfast’, but as one retailer told Cardsharp: “Well, they have a funny way of showing it!”

Perhaps Jellycat should reflect on various other plush crazes of the last 40 years because nothing lasts forever in this category, and how you treat your customers on the way up, is often remembered on the inevitable way down.

Cardsharp recalls, the origins of plush came from when manufacturers of soft toys for the children’s market realised that they could market these as ‘social expression’ products and sell them through the then fast-growing greeting card retail distribution channel. The big brown eyes of Sad Sam and Honey, two cuddly dog characters were among the first to make a mark, followed by an American company, Russ Berrie, who marketed a full range of different cuddly animals largely in card shops. Then came Dakin with its Garfield ‘Stuck on You’ character which at one time in the late 1980s, seemed to be suctioned to virtually every car’s back window.

But the first real ‘Jellycat-like’ phenomenon was Forever Friends. These

Above: Staying top of the cuddles is not ‘furry’ easy. Below: Jellycat has been marking its 25th anniversary with tours and displays of Jack the cat, such as this in Paper Tiger’s Stafford Street store in Edinburgh.

Below left: Sad Sam and Honey were among the early plush superstars.

Below right: Dakin’s Garfield stuck on yous stuck around for a few years.

androgynous bear characters started life in 1987 on a greeting card range designed by the late Deborah Jones and published by Andrew Brownsword and his eponymous company. Achieving huge greeting card sales, the two nameless cute bears which anchored the brand were skilfully translated into a plush range that captured the essence of the greeting cards. Within a couple of years there was barely a teenage girl’s bedroom in the country that was not adorned with at least one of these loveable ursine characters. Andrew certainly got his timing right. He sold his company, The Andrew Brownsword Collection at the peak of the Forever Friends success to Hallmark for a figure believed to be in the region of £200 million. But Hallmark could not maintain the success of Forever Friends. Sales started to drop while Hallmark tinkered with the format. In 2019 production of Forever Friends plush ceased completely. Friends remain but apparently not Forever on the plush format!

The next big one was Carte Blanche’s Tatty Teddy or ‘the Grey Bear’ as it is often known. The first grey Tatty Teddy soft toy was produced in 2000 and as a success story it has been even bigger than Forever Friends. At one stage it was responsible for 25% of Clinton Cards’ sales at a time when the retail chain had over 600 stores. And since its inception, 7.5 million plush items have been sold.

However, the most dramatic plush story must be the phenomena of Ty Beanie Babies. The American Ty Warner created the first Beanie Baby with his company TY Inc. in 1992, but by the mid-nineties they were massive, even being described as the first internet sensation. Warner was shrewd

enough to see that their value could be enhanced as collectables, not only to hug, but as a financial investment. They sold in their millions through independent gift and card shops, but cleverly distribution was limited to create scarcity. Ty would quite literally ‘retire’ characters at their peak, so the secondary market became massive. It became a national craze (in many countries) with queues of customers forming in the morning outside stockists awaiting a fresh delivery of the Beanie Babies.

Incredibly, Cardsharp recalls at the height

stock Beanies. As sales plummeted, and the UK subsidiary went into administration. Moreover in 2014 Ty Warner was sentenced to two years of probation plus community service for tax evasion. It seems that since 1996 he had stashed a huge amount of the Beanie cash in an offshore account in Switzerland. He only narrowly avoided a custodial sentence because his philanthropic activities were taken into account. The 78 year old Mr Warner is however now estimated to be worth $5.7 billion!

The Ty brand has been resurrected, and with it the Beanies, but sales are nowhere near those craze phase days which stand as testament to the fickle nature of the plush market.

Cardsharp reflects that Tatty Teddy however has stood the test of time. Helped a great deal by its ongoing licensing programme, which has successfully taken the ‘grey bear’ onto all manner of products, from birthday cakes to ladies pyjamas, Carte Blanche has carefully nurtured the Me to You brand, never over milking it, but at the same time constantly refreshing it and making astute decisions when it comes to licensing and distribution. The UK’s largest retail card chain, Cardfactory, for example, recently highlighted Tatty as having had a positive contributory factor in its last set of financials.

To Cardsharp, the Ty story shows that hubris and arrogance can dilute a plush brand, while the history of the ‘grey bear’ shows that a plush character can maintain a level of popularity for over a generation.

of their popularity, some Beanie characters, would be flipped at ten times the retail sale price, given the demand. At its peak 10% of eBay sales came from Beanie Babies.

But at this time Ty Inc. acquired something of a reputation of being arrogant and unpleasant to deal with. Okay when you are on the rise and indispensable, but not when sales start to fall. They also started to insist that a retailer would have to stock other Ty lines, if it wished to

So, what of Jellycat, as it marks its 25th anniversary, ponders Cardsharp? Some of its consumer marketing is truly groundbreaking and the current retail activations, such as the ‘fish and chips takeaway’ popup in Selfridges, the patisserie pop-up in Paris’ Galleries Layfayette are so innovative. Plus, the brand still crops up as best seller in PG’s What’s Hot? and PG&H’s Best Sellers list, all indicating that there is still plenty fuel in the tank.

Could the recent Jellycat changes signal the company is being lined up for a sale? And if so, will the present owners get the timing exactly right and make a financial killing like Andrew Brownsword did 30 years ago? Interestingly, Cardsharp concludes, that in the world of plush, it is not all just cuddles!

Far left: This 1997 Ty Beanie Britannia Bear is currently on sale on eBay for £199!

Left: Carte Blanche’s Me to You is still a top cute choice.

Below left: Forever Friends bears were a mega hit for Andrew Brownsword.

Below: Jellycat is a master of perpetuating consumer interest in its products, evidenced by its topical Instagram posts.

Congratulations, Mr Cole.

We’re delighted that the V&A Greetings Card range has been nominated for the Henry Cole Award at the 2024 Henries; awards named after the same Henry Cole who founded the V&A in 1852. M&G’s flagship art range contains over 160 different designs, across four different card sizes, and is a vibrant celebration of the quality and variety of the V&A’s collections. Adding a touch of style to any retailer’s offer, the V&A’s cards are as commercially popular as they are inspiring. We hope Mr Cole would approve, on all counts.

To see the complete range please contact our sales team or visit our website.

Unleash The Judges

With Ancient Rome as the theme of The Henries 2024, the judges entered the ‘Colosseum’ aka London’s Business Design Centre and after being awed by the contending ranges, they channelled their inner Gladiator self, answering some probing questions…

The Questions…

Nigel Williamson, partner of House of Cards, seven shops in the Home Counties

Roman Triumph: “Wine…no contest!”

Mother of Invention: “The stock control ticket with the re-order history printed on it.”

Fighting Talk: “I would like the gladiators to ensure there are only happy customers who never say that cards are too expensive, free parking in towns, rateable values reaccessed as well as lower postal costs and a first class service.”

Maxwell Roberts, owner of Headrow Gallery, Leeds

Roman Triumph: “The Three Tenors concert?! The Romans’ invention of the First Class stamp and Moonpig have been slightly damaging…I bet they wished they had invented the cream scone!”

Mother of Invention: “The improvements in the distribution of greeting cards meaning faster delivery for retailers while for publishers it has to be the advent of quality digital printing which has made card publishing viable for smaller businesses.”

Fighting Talk: “All those on Facebook who are proud to say that they won’t buy cards anymore and just give a charitable contribution…but do they?”

1. Roman Triumph: “What have the Romans ever done for us?” is a phrase from Monty Python’s Life of Brian film. Revered for their many achievements from roads to sanitation, trademarks to fast food, what do you think is the best thing the Romans have done for us?

2. Mother of Invention: The Romans were acclaimed for their inventions, but what do see as the best innovation in the greeting card industry?

3. Fighting Talk: Roman gladiators fought against beasts, criminals and other gladiators. What ‘fight’ would you like to see gladiators take on for the benefit of the greeting card industry?

Caroline Ranwell, owner of Hugs & Kisses, Tettenhall

Roman Triumph: “The Ancient Romans’ greatest claims to fame have to be road construction as well as plumbing and sanitation systems.”

Mother of Invention: “The development of charity Christmas cards and the introduction of personalised cards.”

Fighting Talk: “Free parking in villages and towns. Better rates and rents for those in town and city centres. Sort out the Royal Mail please, don’t let it die…we need a better service and better prices.”

Cilena Easton, owner of Artichoke, Tynemouth

Roman Triumph: “They invented the postal system, where would we be without that?!”

Mother of Invention: “Cello-free packaged cards.”

Fighting Talk: “Cheaper postage.”

Left: Artichoke’s Cilena Easton completing The Henries judging forms.

Jo Sorrell, owner of Cardies, Stevenage

Roman Triumph: “Building straight roads that last forever.”

Mother of Invention: “Die-cutting, foiling, embossing and digital printing.”

Fighting Talk: “Slay traffic wardens.”

Above: House of Cards’ Nigel Williamson (centre) with Hugs and Kisses’ Caroline Ranwell and PG’s Warren Lomax.

Above: Caroline sees charity Christmas cards, such as this box from Woodmansterne, has been one of the industry’s best inventions.

Above: Maxwell Roberts enjoying his first time as a Henries’ judge.

Right: Cardies’ Jo Sorrell (right) with In Heaven at Home’s Anne Barber and Medici Gallery’s Tim Reynolds with their goody bags of samples from the judging event.

VIEWPOINTS

Laura Clarke, buyer of Scribbler

Roman Triumph: “Wine and book binding.”

Mother of Invention: “The evolution of more sustainable production, formats and packaging.”

Fighting Talk: “Reduce stamp prices.”

Lauren

Clarke, assistant buyer of Waterstones

Jo Webber, owner of Jo Amor, Tiverton

Roman Triumph: “I thank the Romans for spaghetti carbonara, the Four Seasons pizza, tiramisu and many bottles of Montepulciano!”

Mother of Invention: “For unwrapped cards becoming the norm so that we have cards that do not cost the planet.”

Fighting Talk: “The end of roadworks and introduction of free parking in towns.”

Lucy Eason, owner of George’s, Whitstable

Roman Triumph: “Orgies and grand feasts!”

Mother of Invention: “The continuing drive for sustainability in cards and their packaging, plus the development of the community support within the greeting card industry.”

Fighting Talk: “Stop multinationals pushing up the rents.”

Scarlett Ford, buyer of WHSmith

Roman Triumph: “Roman baths.”

Mother of Invention: “Laser cut pop-up cards. Beautiful designs that feel more like you are giving a gift than just a card. Lovely keepsakes that will remind the recipient of the sender.”

Fighting Talk: “The surging costs of stamps.”

Roman Triumph: “My biggest thanks to the Romans is for underfloor heating, irrigation systems, boundary marking and foundations that have stood the test of time, plus our calendar which allows for monthly tracking.”

Mother of Invention: “Seed paper which has enabled publishers to create a more sustainable way of sending cards and that gives recipients a way of further spreading the enjoyment with others.”

Fighting Talk: “Please, please stop the prices of stamps rising any higher.”

Helen Southgate, owner of Cards N Things, Hellesdon

Roman Triumph: “Clocks…I like to be organised and on time.”

Mother of Invention: “The sheer choice of captions, such as ‘Your 100th park run’ and titles that combine an age and relation.”

Paul Southgate, owner of Cards N Things, Hellesdon

Roman Triumph: “The font, Times New Roman.”

Mother of Invention: “The sheer wealth of beautiful designs from upcoming artists, designers and publishers.”

Fighting Talk: “Business rate relief for life.”

Helen and Paul Southgate of

Fighting Talk: “Better support for local shops in general.”

Things in judging mode.

Jerry Brown, co-owner of First Class Greetings and Plum Green, Hadleigh

Roman Triumph: “Wine and orgies.”

Mother of Invention: “Improved diversity and inclusive cards.”

Fighting Talk: “For the Post Office to pay postmasters properly.”

Right: First Class Greetings’ Debbie and Jerry Brown.

Debbie Brown, co-owner of First Class

Greetings and Plum Green, Hadleigh

Roman Triumph: “The Gladiator film…following on from Russell Crowe, Paul Mescal who is to play the lead in the Gladiator II film looks pretty good!”

Mother of Invention: “Improvements in printing and finishing which allow publishers to differentiate themselves.”

Fighting Talk: “Improve local government support for retailers, introducing fairer business rates and other cost reducing initiatives.”

Right: The name game…(right-left) Laura Clarke of Scribbler, Lauren Clarke of Waterstones and Lauren Thomas of Tesco.

Above: Holding the price of stamps is the challenge both Laurens have given to the gladiators to fight for.

Above: (left-right) Jo Webber of Jo Amor, Deb Came of Paperweight, Sarah Laker of Stationery Supplies, Lauren Thomas of Tesco and Sam Ody of Cardzone. Left: Jo’s Roman triumphs include those of the liquid variety.

Above:

Cards ‘n’

Above: WHS’ Scarlett Ford ready to judge the Christmas Box or Pack category.

Above: Green credentials are clearly important for George’s Lucy Eason (right) as well as Pretty Shiny Shop’s Georgina Black.

Above: Paul Mescal takes the lead in Gladiator II.

Cheryl Sandbach, senior buying manager of Cardfactory, 1000+ stores

Roman Triumph: “Hot baths, Hadrian’s Wall and Rome, a truly beautiful city.”

Fighting Talk: “Take on the challenge to cut postage costs.”towns.”

Megan Douglas, card and giftwrap buyer, Waterstones

Roman Triumph: “The Romans laid the groundwork for creating a democratic society.”

Mother of Invention: “The introduction of biodegradable finishes and packaging.”

Fighting Talk: “Stem the rising costs of paper, materials and stamp prices.”

Olivia Reilly, co-owner of Little Boat Gifts, Brightlingsea

Roman Triumph: “Coming from Colchester, which has strong Roman connections, I have to side with a non-Roman…

Boudica! She is a strong female role model who led a large group of men. Without the Roman invasion, we would never have heard of Boudica.”

Mother of Invention: “The envelope as it keeps all your messages inside cards private. However, it could be that the best invention is yet to come.”

Fighting Talk: “Postage…let’s make it easier for everyone to send cards and letters to loved ones.”

Sandra Jervis, stationery boss lady of Creative Cove, Lampeter

Roman Triumph: “Raucous sex and orgies – surely they were better at that than anything else?!”

Mother of Invention: “Letterpress – the process elevates cards to the next level of beauty.”

Fighting Talk: “The Royal Mail! We need gladiators to join us in our fight to keep the six day a week postal delivery service. If we don’t, people will send fewer cards simply because they will think they won’t arrive in time.”

Serge Sumerling, co-owner of First Class Greetings and Plum Green, Hadleigh

Roman Triumph: “Spas.”

Mother of Invention: “3D and pop-up cards…amazing paper engineering.”

Fighting Talk: “To stop medium/large multiples moving into independents’ areas.”initiatives.”

Left: Nor’s Serge about to put pen to paper.

Emma Thurgood, manager of Sincerely Yours, Hornchurch and Shenfield

Roman Triumph: “They created calendars which helps everyone keep track of when to send cards.”

Mother of Invention: “Foiling. It really adds to designs and makes them stand out.”

Fighting Talk: “Stop supermarkets in our High Street selling the same cards as us independents.”

Above: Sincerely Yours, Emma (left) and mum Kaye Thurgood.

Right: Wendy Jones-Blackett’s cards exude the wonders of foiling.

Katrina Raill, director of Etcetera, Hitchin

Roman Triumph: “Florentina pizza and Gavi.”

Mother of Invention: “The improved selection of sustainable giftwrappings, plus the lower cost of entry thanks to digital printing means there are more smaller, independent publishers.”

Fighting Talk: “Lower business rates and councils to introduce free parking.”

Ruth Taylor, merchandise and buying administrator of Scribbler

Roman Triumph: “Loos (sanitation), wine and roads.”

Mother of Invention: “The reduction of glitter and foil, increase in plastic-free packaging such as corner tabs.”

Fighting Talk: “Stamp prices.”

Above left: A rainbow celebration of Hadrian’s Wall.

Above: (left-right) Cardfactory’s Cheryl Sandbach and Charlotte Green with Little Boat Gifts’ Peter and Olivia Reilly. Left: Waterstones’ Megan Douglas taking her Henries’ judging responsibility seriously. Below: In a male-dominated era, Boudica led the army that fought off the Romans.

Above: Creative Cove’s Sandra Jervis did not let a fracture in her foot get in the way of travelling from Wales to do the judging.

Above right: Scribbler’s Ruth Taylor in mid judging.

Above: The Romans were flushed with success on the inventions front.

Above: (left-right) Etcetera’s Katrina Raill with Hugs and Kisses’ Caroline Ranwell and PG’s Jakki Brown.

Sally Matson, owner of Red Card, Petworth

Roman Triumph: “Currency…dated coinage to mark the various eras and to give us the ability to purchase, trade, services and goods. Let’s hope we will never lose actual physical currency.”

Mother of Invention: “Getting rid of cellos is the best change, but I really love cold foiling!”

Fighting Talk: “The most important challenge we face is keeping a reliable and affordable postal service that supports our fabulous greeting card industry.”

Kaye Thurgood, owner of Sincerely Yours, Hornchurch and Shenfield

Roman Triumph: “The calendar…I run my life by it.”

Mother of Invention: “The Retas awards. They bring the industry together at a great networking event that celebrates the leading retailers in our sector, especially the independents.”

Fighting Talk: “We need those gladiators to eradicate shoplifters!”

Peter Reilly, co-owner of Little Boat Gifts, Brightlingsea

Roman Triumph: “While not Roman, I want to pay tribute to the goddess that was Lynn Tait who defined my entire greeting card career. She introduced me to design and the wholesaling of greeting cards through The Ladder Club, provided me with masses of support and introduced me to the Progressive Greetings team…sadly no longer with us, she will be remembered as a real Roman hero of the industry.”

Sarah Laker, chief stationery geek of Stationery Supplies, Marple and Wilmslow

Roman Triumph: “It has to be newspapers. The Romans were the first to distribute a form of daily news to citizens via handwritten publicly displayed sheets.”

Mother of Invention: “I love the diversity and inclusion of new publishers who are bang on tackling subjects never seen before on cards, such as mental health and the menopause. The industry is exciting and innovative, and each year it gets better and better.”

Fighting Talk: “Royal Mail. We need a reliable, trustworthy service of posties marching around the UK delivering our mail for an affordable price.”

Above: Stationery Supplies’ Sarah Laker going googly eyed at the judging.

Anne Barber, owner of In Heaven at Home, Market Harborough

Roman Triumph: “The calendar as we know it today and Roman numerals.”

Mother of Invention: “The evolution of humorous cards for all tastes. There is nothing better than hearing people laughing and seeing the smiles humorous cards bring to their faces.”

Mother of Invention: “Digital printing has enabled so many designers to publish on a smaller scale, meaning that we retailers have so much choice and smaller artists are supported.”

Fighting Talk: “Although it has revolutionised communication I would like a gladiator to eradicate email, especially at Christmas as the reduction in Christmas card sending has really hit the industry.”

Fighting Talk: “I would love to see a special reduced price Christmas stamp, which people could only use for sending Christmas cards. Costing 50p or less it could take 4-5 days to be delivered. It would make posting Christmas cards more affordable and would encourage people to post early.”

Dale Boreham, head of cards at Moonpig

Roman Triumph: “Infrastructure, which is the key to everything.”

Mother of Invention: “Online sites to reach digital age senders thereby working in conjunction with traditional shops to sustain the joy of giving and receiving a card.”

Fighting Talk: “Sort out Royal Mail, reduce postal charges and speed up delivery.”

Above: In Heaven at Home’s Anne Barber. Below: Where would we be without roman numerals, clocks and calendars?

Top: Red Card’s Sally Matson in full swing of the judging. Above: Currency is one of the Romans gifts.

Left: A still from the disturbing video of a shoplifting in a Cardfactory store.

Above: Little Boat Gifts’ Peter and Olivia Reilly.

Above: Moonpig’s Dale Boreham.

The Henries awards are the ultimate accolades in greeting card design, this year attracting 2,095 entries from 313 different greeting card publishers across the 19 product categories.

PG explains the two-stage judging process, involving well over 100 retailers, to arrive at the finalists and winners of The Henries 2024.

The Henries 2024 Live Judging Panel

l Sonya Adams, owner of Serendipity, Hale

“Publishers’ engagement with The Henries 2024 broke new records, with 313 greeting card publishers entering, from established leading brands to brand new start-ups, collectively showcasing our industry’s incredible creative prowess,” commented Jakki Brown, managing director of Max Publishing, which owns and organises The Henries.

“Likewise, the two-stage judging process has seen more retail buyers than ever casting their votes, both online and in person to arrive at the finalists and winners,” she added.

As ever, The Henries were free to enter, making them accessible to all publishers. The first round of judging took place entirely online, which saw a judging panel of some 90 retail buyers cast votes to arrive at a shortlist. There were 15 shortlisted ranges in the vast majority of the product categories. These shortlisted ranges as well as all of the submissions for The Lynn Tait Most Promising Young Designer or Artist category featured at a physical judging event (which was held on 30 July at London’s Business Design Centre) with a judging panel comprising over 40 retail buyers, considering the actual greeting cards and giftwrappings and casting their votes to arrive at the finalists and winners for The Henries 2024.

The Judging Colossus

l Priya Aurora-Crowe, buyer/co-owner of Lark London, 23 stores

l Sean Austin, owner of Austin & Co, Malvern

l Anne Barber, owner of In Heaven at Home, Market Harborough

l John Barratt, director of Card Centre, Felixstowe

l Dale Boreham, head of card design, Moonpig

l Georgina Black, owner of Pretty Shiny Shop, Finsbury Park and Oval

l Debbie Brown, co-owner of First Class Greetings and Plum Green, Hadleigh

l Jerry Brown, co-owner of First Class Greetings and Plum Green, Hadleigh

l Deb Came, proprietor of Paperweight, Cardiff

l Laura Clarke, buyer of Scribbler, 36 stores

l Lauren Clarke, assistant buyer of Waterstones, 320 stores

l Megan Douglas, card and giftwrap buyer, Waterstones, 320 stores

l Lucy Eason, owner of George’s, Whitstable

l Cilena Easton, owner of Artichoke, Tynemouth

l Shannon Fisher, buyer of Postmark, 14 shops in London, Birmingham and Glasgow

l Scarlett Ford, buyer of WHSmith, 500+ stores

l Charlotte Green, buyer of Cardfactory, 1000+ stores

l Mark Janson-Smith, co-founder of Postmark, 14 shops in London, Birmingham and Glasgow

l Sandra Jervis, stationery boss lady of Creative Cove, Lampeter

l Sarah Laker, chief stationery geek of Stationery Supplies, Marple and Wilmslow

l Aga Marsden, owner of The Highworth Emporium, Highworth

l Sally Matson, owner of Red Card, Petworth

l Samantha Ody, head of buying of Cardzone Group, 300+ stores

l Evonne Pearson, owner of The Hedgehog Bookshop

l Katrina Raill, director of Etcetera, Hitchin

l Caroline Ranwell, owner of Hugs & Kisses, Tettenhall

l Andrew Reid, manager of Card Centre, Felixstowe

l Olivia Reilly, co-owner of Little Boat Gifts, Brightlingsea

l Peter Reilly, co-owner of Little Boat Gifts, Brightlingsea

l Tim Reynolds, retail manager of Medici Gallery, Kensington

l Maxwell Roberts, owner of Headrow Gallery, Leeds

l Cheryl Sandbach, senior buying manager of Cardfactory, 1000+ stores

l Jo Sorrell, owner of Cardies, Stevenage

l Helen Southgate, owner of Cards N Things, Hellesdon

l Paul Southgate, owner of Cards N Things, Hellesdon

l Serge Sumerling, owner of Nor, Beckenham and West Norwood

l Ruth Taylor, merchandise and buying administrator of Scribbler, 36 stores

l Lauren Thomas, buyer of Tesco, 4,000+ stores

l Emma Thurgood, manager of Sincerely Yours, Hornchurch and Shenfield

l Kaye Thurgood, owner of Sincerely Yours, Hornchurch and Shenfield

l Jo Webber, owner of Jo Amor, Tiverton

l Andrew Webb, partnership manager of Scribbler, 36 stores

l Nigel Williamson, partner of House of Cards, seven shops in the Home Counties

Top right: Cheers from the judging panel and PG team at The Henries 2024 physical judging event.

Above: Red Card’s Sally Matson and Sean Austin of Austin & Co were among the 100+ buyers involved in the judging.

Right: (left-right) Maxwell Roberts of Headrow Gallery, Shannon Fisher of Postmark, Tim Reynolds of Medici Gallery, Mark Janson-Smith of Postmark and PG’s Warren Lomax discuss the relative merits of some of the shortlisted ranges in the Best Photographic category.

The Lynn Tait

Open to: This special award category recognises and rewards the wealth of young creative talent that we have in the UK. This award is open to all designers and artists (employed by a publisher or freelance) aged 35 years or under on 1 July 2024.

l Rachel Burt, designer of Hotchpotch

“Hi I’m Rachel! I am a greeting card designer at Hotchpotch.

I have been working in the greeting card industry since I graduated from university (some years ago now!) and feel so lucky that this is my job!

I love doodling on my iPad and it has become a bit part of my design process. There is so much potential in digital processes and I love to explore these!”

l Emily Byrd, founder of Bird & Co Studio

“I have always had a passion for getting out into nature and exploring the wild. From a young age, I was at my happiest drawing in trees and making woodland dens. I have always loved making people happy and would spend hours crafting special birthday cards for friends and family.

For a long time, I’d dreamed of having my own business and in 2022, I combined my passion for illustration and design with my love of the outdoors and created Bird & Co Studio. Over the last year I decided to give this new venture my best shot, so after doing my first Christmas market, I signed up for PG’s Ladder Club in December 2023. The day inspired me so much and I met other cardies that have since grown into good friends. This led on to me doing the GCA’s Dragons’ Speed-dating event in March 2024, which helped me get used to pitching my work to retailers and gain some valuable feedback. Then in June I launched officially to the retail trade on Faire and at the PG Live show. I was so chuffed to leave the show with orders, amazing new contacts and more industry friends, as well as a Golden and Sunshine Tickets!

My designs are hugely inspired by my adventures in

in alphabetical order

2024 Finalists

l Rachel Burt, greeting card designer at Hotchpotch

l Emily Byrd, founder of Bird & Co Studio

l Georgi Doig, director of happiness for Lil Wabbit

l Beth Lewton, senior creative of Woodmansterne Publications

l Esme Linton, senior designer of Woodmansterne Publications

l Emily Nash, founder of Emily Nash Illustration

l Lex Rogy, founder of Little Roglets

the natural world (often accompanied by my spaniel Mylo), and my goal is to create beautiful, illustrated products that help to protect it. I’m so proud of what I’ve achieved so far; being a finalist for two Henries awards, planting 500+ trees and already being stocked in amazing stores around the world - I feel like I’m living my dream and I’m so excited to see where my journey leads me next.”

l Georgi Doig, director of happiness for Lil Wabbit

“I am beyond excited to be a finalist in this category for the second year running. When launching lil wabbit just four years ago, after I took my grandmother’s watercolour paints home following her death, I could never have guessed that one day I’d be nominated for an art-based award.

Since last year’s Henries I have been busy beavering away…I’ve created two new ranges consisting of 55 designs; launched our new bee scheme, sponsoring 60,000 bees, each one representing a card sold; continued our StreetVet campaign and hit a total of £13,000 raised to date; taken part in my first PG Live and Harrogate Home & Gift, as well as our fourth Top Drawer, plus landed my first small chain and national (thanks to the Dragons’ event).

Being recognised among the publishers in the category is truly amazing and we can’t wait to get to the awards and party the night away!”

l Beth Lewton, senior designer of Woodmansterne Publications

“My creative journey started over 10 years ago working within design industries, and to this day I continue to craft my design skills within the greeting card industry knowing there is always more to learn and explore. What inspires me? Well, my main source is mother nature, she gives my soul peace and quiet, so I take from her any inspiration she is happy to share with me. What gets me excited is taking a seed of an idea, giving it fertile soil, holding patience for growth and then watching the idea bloom. Hopefully many more ideas will be in bloom soon!”

l Esme Lintin, in-house designer for Woodmansterne Publications

“My journey started as a young teen in Lincolnshire creating handmade cards and crafts for family and friends. Many business ideas later, ranging from jewellery to decoupage, I landed in Hertfordshire creating wall art from large scale abstracts to nursery illustrations for worldwide companies.

I now run my own part time illustration business where my designs are inspired by the patterns and colour of the natural world, the jewel tones of tropical habitats alongside the details of British wildlife and meadows. Joining Woodmansterne has enabled me to explore new looser, more playful styles combining characters with punny typography.”

l Emily Nash, founder of Emily Nash Illustration

“Hello! I’m Emily, an independent publisher of illustrated greeting cards and paper goods. I create bright, fun and colourful imagery, using hand-cut and digital collage. I started my artistic career as an editorial illustrator and while I contributed towards a wide variety of publications, the lifestyle, food and culture pieces were my favourites as they allowed me to be more playful and creative.

Category Sponsor

Alongside this, I worked part time for a greeting card publisher which was how I was introduced to the industry. I soon realised how fun it could be to illustrate with the sole purpose of spreading joy, so in 2019 I decided to ‘go it alone’ and launched my own greeting card business. Since then, I have steadily grown my collection to over 300 products and I’m proud to be working with a fast-growing list of retailers around the world. While cards make up the majority of my range, I also design art prints, notebooks, puppet cards and more.

2024 has been a big year and I have recently started outsourcing fulfilment to a small and friendly warehouse team, which has meant I have more time to focus on creating new designs and expanding the business. I’m so proud to be part of such a creative and friendly industry and am looking forward to seeing where it leads me next!”

l Lex Rogy, founder of Little Roglets

“You might recognise Little Roglets as the hedgehog holding the paintbrush, but if you don't know Litte Roglets already, then let me tell you the answer to one of my most frequently asked questions - why the name? A baby hedgehog is called a hoglet + my surname Rogy = ROGLET.

From interior styling for superyachts as my first job out of university, to project management for LEGO sculptures (yep, you read that right), I was always in creative industries, but always felt like something was missing. At the time I'd also started painting again, where it soon became a side hustle. Every spare evening after work would be spent painting people's pets and creating one off cards, until the nudge to use my creativity for more than just a hobby got so strong, that with no plan what so ever, only a desire to paint - I decided to take the leap of faith and it was the best thing I ever did.

My inspiration is family, my love of travel and the very squiggly line that is the journey of life. Recognising that everyone's path looks a little different, everything I design has a meaning behind it, from either personal experience or childhood memories, ask me about a range and I can give you a story! I was always the girl that could be found with animals over humans (or by the buffet, but that's a different story and I'm yet to do a range on cheese).”

Open to: All greeting card ranges (humorous and nonhumorous) that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024 that reflect diversity and inclusivity. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

Best Inclusion Range

in alphabetical order

2024 Finalists

l Nobody’s Perfect from Fluffmallow

l Out! from Emotional Rescue

l Peace and Blessings from The Art File

l Queer Cards from Pickled Prints

l Seasons from AfroTouch Design

l You Go Girl! from Paper Rose

Peace and Blessings

Open to: All humorous greeting card ranges that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs which have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

Gin & Frolics

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Gin & Frolics from Rosie Made a Thing

l Holy Flaps from Redback Cards

l Just Saying from Ohh Deer

l Monkeyshines from Pigment

l Motley from Poet and Painter

l Natural Yoghurt from Woodmansterne Publications

Holy Flaps

Motley

Just Saying

Natural Yoghurt

Monkeyshines

Best Entertainment or Character Card Range

Open to: All greeting card ranges that are published under licence (based on entertainment properties or character brands) that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs which have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Elmer from Tache

l Harry Potter Vintage Railway Poster Collection from Cardology

l Marvel Die Cuts from UK Greetings

l Peter Rabbit from Hallmark Cards

l Snoopy from Hype Associates

l Squishmallows from Danilo Promotions

l Harry Potter Vintage Railway Poster Collection

l Marvel Die Cuts l Peter Rabbit

Snoopy l Elmer

Squishmallows

Licensed Heritage, Lifestyle, Art or Design Card Range

Open to: All greeting card ranges that are published under licence based on heritage, lifestyle, art of design properties that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs which have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

l Cath Kidston

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Cath Kidston from Ohh Deer

l Emma Bridgewater from Woodmansterne Publications

l Frida Kahlo from Origamo

l National Trust Harmony from Woodmansterne Publications

l RHS Classic from UK Greetings

l Sara Miller London from The Art File

l National Trust Harmony l RHS Classic

l Sara Miller London

l Emma Bridgewater

l Frida Kahlo

l Bijou Christmas

l Merry Little Christmas

Counter Range

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

Open to: All single Christmas card ranges that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs which have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered. l Stephanie Dyment l Merry + Bright l Cosy Christmas

l Bijou Christmas from Louise Mulgrew

l Cosy Christmas from Ricicle Cards

l Merry + Bright from Stormy Knight

l Merry Little Christmas from Megan Claire

l Stephanie Dyment from Woodmansterne Publications

l Storybook Christmas from The Art File

Storybook Christmas

Christmas Box

Open to: All Christmas boxes or packs that have been launched to UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. These can be branded, own brand or charity products.

in alphabetical order

2024 Finalists

l Christmas Tri-Fold Card Boxes from Roger la Borde

l Fa La La Packs from Stop the Clock Design

l Luxury Christmas Boxes from The Art File

l Minnows from James Ellis

l Superior Boxes from Ling Design

l Woodland Christmas Boxes from Nigel Quiney Publications

Open to: All cute greeting card ranges that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs which have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

Rouge l Absolutely Barking

Hello Mellow

Category Sponsor

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Absolutely Barking from Paper Shed

l Animalia from Great British Card Company (GBCC)

l Hello Mellow from Ginger Betty

l Primrose Hill from Cinnamon Aitch

l Rouge from Little Roglets

l Woodland from Ohh Deer

l Animalia

Primrose Hill

Woodland

Contemporary Words and Sentiments Range

Open to: All contemporary ‘words and sentiments’ greeting card ranges that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

Fun Thoughts

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Fun Thoughts from Ohh Deer

l Just Because from Eleanor Bowmer

l Lucy Loves Literature from Cath Tate Cards

l Nikki Miles from Jolly Awesome

l One Step At A Time from Fox Under The Moon

l Words of Wisdom from Dandelion Stationery

Just Because

Sentiments Range

Open to: All traditional ‘words and sentiments’ greeting card ranges that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

l Hello Mellow

l Traditional Words & Sentiments

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Hello Mellow from Ginger Betty

l Most Especially For You from International Cards & Gifts (IC&G)

l Scene It from Emotional Rescue

l Traditional Words & Sentiments from Ling Design

l Wishing Well Female Collection from Carte Blanche Greetings

l Word Portraits from UK Greetings

l Scene It

l Most Especially For You

l Wishing Well Female Collection

l Word Portraits

Open to: All art (fine art, contemporary and illustrative, but not photographic) greeting card ranges that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l All Dogs, Great and Small from Lil Wabbit

l Birth Flora from Bird & Co Studio

l Frame It from Ohh Deer

l Nature Trail by Kate Heiss from The Art File

l Offshore from James Ellis

l Toast Art from Objectables

l Birth Flora

Offshore l All Dogs, Great and Small

Nature Trail

Frame It

Toast Art

Photographic Range

Open to: All photographic greeting card ranges that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

A Daily Cloud

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l A Daily Cloud from Brainbox Candy

l BBC Wild Isles from Abacus Cards

l Coola Coola from Icon

l Jesuso Ortiz from Woodmansterne Publications

l London Cards from Eliot Siegel Photography

l The Photographic Collection from Tracks Publishing

BBC Wild Isles

Ortiz

Children’s Range

Open to: All greeting card ranges aimed at children that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

l Birthday Blocks

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Birthday Blocks from Cath Tate Cards

l Multi Sticker & Colouring

Collection from Little Green Vibes

l Shine from Redback Cards

l Split Pin Puppets from Emily Nash Illustration

l Sunshine from Paper Salad

l Wobbly Head Pop-ups from Alljoy Design

l Multi Sticker & Colouring Collection l Shine

l Split Pin Puppets l Sunshine

Sponsor

l Wobbly Head Pop-ups

Contemporary Best

Open to: All greeting card ranges which demonstrate a current trend, be it in subject matter, terminology or production technique, that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

l Gratitude Galore

l Little Joys

l Min-Neons

Category Sponsor

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Gratitude Galore from Brilliantly Brave

l Little Joys from Raspberry Blossom

l Lost Plots from Cath Tate Cards

l Lucky Dip from Hotchpotch

l Min-Neons from Earlybird Designs

l Shiny Things from Stormy Knight

l Wonder World from Lola Design

l Lost Plots

l Lucky Dip

l Shiny Things

l Wonder World

Best 3D, Handmade or

Open to: All greeting card ranges which are either completely handmade or include 3D or hand-finished elements, that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

l Cranberry Squares

l Lily Loves

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Cranberry Squares from Cinnamon Aitch

l Cut Out Heart Reusable

Greeting Cards from Oh Squirrel

l Keepsake Collection from Paper Mirchi

l Lily Loves from Bexy Boo

l Message in a Bottle from Alljoy Design

l Up With Paper Luxe from Ohh Deer

l Cut Out Heart Reusable Greeting Cards

l Message in a Bottle

l Keepsake Collection

l Up With Paper Luxe

Have you cottoned on yet?

www.papermirchi.co.uk

Tel: 020 3633 1415 / 07896141278

Email: sales@papermirchi.co.uk

Scan to shop our products on Faire and receive 10% off with code PG10 at checkout (expires 30/09/24)

Best Male Range 2024 Finalists

Open to: All non-humorous greeting card ranges aimed at male recipients that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

in alphabetical order

l Colour Hub from Paper Salad

l Great Outdoors from Stormy Knight

l Happy Days from Stop the Clock Design

l Honcho from Laura Darrington Design

l Retro Rad from Sharon King-Chai

l Taking Shape from Heyyy Cards

Outdoors

Relations and/or Occasions Range

Open to: All relations and/or occasions greeting card ranges that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

l Fleurescent

l Gin & Frolics

l Primrose Hill

Category Sponsor

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Fleurescent from Paper Salad

l Gin & Frolics from Rosie Made a Thing

l Hartland Brooklyn from Ohh Deer

l Holly Maguire from Stormy Knight

l Primrose Hill from Cinnamon Aitch

l Quicksilver from Wendy Jones-Blackett

l Studio Blom from Pigment

l Holly Maguire

l Hartland Brooklyn

l Quicksilver

l Studio Blom

Open to: All Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Easter and Father’s Day greeting card ranges that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024 could be entered. Entries had to be event-specific, ie Publishers submitted a separate entry for Valentine’s Day, a separate entry for Mother’s Day etc.

l Father’s Day

l Flora Mother’s Day

l Shiny Valentine

Spring Seasons Range

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Father’s Day from Zoe Spry

l Flora Mother’s Day from Louise Mulgrew

l Primrose Hill Easter from Cinnamon Aitch

l Mine’s a Pint from Emotional Rescue (in collaboration with Paper Salad)

l Shiny Valentine from Stormy Knight

l Tokens of Appreciation Mother’s Day from Two for Joy Illustration

l Valentine’s Collection from The Art File

l Primrose Hill Easter

l Tokens of Appreciation Mother’s Day

l Mine’s a Pint

l Valentine’s Collection

Wholesale Best

l Everyday In-stock Range

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Everyday In-stock Range from Out of the Blue Studios

l Funkytown from Kingfisher Cards

l Isabel’s Garden from Simon Elvin

l Jolly Pops from Simon Elvin

l Pixels from Kingfisher Cards

l Trendy Pops from Xpress Yourself

Open to: All greeting card ranges sold via the wholesale distributor/cash & carry channel that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered. l Trendy Pops l Funkytown l Isabel’s Garden l Jolly Pops

Pixels

We’re absolutely thrilled to have 2 collections through to the final of The Henries Award for Best Gift Wrapping with our Paper Salad and Stephanie Dyment amazing ranges!

Good luck to all the other finalists!

Giftwrappings Range

Open to: All giftwrapping ranges (either ranges of sheet wrap or collections of co-ordinated wrappings such as boxes, bags, ribbons etc) that have been launched into UK retail (bricks and mortar and/or online) between 15 June 2023 and 14 June 2024. In the case of an ongoing range, only designs that have been launched during the aforementioned dates should be entered.

l Emma Bridgewater Collection

l Paper Salad Collection

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Emma Bridgewater Collection from Woodmansterne Publications

l Everyday Wrap from Kali Stileman Publishing

l Handcrafted Artisan Collection from Paper Mirchi

l Paper Salad Collection from Glick

l Raspberry Blossom Happiness Collection from Penny Kennedy

l Stephanie Dyment Collection from Glick

l Everyday Wrap

l Raspberry Blossom Happiness Collection

l Handcrafted Artisan Collection

l Stephanie Dyment Collection

The Henry Cole Classic Award

Open to: All greeting card ranges that have stood the test of time, having been published for at least the last eight years. The range must currently be on sale in some shape or form. Ranges can only win a Henry Cole Classic award once and then will be added to the Henry Cole Classic ‘Hall of Fame’. Previous winners include: Bestie from Paperlink, The Bright Side from Really Good; Camilla & Rose from Peartree Heybridge; The Country Set from Wrendale Designs; Eric the Penguin from GBCC; Forever Friends from Hallmark; Giggles from UKG; Ink Press from The Art File; Me to You from Carte Blanche; Medici Cards Blue Label from GBCC; On The Ceiling from Emotional Rescue; Photocaptions from Cath Tate Cards; Pizazz from Nigel Quiney Publications; Pop-Ups from Second Nature; Quentin Blake from Woodmansterne Publications, Rainbow from Ling Design and Virtual Safari from Emotional Rescue.

Boofle from UK Greetings

Launched: 2008

“From a capsule collection of general birthday cards launched in 2008 to a £multimillion cross category brand, Boofle’s trajectory has been truly incredible. And the brand is still growing, with 2024 set to deliver record greeting card sales.

The brand’s success is driven from investment in product development, with over 500 new designs launched each year, introducing new patterning, updated colour palettes as well as new props and poses. All of this is delivered sustainably, which is true to Boofle’s origin story of a pup knitted with love from Grandad’s old woolly cardi; Boofle really is the poster pup for reducing, reusing and recycling! H owever, arguably, the brand’s greatest strength is the continued ability to express emotion and connection which is after all the essence of a great greeting card. This is achieved through the consistent warmth and individuality of Boofle poses combined with lovely copy; in 16 years of design and patterning changes, Boofle has retained what is most important - making people feel loved.”

Happy Jackson from Pigment

Launched: 2013

“The creators of Happy Jackson, Giles Andreae and Heather Flynn continue to create casual, easy-going and playful designs with high shelf impact and a commercial voice.

This is our best-selling range as it is very easy send, for both male and female across every caption.

in alphabetical order

2024 Finalists

l Boofle from UK Greetings

l Happy Jackson from Pigment

l Ladies Who Love Life

from Berni Parker Designs

l Sara Miller London from The Art File

l Shakies from James Ellis

l Quicksilver from Wendy Jones-Blackett

l V&A from Museums & Galleries

After 11 years, it remains a go-to range that retailers and consumers buy time and time again.

The range now spans 80 designs, all of which are printed on uncoated board with fluro inks, embossing and spot UV gloss.”

Ladies Who Love Life from Berni Parker Designs

Launched: 2009

“This range has been on sale in retail for almost 15 years (and for over five years previously too, although under a slightly different range name), all created by Berni. It still sells as well today as it did then, we still have first released cards in our top ten sellers.

It is a unique soft textured true art range hand-drawn on handmade paper using watercolour and coloured pencils The range shows ladies in a variety of life situations all created from Berni's endless stream of ideas and is sentimental as well as being funny, using a subtle sense of humour that the card recipients can relate to creating an emotion, smile or laughter of times spent with their friends There are now 313 designs in the collection.”

Sara Miller London from The Art File

Launched: 2015

“Multi-award-winning designer Sara Miller continues to wow consumers around the globe with designs celebrating a love of playful prints and vibrant colour, inspired by a passion for travel.

Working with leading manufacturers of gifts and homeware, Sara Miller London’s growing collections across all manner of products mean more and more retailers are discovering the power behind this enchanting brand. It all started in greeting cards though, over nine years ago now where we came across Sara Miller at PG Live. The rest they say is history - with Sara Miller London being our number 1 selling collection since its original launch, moving through design trends and styles with her iconic luxurious colour palette and rich textures, enhanced by multi-level embossing and foiling. This range – which now comprises 111 designs - really has stood the test of time and has been a consistent performer and best seller for discerning retailers all over the globe, as well as loved by over 1 million card senders worldwide.”

Shakies from James Ellis

Launched: 2005

“The Paper Shakies range is unique. Coloured confetti encapsulated within the cards so that you can shake them around, adding a fun, tactile dimension.

Shakies first came about nearly 20 years ago, when we experimented adding loose glitter and sequins to a cellophane inner bag that was then placed on top of an illustration and then concealed by a border. These proved very popular and the range continued to grow with great success.

We were extremely excited in 2019 to introduce our first 100% recyclable range of Shakies cards that we called Paper Shakies. Through extensive thought and research, we swapped the cellophane, glitter and sequins to produce a more environmentally-friendly range using translucent paper, card and paper confetti, all of which are completely recyclable, biodegradable and plastic-free.

The range now spans 116 designs, including birthdays, occasions, relations, adult and children's ages.

Our lovely customers have stuck with us on our Shakies' journey and embraced the changes we have made. Our Paper Shakies cards are now more popular than ever and we hope this success continues!”

Quicksilver from

Wendy Jones-Blackett

Launched: 2006

“Since this range launched in 2006, we have published 2,653 different Quicksilver designs across everyday, Christmas and Spring Seasons.

When the range was originally launched, foiling was an old technique that hadn't really been used in a contemporary way. The first designs featured hand drawn letters and illustrations and were hot foil stamped in two colours with fluted dies. Fast forward to 2024 and we now cold foil the cards to achieve an array of foil colours.

The designs are then embossed to give a threedimensional effect.

All the cards are 125mm square, are printed onto a textured 300gsm board and come with a matching textured magnolia envelope.”

V&A from Museums & Galleries

Launched: 2009

“The V&A is the world’s leading museum of art design and performance, dedicated to the power of creativity, founded by none other than Sir Henry Cole!

The Museums & Galleries brand has been associated with the V&A for almost 20 years over which time it has grown and evolved to reflect the changing collections and retail trends – al ways remaining a beacon of quality for what a heritage/art range can and should be, for today.

The range now comprises over 200 unique designs, across everyday, Christmas, special occasions and relations designs.

The designs cover everything from textiles, wallpapers, paintings, prints, ceramics and photography. The guiding principle is to provide timeless, universal and beautiful imagery, reproduced to the highest standards, to inspire retailers and the card-buying public alike.

The V&A card range remains Museums & Galleries' largest and most successful range, and is still a core pillar of the business’ offer. It is sold both in the UK and globally, as a landmark British heritage brand. It continues to fulfil the mission that the V&A was tasked with at its launch: to inspire creativity and set a benchmark for retailers in terms of quality and production.”

Open to: This award recognises the pivotal role publishers play in providing a good service to independent retailers. The finalists in this category were arrived at as a result of an exhaustive poll, involving 1,750 independent greeting card retailers, who were each asked to nominate their top three card suppliers on the service front over the last year. These responses were then correlated, awarding three points to all first choices, two points to those mentioned as second choices and one point for all third choices. These points were then totalled to arrive as the 12 finalists. There are three awards in this category – a Bronze, Silver and ultimate Gold, that will be presented to the top three scoring suppliers in the retailer poll.

2024 Finalists

in alphabetical order

l Abacus Cards

l The Art File

l Dandelion Stationery

l International Cards & Gifts (IC&G)

l Jolly Awesome

l Nigel Quiney Publications

l Noel Tatt

l Ohh Deer

l Paperlink

l Pigment

l UK Greetings (UKG)

l Words ‘n’ Wishes

In Conversation with…Paper Salad

Autumn Fair will be the first official outing for Paper Salad since Karen Wilson became the company’s sole owner, having bought out co-founder Claire Williams back in July in an amicable agreement.

PG caught up with the publisher’s ‘big cheese’, who is also to become president of the GCA at the end of September, to find out more about the plans for the show and how the company’s new operations director, Karen’s son Jack Wilson is settling into the role.

There was some surprise when it was announced a couple of months ago that Karen Wilson had bought out her longstanding business partner and close friend, Claire Williams. These two ‘Paper Saladies’ have been a prominent duo in the industry for almost 20 years, living embodiments of the business they started a short while after graduating from Stockport College in surface pattern design.

Revered for creating their trailblazing super brightly coloured and highly-finished greeting card collections that are also the basis of an uber successful ongoing licensing partnership with Glick on giftwrappings, Karen and Claire have long been familiar faces at trade shows, awards events and networking gatherings.

So, when it was announced that changes were afoot with this winning partnership, not surprisingly there were some concerns aired, but these were quickly quashed upon learning that the friendship remains intact, and how the decision was completely based on Claire wanting to have more time to spend with her young son and on her home’s renovation.

Moreover, with Claire remaining very much part the company’s design team, working three days a week for the business the creative continuity is also assured.

“This was not an overnight decision,” explained Karen. “It’s something that Claire and I have been working on for over a year. It had to be right for us and the business. I’m delighted that Claire now has the life balance she wanted, but that she is continuing as part of the design team, as well as a close friend.”

Now having the main office to herself, Karen accepts it will be a bit quieter: “Claire and I used to listen to Radio Five Live and

then spend a lot of time ranting at what was being said on the radio. I will miss that, as ranting by yourself is not quite the same!”

Supporting Karen, who now heads up the

Above: Karen Wilson working on some of the new designs that will be on show at Autumn Fair.

Below: One of the designs in the brand new Alchemy range, which lives up to Paper Salad’s trademark of bright colours, textures and finishes.

Right: As part of Paper Salad’s ongoing licensing programme, these crackers are being produced under licence by Penny Kennedy, with more stationery planned with its sister company, GBCC.

running of the business, as well as being the main creative driver, is someone she knows very well. Her son Jack was appointed operations director to coincide with Claire’s stepping back, while Karen’s daughter-in-law

Rays Of Son Shine

Having worked as part of the Paper Salad for seven years, Jack Wilson, Karen’s son has been promoted to operations director.

PG put Jack in the hot seat… What were your childhood job ambitions?

“I either wanted to be a professional footballer, preferably for Manchester United, or an Ice Cream Man. At that particular time, I came to the conclusion that the latter would be more realistic. The reason behind this dream was the thought of having a life supply of bottomless ice cream. Unfortunately, this very ambitious career didn’t come to fruition!”

What are your early recollections of Paper Salad?

“I was about 13 years old when Paper Salad was created, so too young to show any interest in my Mum and Claire’s designs. But my earliest memory is of them doing annual so-called “business” trips to New York. Apparently, they were visiting a trade show. My Mum’s suitcase on the return didn’t reflect all of the ‘hard work’ they’d been doing over there, more so highlighting the amount of time spent shopping and taking advantage of the exchange rates. It was great for me though as I used to ask her each year to visit particular record stores in NYC during her trips and she never disappointed when returning home with a respectful amount of music to add to my collection. And then later down the line I used to walk to their old studio after college and pack cards which was well worth it for the pocket money that I spent on music and probably ice cream”.

Ellie Woodcock is now in her stride on the planning side too.

“Claire was very instrumental in bringing Jack and Ellie into the business, and in actual fact it was seeing their development that gave her the impetus to follow her dream,” said Karen.

Of Jack, Karen said that while she never doubted his commitment to hard work, she admits that he has exceeded her high expectations. “When Jack joined the business, he started from the bottom to gain a grounding in all aspects of the company and his confidence grew in line with his expertise. Now seven years on, it is great to see how he really has earned the respect of the team as well as having forged good relationships with our agents, customers and the brokers who we supply.”

As Paper Salad always pack a punch at trade shows, with Autumn Fair on the horizon, Karen is more than ready to blast out the publisher’s latest trademark uber coloured collections.

“I am aware that our next range is the most important, as everyone will be looking at it to see if anything is different. I am hoping they

What is it like working with your Mum?

“I understand her more than anybody, and vice versa, so it’s a great partnership with us being on the same wavelength and understanding our end goals which are resonated across the workforce.

I find my Mum’s ambition very inspiring, knowing the journey she has been on.

Not everybody would take the daunting jump of going back to college as a mature student in pursuit of creating a career she enjoys, to help provide a better life for her family.

I feel very fortunate to benefit from her talent and have the opportunity to have a big role in the future of the business. I suppose working in the company is one way for me to give back in some capacity.”

What would you say if the headhunter for Mr Whippy came acalling now?

“I’d have to be loyal to Paper Salad, but would ask him if there is any scope for selling birthday cards out of his serving hatches. I’d offer him good discount in exchange for a Mr. Whippy loyalty card.”

won’t be disappointed!” said Karen with a smile, knowing that there will be three brand new ranges, plus Spring Seasons and an expansion of its Sunshine children’s range into ages for starters on the stand. Sharing a sneak peek of the Alchemy collection, Karen reveals that this will be fanfaring a brand new finish. “I have always loved experimenting with new finishes and they really bring the cards to life. Even before I start on the designs for a new range I know what finish it will feature. In keeping with the new range name, that’s when true alchemy happens,” she believes. Added to all this,

through the licensing relationships, there is also newness from Glick on Colour Hub giftwrappings, crackers with Penny Kennedy, additional stationery items with GBCC and new designs in the Mine’s a Pint collaboration with Emotional Rescue.

“I will definitely not be bored!” laughs Karen. “I am really looking forward to continuing to take Paper Salad on, translating new trends into commercial products for our customers. And, if I need a good rant at the radio session, I always know I can call Claire!”

Left: Jack Wilson with his Mum, Karen Wilson (right) and Paper Salad co-founder Claire Williams at a recent Henries awards event.

Below left: A young Jack in his Man U strip with the FA Cup. Below right: This Paper Salad design must resonate with Jack!

Left: Karen Wilson (right) and Claire Williams, at The Retas, the day after the deal was signed between the two of them. They remain the firmest of friends. Below left: The Sunshine children’s range, which has reached the finals of The Henries, is being expanded to included ages.

Scribe Pen Collection

Sparkle Art

Rush Design Celebration Glasses

A selection of new launches that will be on show at Autumn Fair 1-4 September, NEC.

Crossing The Land

Following on from the success of the launch of the art card collection by Julia Crossland earlier this year, The Eco-friendly Card Co is adding to the range with new blank designs, notecards and Christmas packs. There are now 18 designs in the collection, all printed on textured 100% recycled FSC board and supplied with co-ordinating white recycled envelopes.  The cards are available either in cornstarch bags or naked with a card-clasp label.

The Eco-friendly Card Co

01626 369269

www.ecofriendly.cards

Autumn Fair Hall 6 Stand B14

Spring In Your Step

She Knows

Ella is Rush Design’s new collection which combines striking colours, bold stripes, gold foiling and a handwritten font to create a fabulously vibrant feel. The initial range comprises 30 designs covering male and female birthday captions, a selection of occasions and a Spring collection too. All Ella cards are 165mm square, printed on quality FSC board, matched with an off-white luxury envelope and wrapped in eco cello bags.

Rush Design 01788 521745

www.rushdesign.co.uk

Autumn Fair Hall 6 Stand B10

Laura Darrington Design is launching its Spring Seasons 25 collection at Autumn Fair, spanning over 100 designs across Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Easter and Father’s Day captions. All the seasonal designs offer diversity of styles and sentiments that are all primed for Spring 25. Also on display will be 18 new relation captions and the publisher’s new Kingdom everyday collection.

Laura Darrington Design 0116 2849660

www.lauradarrington.com

Autumn Fair Hall 6 Stand C11

Mega Seasoning

Spreading The Love

Inspired by the success of its new Dots & Dashes everyday range, Louise Tiler Designs has expanded the brand into a Valentine’s Day collection, incorporating florals, modern colours and beautifully detailed gold foil. Also on show will be the publisher’s best-sellers, plus the 100+ new designs launched this year, including new designs in its Kids Tiny Sparkles and Apricot ranges as well as the Christmas collection.

Louise Tiler Designs 01535 957878

www.louisetiler.com

Autumn Fair Hall 6 Stand C21

Rays Of Sunshine

There are even more rays of sunshine on the cards from Paper Salad as the publisher has extended its Sunshine collection to include children’s ages. The new additions cover ages 1-7 in both male/female orientated options as well as some generic older ages up to 17. All the cards are super bright with deep embossing and finished with the high gloss spot UV.

Paper Salad

0161 427 0001

www.papersalad.co.uk

Autumn Fair Hall 6 Stand C20

Brainbox Candy has totally overhauled its seasonal offering (Spring Seasons and Christmas), debuting 258 brand new designs at Autumn Fair. The mega launch combines designs from existing successful brands (including from Heritage and Relatable) as well as seven brand new ranges. And there is a dedicated catalogue to showcase this burgeoning newness.

Brainbox Candy 01702 716643

www.brainboxcandy.com

Autumn Fair Hall 6 Stand C15

A selection of new launches, some of which will be on show at Top Drawer 8-10 September, Olympia.

The Plot Thickens

Bound to clinch it on the Christmas gift shopping front, Cath Tate Cards has introduced new notebooks to its Lost Plots collection. In keeping with the greeting card range, the covers feature vibrant illustrations and captions by artist Lisa Robson. These high-quality, matte-laminated notebooks contain 192 pages of 100gsm lined paper and are perfect bound.

Cath Tate Cards 0208 671 2166

www.cathtatecards.com

Top Drawer Stand T21

Woofers In Titfers

Rising To The Occasion

ArtPress has launched 25 new designs into its selection of occasion cards. The new additions span nine categories in either 150mm square format or standard (120 x 170mm) formats. These include the super stylish black and white Two Beautiful Swans Wedding card to the ever-popular Dancing Cat characters, such as the Love You Madly Cat, anniversary card. Each of the cards come with an accompanying recycled kraft or china white envelope.

ArtPress Publishing 020 7231 2923 www.art-press.co.uk

Top Drawer Stand S15

Lottie Murphy has expanded her Dogs in Hats range adding 14 new additions. Covering birthdays or blanks sends, they feature many popular dog breeds, including Collies, Cavapoos and Dachshunds, all wearing colourful party hats. Each 127 x177mm card is printed on luxury FSC-certified board and comes with a recycled kraft envelope in a compostable bag.

Lottie Murphy 07716 304741

www.lottie-murphy.com

Top Drawer Stand U19

Packing A Punch

Life’s Riches

Following on from Ecosse Encaustics’ successful launch at PG Live, it was suggested that some of the images would work well as condolence cards. So, in response, publisher David Mould has produced a sympathy card collection where the ethereal mood of this award-winning photographer’s work adds another element to the tactile feel and the touching sentiments. All the cards are 150mm square and are printed on textured board.

Ecosse Encaustics 07549945165

www.linktr.ee/ecosseencaustics

Not at Top Drawer

Sporty Stitches

The Inspire Collection from Jane Buurman Handmade has been created to inspire and celebrate women’s love of sport and exercise and how they in turn inspire future generations. The collection has now been expanded to 24 designs, each printed from an original handmade, watercolour and freemotion embroidery artwork each of which takes over 20 hours to create. Printed on premium quality, FSC-approved textured board, they come with a kraft envelope. Jane Buurman Handmade  07703490241 www.janebuurmanhandmade.com

Not at Top Drawer

With two finalists’ places in The Henries 2024, Emily Nash Illustration is packing a punch! She has launched a collection of 20 assorted stack packs, with each pack including either six or eight bright and colourfully illustrated assorted cards. Taken from her most popular ranges, the assortments cover everyday, thank yous, birthdays and Christmas. The boxes, each with a pop-out euro slot on the reverse, are made from 100% PEFCcertified FoldKraft, the cards are printed on FSC-certified board and they come with 100% recycled kraft envelopes.

Emily Nash Illustration

07891 339 686

www.emilynashillustration.com

Not at Top Drawer

A selection of new launches to pep up retailers’ displays this Autumn.

Adventurous Ways

Petimo’s Rainbows range has been so popular that the publisher has added even more niche occasions, such as this Let the Adventure Begin design as well as hard-to-find baby/child captions like great granddaughter/son, goddaughter/son, godmother/godfather and new big sister/brother. All 150mm square, there are now a total of 47 designs in this collection, each of which comes with a sunshine yellow envelope.

Petimo 07801 652225

www.petimo.co.uk

Number Crunching

High Notes

Allegro is a musical term meaning lively and cheerful which really encompasses Klara Hawkins’ latest range. This delightful collection of pretty designs, all created by Klara, comprises 18 birthday and occasion cards. Each card is 150mm square and comes with either a pink, lavender or white envelope to co-ordinate with the design. Klara Hawkins 07808681886 www.klarahawkins.com

It’s all adding up well for Lovely Paper Stuff with a raft of new age cards, as well as some sentimental family, encouragement and various occasion cards in its new Sent with Sentiments range. Known for its age cards, as ever the colours on the latest additions really stand out and contrast at every angle. Printed on 300gsm textured board, they all come with a contrasting coloured envelope.

Lovely Paper Stuff 07786886223 www.lovelypaperstuff.com

Jolly Hockey Sticks

Awesome Festivities

Jolly Awesome has put the finishing touches to create its largest Christmas range ever, spanning over 80 designs. Aiming to have something for everyone, the collection includes designs from its Bearly Getting By, die-cut PLACES, humour from TWONKS as well as beautiful designs with foiled finishing from illustrator Darcie Olley.   Jolly Awesome 01273 783833

www.jollyawesome.com

Bugging You

Bug Art has expanded its Christmas card collection with latest additions from its Paper & Foil, Kooks and Jewels ranges. These new designs join the 58 cards in the festive collection. All the cards are 118mm x 168mm, embossed with gold foil, blank inside and come with a gold envelope. They are available as unwrapped singles, bio-bagged singles or in 8-pack boxes.

Bug Art 0115 929 4776

www.bugart.co.uk

The already extensive One Lump or Two range from Holy Mackerel is covering even more field. Among the newness are two highly requested hockey cards. As ever, the latest designs feature Erica Sturla’s signature polymer clay figures in male and female versions. All 15cm square, the cards are cello wrapped and come with a high-quality white laid envelope. Holy Mackerel 01395 578571 www.holy-mackerel.co.uk

It’s full steam ahead for #Cardmitment, Caring At Christmas, Festive Friday and Thinking Of You Week as leading retailers and members of the GCA Council brainstormed ideas for this year’s events, all conceived to promote greeting card sending.

PG joined the roundtable discussion, which took place straight after The Henries judging, frantically scribbling down the wealth of ideas which further proves the true worth of a meeting of minds.

Having spent the morning feasting their eyes and considering the relative merits of hundreds of different greeting cards ranges to arrive at the finalists of The Henries, many of the 40+ retailers on the judging panel stayed on for an invaluable roundtable session in the afternoon. Instigated by the GCA in association with Progressive Greetings, they joined several of the association’s publisher council members, imparting their retailing experience and inventive ways for the collective good of the industry.

With a mission to further engage the British public into sending cards, an animated few

hours sparked a flurry of ideas from the assembled group that are all set to build on the successes of the previous Cardmitment, Thinking of You, Festive Friday, Caring at Christmas campaigns. Tweaks were suggested, easy wins were highlighted and some blue sky thinking potential initiatives were shared.

Introducing the afternoon session GCA ceo Amanda Fergusson said: “We're all here to share the joy of cards and make sure that our industry thrives – and we do that by being a team together.”

Rebecca Green, co-founder of Raspberry

Blossom, who heads up the GCA PR subcommittee, shared the collateral assets of the various campaigns, plus gave a sneak peek of Card Club, an initiative that will be aimed at galvanising the younger generations as well as other groups into the joys of card sending.

The main focus of the meeting however was the #Cardmitment 2024 campaign, instigated last year to counter the worrying reduction in Christmas card sending resulting from the 2022 postal strikes, and exacerbated by the recent significant rises in stamp prices. Following on from last year’s popular standpoint, this year’s messaging will again a focus on the relatively low cost of a secondclass stamp – 85p this year – which means anyone can send a festive missive anywhere in the UK and spread the seasonal joy.

Left: Sarah Laker (front left) at her Write Before Christmas event last November, with work underway for the initiative to be shared with all for this year.

Top: GCA ceo Amanda Fergusson (top left) kicked off the brainstorming at the recent retailer roundtable. Above: Raspberry Blossom’s Rebecca Green showed the toolkits available for each event. They can be requested from Abacus Cards, Belly Button Designs, Caroline Gardner, Emotional Rescue, GBCC/Ling Design, Hallmark, Ohh Deer, Paperlink, Paper Salad, Raspberry Blossom, Ricicle Cards, Second Nature, Stormy Knight, and UK Greetings, as well as from buying group Cardgains, plus downloaded from the GCA website.

With 5,000 Cardmitment toolkits already printed (more than last year), thanks to Graphite Creative, they are be sent out to retailers via several publishers, distributed with orders.

Kaye Thurgood, who owns Sincerely Yours in Shenfield and Hornchurch and one of the #Cardmitment instigators, pointed out how publishers should avoid including these invaluable POS items in orders that retailers may not open until the start of 2025.

“Last year publishers were including the Cardmitment posters in their orders that were

Earlybird Designs in Stoke Newington, who coordinates the Cardmitments WhatsApp group on which card retailers share thoughts and ideas talked about the plans for Instagram challenges as well as coming up with a whole checklist for retailers.

She revealed how getting behind the Cardmitment campaign last year had a direct positive effect on her Christmas card sales, with the shop’s charity card sales alone up 16% year on year, which she puts down to the initiative.

Heidi handed over to Sarah Laker, of Stationery Supplies in Marple and Wilmslow who shared her 2023 The Write Before Christmas initiative.

“The plan was to get a group of customers into a lovely environment to write their Christmas cards in November so they were ready to send them nice and early,” she explained. As her shops aren’t big enough to host such an event she approached a new local cafe thinking it could give them some publicity as well.

to be run in libraries.

It was also recognised how this could also be linked to the GCA’s Caring At Christmas initiative of taking cards into local care homes to help residents who find it more difficult to get to the shops.

With the GCA’s Thinking of You Week celebrating its 10th anniversary this year (running 16-22 September), Amanda explained how the consumer-facing website receives a lot of traction.

And she urged everyone to make sure they publicise all events and initiatives on social media, tell the GCA and the local media.

With discussions of how to get other shops in their vicinity involved with #Cardmitment, including post offices, WHSmith’s Scarlett Ford mentioned that the retailer has over 200 POs in stores so would be interested in participating.

The meeting also included discussion around Festive Friday – which falls on 29 November this year – which is closely connected to #Cardmitment with Christmas cards sent early means they’ll also spark a wave of reciprocal sending.

being sent out prior to Christmas,” Kaye said. “The problem is a lot of us were placing forward orders for January that we were receiving in December, therefore we weren't necessarily opening the boxes until after the festive season was over – so these posters were still in their boxes.”

She highlighted the importance of getting much earlier traction for the campaign, making the good point that the posters and other materials could be given by publishers to their reps and agents so they could be handed to retailers and ensure they are put on show in good time.

With GCA council members in attendance, including Ling Design’s David Byk, Hallmark’s Fiona Pitt, David Falkner from Cardology, Nick Carey from Abacus Cards, Paper Salad’s Karen Williams, Rebecca Green from Raspberry Blossom, Danilo’s Daniel Prince, Mark Williams from Brainbox Candy, and Georgina Fihosy from AfroTouch Design, this suggestion has been taken on board.

Amanda confirmed that Kaye’s suggestion will also be passed on, saying: “It gives an extra reason for a rep or agent to visit a shop even if they don’t have an appointment.”

Heidi Early, of indie retailer and publisher

“They willingly took it on, opening specially in the evening in midNovember, laying on coffee, mulled wine, cake, and cheese. One of my suppliers donated sparkly pens, another donated Washi tape, and we decorated the room – the response we received from people was immense.”

Sarah charged £7.50 per person as a way of securing commitment, but everyone received a goody bag (including some cards donated by Paper Salad, some festive chocolate and money off vouchers for Stationery Supplies and the café).

With some of her die-hard customers having already written their cards by mid-November, Sarah said that this year she’s going for a date at the start of the month. “The sense of community and social media traction definitely made it worthwhile,” said Sarah.

A blueprint of The Write Before Christmas initiative is to be shared via PG Buzz as well as on the GCA website in the coming weeks enabling others to run similar sessions.

Not surprisingly, Royal Mail came up. With the cost of stamps seen as an obstacle to increasing Christmas card sending, David Falkner, who leads the GCA’s RM subcommittee, explained how our industry wish of discounted stamps for Thinking of You Week or in the run up to Christmas just wasn’t on the cards, but stressed how we as an industry need to build on the positives of having second class stamps at an affordable price.

As a final thought, Austin & Co’s Sean Austin, from Malvern, explained how he has run campaigns equating the cost of sending a card to the price cup of coffee many people buy daily: “A stamp costs less than half a cup of coffee – and a coffee is half the price of a pack of Christmas cards. It really puts it into perspective for people who think cards are too expensive.”

Better latte than never!

Jo Sorrell, owner of Cardies in Stevenage immediately saw merit in tailoring the initiative

Above: Kaye Thurgood (left) and Earlybird’s Heidi Early (right) explained just some of their ideas, which includes a retailer Cardmitment window competition.

Right: Cardology’s David Falkner had to disappoint with the news that Royal Mail won’t discount Christmas stamp sends.

Above: This year is the 10th anniversary of Thinking of You Week, with the website receiving a lot of consumer traction.

Just do it

All booked up!

Hoping to get designs in front of more customers is always a publisher’s aim and, for many smaller, outfits, licensing is a great way to achieve this.

“Licensing showcases my work and its potential for other paper products, like giftwrap and calendars,” Louise Richardson, of Two For Joy Illustration, explained, having recently clinched a deal with Otter House for her Bookish cards.

“Licensing will allow me to grow my brand and reach bigger audiences. This benefits my core work with cards because of the enormous reach of Otter House into High Street, supermarket and garden centre retail. And, of course, Otter House also has access to different print techniques like embossing, which I can't wait to see on my new collection with them.”

typography come to life on other products.”

And she has the best of both worlds because the Two For Joy Bookish range has just grown by

Louise’s licensing agent The London Studio is aiming to help her expand beyond paper products into categories such as homewares, kitchenware and gifts, “which I can’t produce myself,” she added. “I’m excited to see my illustrations and

As the licensing fraternity gears up for the Brand Licensing Europe show (September 20-24 at London’s Excel), PG shares the views and news from a collection of companies about how they have licensed out their respective brands while Danilo, a major licensee of many leading licensing properties reveals what it sees as the current drivers in this space.

over 20 new designs, while Otter House has an exclusive collection. “This ensures there’s no overlap and my own customers have a bit more exclusivity on my core designs too.”

Emma Lawrence Designs has been involved with licensing since two companies approached the namesake artist at Spring Fair, and the brand is now on candles, gardening gifts, stationery, homeware, wall art, giftware, and fashion accessories as well as the core greeting cards.

“Licensing has unlocked numerous opportunities I feel would not be possible otherwise,” Emma said, “it’s meant my

brand has grown into product categories I may not have been able to invest in or would have taken a long time.

“As a publisher, I spent valuable time picking and packing orders with little time to focus on designing new ranges. I can now focus on what I love doing, which is drawing and designing.”

Beyond the obvious advantages of licensing such as wider distribution and enhanced brand recognition, Emma has found working closely and collaboratively with her licensees particularly rewarding.

“Being a freelancer can be isolating,” she explained, “so these partnerships are invaluable for sharing ideas and developing successful designs. My licensees handle marketing and sales, but I remain actively involved, promoting my brand values and supporting them whenever possible.

“My journey through licensing demonstrates the potential for greeting card designers to expand their reach and impact, bringing the joy and appeal of

Right: Otter House has a capsule collection of Louise’s Bookish range. Below: Emma’s working with Joe Davies, among others.

DIY or call a pro?

For small brands, the world of licensing can be daunting – on top of the design side, there’s negotiations, contracts, chasing royalties and all the ins and outs of the business shenanigans. While it’s definitely possible to do it yourself, there are distinct advantages to calling in the professionals, and Stuart Cox is one chap who’s not only done that already, he’s about to do it all over again.

A decade after launching his original I Like Birds card brand, Stuart and his partner Jean Pryde have set up Brilliantly Brave (a Henries 2024 finalist), which has captured a lot of attention in just seven months as all profits from the uplifting greeting cards go to community mental health initiatives.

Having ensured they’re licensing ready by having it in mind when coming up with ranges – such as creating sets of 12 designs so it would work for calendars – and mocking up product looks on Photoshop, Stuart explained: “A skilful licensing agent isn’t just there to sign deals and

collect royalties – they provide reassurance, strategy, advocacy and drive everything forward with clarity for licensees and the market.

“They’re the hidden heroes of licensing, equal partners in the creative process of expanding your brand, and key players in shaping the High Street and our daily lives. Jane Evans of JELC was instrumental in my early licensing success, offering not just opportunities but wisdom, guidance and a lot of grace and kindness.

“When the I Like Birds card business grew, I started getting asked for mugs, cushions and so on, but I didn’t know where to start. I entered the License This! competition for newbies at Brand Licensing Europe, made the final and managed to snag Jane as my licensing agent.

“I’ve always aimed to work closely with licensees, often developing into genuine friendships that go beyond just business. It’s about understanding each other, being flexible when needed, but also gently pushing for solutions that benefit everyone. I believe in being intimately involved in the design process with licensees, as it speeds thing up and leads to better outcomes.

“Your agent should love your brand, be your greatest believer, a superb listener, but you also need to click personally. A great agent can also change your thinking and all of it feeds back into and shapes your core products.

“As a small brand they’re a must have as they’re the point where professionalism, expertise and creative clarity can create real impact.”

Puzzling it out

One thing artists have to get their heads round when licensing out their 2D greeting card images is how they’ll look on 3D products such as mugs and jigsaws.

And that’s just what Crumble & Core’s resident artist and director Jilly Mercer had to do when the watercolourist’s work was recently licensed by Ravensburger Puzzles using bespoke scenes taking inspiration from the quintessentially British imagery of her card designs.

“As this was our first jigsaw, we were on a bit of a learning curve ourselves!” explained Jilly. “I started from a brief that Ravensburger sent through with images and text of what they needed with a view to having a series of puzzles. So the first one would need to be detailed enough to have other subjects leading from it into the next one.

“I made individual drawings of all of the separate elements to be included in the puzzle, before I started to paint in case anything didn’t feel right – it’s easier to make adjustments before painting!

“Once I got the go ahead from the team I started to paint each individual drawing, then scanned each piece and put it together in Photoshop with our designer Louise Pike. A grid is sometimes used over the image to see how it works as a puzzle.

“It’s very different to work on a jigsaw as you have to consider the puzzler – every drawing has to be thought through and detailed enough for it to be of interest and distinguishable, and there’s a conversation with the team as to the exact placing of certain images, colours and details so the puzzle has the correct flow and points of interest.

“It was a very exciting project to be a part of and we thoroughly enjoyed seeing the image come to life and be applied to another product!”

• Crumble and Core is represented for licensing by Lightbulb Licensing

Above and right: Jilly and her business partners Louise Pike and Lucy Rigby worked to create the Secret Garden puzzle.

Left and below: Stuart and Jean have mocked up Brilliantly Brave designs using Photoshop.

Current drivers

As a master of the licensed card and calendar, Danilo’s licensing director Dan Grant homes in on five areas he sees as current drivers of the licensing industry.

1) Anime – a continuing growth area with fans consuming ever more content via on-line specialist platforms, Danilo now works across 10 leading anime titles. Demand has led to the likes of Netflix developing successful live action shows such as One Piece to make the genre more accessible to a mass market. The loyal fan base is committed to purchasing merchandise for favourite shows and especially the more exclusive merchandise.

teenagers, with the brand heavily supported through social media platforms. For preschoolers, the speed at which Bluey has grown and secured space at retail is unique, giving retailers a safe bet when selecting ranges due to its massive appeal from youngsters and their families.

2) Box Office Movies – some of the biggest licensed merchandise sales come from big screen movie releases and box office numbers are now returning to pre-Covid levels. The likes of Dune 2, Inside Out 2 and Despicable Me 4 have all topped the charts this year and Deadpool & Wolverine has seen an even bigger impact in cinemas, reflecting fans’ desire for long-awaited sequels. The first Wicked movie is due soon, and looks set to be possibly the biggest movie of 2024.

3) Character/Toys – in recent years, there’s been strong growth from the toy sector licences with classics such as Barbie and Hot Wheels moving into greeting cards and calendars. Of the newer launches Squishmallows is proving as big a success for Danilo as more classic toy brands, providing a fresh look and appeal for older kids and

4) Retro/Nostalgia – new audiences have brought renewed interest in nostalgic properties such as Friends, and licensors are delving into the archives to create new material based on past successes. Movies sequels such as Inside Out 2, Moana 2, Despicable Me 4, Beetlejuice 2 and even a new Gladiator II movie are all launching this year, while retro characters are

also seeing strong appeal. Stitch from Disney’s Lilo & Stitch has become massively popular among older kids and teens, plus Hello Kitty & Friends is helping fulfil the demand for iconic cute characters.

5) Taylor Swift – It would be wrong not mention the biggest music tour of all time! Taylor Swift’s UK and European visits in the last couple of months, proved the hottest ticket in town. Official merchandise rights are limited, but Danilo has been fortunate enough to work with Brown Trout in the US to deliver the official Taylor Swift 2024 and 2025 calendars into the European market. This has been a big success, and I expect it to lead Danilo’s calendar chart at the end of 2024.

Right: Taylor’s topping the charts.

Right: Squishmallows is a new favourite toy brand, as reflected in Danilo reaching the finals of The Henries with its licensed card range.

Above: One Piece are anime stars.

Below: Despicable Me meets sequel and nostalgia.

Above: Nostalgia with Stitch.

Above: The box office movie Deadpool calendar.

Check out industry show

Brand Licensing Europe is the trade show for the industry, the place where an array of brands – from Aardman Animations and AC Milan, BBC Studios and Elves Behavin’ Badly, Emoji and JCB, to London Zoo and Netflix – plus licensing agencies galore congregate.

Running at ExCeL London Tuesday to Thursday, 24-26 September, the only pan-European annual event dedicated to licensing and brand extension BLE is bringing over 2,500 brands to the incredible character parade.

And this year BLE, part of the Global Licensing Group at Informa Markets, has extended its mission to provide licensing opportunities around the world by bringing brands and products together with the launch of the Discovery & Design accelerator zone to support entry level licensing entrepreneurs.

The zone sits within the busy Character & Entertainment sector and houses 14 smaller businesses including a trio of card publishers, Ginger Betty, Jelly Armchair and Middle Mouse, plus artist and illustrator Sophie JonasHill (featured in Art Source in this issue), as well as research and design company Vicki Thomas Associates and licensing agent This Is Iris, who both deal with the greeting card sector.

confident with our offering with a variety of different IP we’re ready to license so it seemed like the perfect time.

“We’re especially interested in showing products we’ve created in small quantities ourselves, such as homewares and games, to more experienced industry partners who have distribution and manufacturing expertise to see if we can work together.”

Bec Wright founded Middle Mouse with her gardening and cookery writer dad Paul Peacock and, since his death just before the 2018 launch, has kept his spirit alive by using recipes and growing tips from his extensive catalogue of work.

She said: “Most of our cards have a little something extra, whether it’s a recipe on the back, or how to keep plants alive on our pot plant cards. It’s a way of keeping him involved in the company.

“I have some exciting video game IPs launching at BLE and would love to find a software team to help move this forward. I’d also love to make contact with publishing companies as books are a huge passion of mine, as well as homeware companies that like bright, bold patterns!”

There’s also a strong retail proposition at BLE, with buyers from Aldi, Cardfactory, Character.com, Dunelm, Tesco, Forbidden Planet, Asda, John Lewis, Matalan, Sainsbury’s, Skechers, Tesco, The Entertainer, The Very Group, The Works, TJX Europe and TruffleShuffle among those already confirmed to be attending.

Ginger Betty is a former winner of BLE’s License This! competition*, aimed at helping newcomers break into the £235billion ($300bn) global licensing market, and founder Tracey Colliston has this year branched out into stationery with what she calls her “cosy contemporary” card designs.

“It’s been really well received, and we hope to expand our range further,’ she said. “Being a License This! winner allowed us to have a stand at BLE, which opened our eyes to the possibilities within licensing. We signed a couple of licensing deals, which have worked out well so far.

“In the last couple of years, we’ve been concentrating on building Ginger Betty, and now we’re more visible, we feel it’s time to revisit the licensing world and see what opportunities are out there.”

Over nine years in business, Jelly Armchair’s co-founders and sisters Cat and Liz Faulkner have been wanting to exhibit at BLE for a long time.

Manager Stephen Davis explained: “This year, we’re really

To further widen the licensing reach at retail, BLE runs a retail mentoring programme. As Laura Freedman-Dagg, head of retail for BLE and its sister show Licensing Expo in Las Vegas, said: “The retail mentoring programme is really important to the BLE campaign because we need to compensate for retail turnover and departmental changes. The programme allows us to reach buying teams from target retailers all year round so they’re fully engaged and ready for productive conversations when they come to the show.

“Some retailers don’t always realise they can have a direct relationship with the brand owner – this is a real lightbulb moment, and we can help retailers to secure their meetings in order to build their networks, scrutinise what’s on offer and really get the best from the show.”

To register to attend Brand Licensing Europe, go to www.brandlicensing.eu

* BLE is not running a License This! competition in 2024, but it will return in 2025.

Below: Ginger Betty’s cute offer.

Below right: Detail is Jelly Armchair illustrator Cat’s speciality.

Above: PG made an impact at BLE with characters taking time out to discover the card world.

Below: Middle Mouse has something extra.

Art Source

Hill Walking

Sophie Jonas-Hill won the Kelvyn Gardner License This! 2021 competition (which was part of Brand Licensing Europe show) with her Tea for Tattoo brand, which combines tattoo imagery with her love of tea, cake and all things British.

At this September’s BLE (September 24-26) at London’s Excel), Sophie will be exhibiting in the Discovery & Design area, showcasing among her other imagery, a colour-burst development of her award-winning brand. Here she shares her story…

“I'm an artist and illustrator who creates beautiful hand drawn images mostly in pen and ink. In a world getting sucked in by AI, I create art with a human soul which speaks of authenticity and craft, drawing on tattoo culture, myth, legend and alternative culture, all with a strong narrative feel.

I've worked with music festivals, pop culture retailers such as HMV, food companies like Bird and Blend, as well as publishing for adults and children.

Everything I do starts with pen on paper, weaving intense details with bold colour and texture. I create unique characters for clients, which stand out from the uniformity of digital animation with their quirkiness and heart, whether they be dark and devious, cute and loveable or mystic and majestic. I take inspiration from words as diverse as Queer culture and identity to create work, which is more than rainbow washing, to the natural world in all its breathtaking glory.

darkly gothic and intriguing, to bright and bold with tones of humour and joy, it's a collection of images and concepts which could spawn a myriad of product lines and campaigns!”

I like to think of myself as an extremely versatile designer, illustrator and artist, and can take any brief anyone would like to throw at me!”

You’re returning to exhibit at the Brand Licensing Europe (BLE) show this September, what drew you back?

“As an independent artist and illustrator, there's no other place that gives me a chance to be at the big table, to meet and greet with huge brands and decision makers and show them something they wouldn't find any other way. Added to that, the show is really well organised and run so it makes being there even for a company as small as mine, a breeze! The matchmaking service puts me on an even playing field, at least I am able to start to build connections and network with people so often out of reach for people like me!”

WANT TO BE FEATURED?

What can licensees and retailers expect to see on your stand?

“I'll be showing them an onslaught of colour and detail, a world of images and imagination that will give them a taste of my versatility and talent; they'll get to see something they've not seen before, and which bucks the trend of uniformity! From

Are you launching new brands, products or announcing any news at BLE?

“I'll be showing a huge reworking of my award-winning Tea for Tattoo collection, which is inspired by tattoo culture, literary classics and tea drinking, all of my favourite things! The illustrations are bursting into glorious liquid colour, full of sass and humour. It's a collection of images and surface-pattern aimed at homewares, greeting cards, stationery and apparel, all targeted at a teenage to adult audience; a collection which is truly independent and alternative.”

It's BLE’s 25th birthday this year, what is your favourite memory of the show?

“It would have to be winning License This! in 2021, which was the most amazing opportunity and has opened my eyes to the possibilities of the licensing industry!”

What are the biggest challenges and opportunities facing those wanting to licensing art and design brands?

“For me, it's just getting people to take a chance on a new brand. I've had a huge amount of positive feedback and the support of my wonderful licensing agency, Larkshead, and we've started to build some really exciting deals, but it's been a tough time for everyone post Covid. I am however starting to feel the positivity growing, and I think everyone is looking forward to BLE to embrace this feeling and start something new!”

l Sophie Jonas-Hill will be exhibiting in the Discovery & Design area of BLE on Stand AD05 (www.brandlicensing.eu). Sophie is represented on the licensing front by Larkshead.

If you are an artist, photographer or verse writer and would like to be considered to appear in Art Source, please contact PG’s Jakki Brown on jakkib@max-publishing.co.uk. This is an editorial feature and as such is free of charge.

Right: This work is inspired by the White Rabbit from Alice, entitled ‘Late, but fashionably so!’. Far right: A quirky design from the reworked Tea for Tattoo collection.

Left: Sophie is happy combining imagery with lettering.

Top: Tattoos, tea and cake are just some of Sophie’s loves. Above: This Curious Owl design is from a series of Sophie’s semi-abstract ink paintings.

PG ASKED A TRIO OF RETAILERS FOR THEIR BEST SELLERS

Penny Bailey, co-owner of Baileys, Ainsdale, Crosby and Maghull

Former nurse Penny runs the trio of Baileys stores in Ainsdale, Crosby and Maghull, opening her second store right next to a Cardfactory outlet, which she thinks is a great combination, giving customers a fabulous choice.

Category

Name of Publisher

Product/Name Range Comments

Small Talk, Ark Life and Say It Loud

IC&G

UK Greetings

Hallmark

Emotional Rescue (in collab with Paper Salad)

Rosie Made A Thing

Rachel Ellen Designs

IC&G

Hallmark

Five Dollar Shake

Berni Parker Designs

Most Especially For You

General

General

Mine’s A Pint

Gin & Frolics

Chatterbox, T-Party, and Jigsaw

Year You Were Born

Willow Bouquet; Pressing Matters

General

Ginger Betty

Hallmark

Woodmansterne

Glick

Joma

Jellycat

Ladies Who Love Life General Peter Rabbit

“Pigment has us well covered across the board for humour, contemporary general birthday, milestone ages, blanks and captions. These ranges are flying out.”

“This has been a surprise hit, with the sentiment hitting just the right spot.”

“Across all their captions, these guys keep me busy re-ordering.”

“This collaboration just keeps selling, and we love the new designs.”

“This stalwart is the range that just keeps giving.”

“Rachel Ellen does a fab job for children.”

“We never get bored of selling these – reordering every couple of weeks.”

“Strong sellers.”

“For that extra-special send.”

“Berni’s artwork has kept customers coming back for them for years, with no signs of slowing down.”

“An instant success. They produce many an ‘aah’. The little keepsake cards are a great add-on too.”

“Proving to be very strong. The grandson and granddaughter birthday cards have done particularly well.”

“All their photographic ranges work brilliantly for us, with Loose Leashes and Catitude outperforming them all!”

“Glick keep delivering for us. The Colour Hub by Paper Salad range has injected a fabulous amount of colour to our walls.”

“Our bestselling gifts. They just hit the mark for so many occasions, and bring a little joy to this mad world!”

Right: Glick’s colour injection.

Right: Cute Jigsaw cards from Rachel Ellen.

Right: Penny loves the art of Ladies Who Love Life.

Lorraine and Colin Wilson, co-owners of Polka Dot and Polka Dot Too, Castle Douglas

A duo of shops in a thriving town in Dumfries and Galloway that is at the gateway to the Galloway Hills and Solway Coast.

International Focus

Category

Everyday

Relations & Occasions

Humour

Children’s

Adult Ages

Art

Cute

Photographic

3D/Pop-Ups

Gift Wrappings

Gifts

Name of Publisher

Woodmansterne

Great British Card Company

Molly Mae

Rosie Made A Thing

Rosie Made A Thing

Paperlink

Green Pebble

Ginger Betty

Abacus Cards

Second Nature Glick

Joma

Product/Name Range Comments

General General

General

General

Yippee

Mimosa, Amaretto and La La Land

General Owl’s Nest

BBC Countryfile

Champagne

General Jewellery

Category

Everyday

“Quality cards with constant new designs added to the ranges, keeping our selections fresh and innovative.”

“Our customers love the artwork, especially those cards specific to Scotland.”

“It's a joy to hear customers titter with laughter.”

"Just adorable with a sense of mischief.”

“They offer contemporary options which are sometimes difficult to find for the older age groups.”

“Many choose several cards for framing at home.”

“Beautiful pastel shades with believable little characters, mice, owls and hedgehogs.”

“These cards reflect what is happening in our fields and farms”.

“Extremely popular for those seeking that something a little bit special.”

“The collaborations with our top selling card brands coordinate.”

“Constant sellers, perfect price point, easy to post.”

Deb Came, owner of Paperweight, Cardiff

A long established and much-loved independent design-led card and gift shop in Wales’ capital city.

Name of Publisher

Rachel Ellen Designs

Relations & Occasions

Woodmansterne

Caroline Gardner

Humour

Children’s

Adult Ages

Art

Photographic

Gift Wrappings

Gifts

Rosie Made A Thing

Paper Salad

Woodmansterne

Woodmansterne

Ohh Deer

Glick

Wild Olive

Product/Name Range

Belle

Paper Chain by Stephanie Dyment Wedding cards

Gin & Frolics

Sunshine

Mambo by Amy Eastland

Essoldo Design by Kate Rebecca Leach

Say Cheese

Summer Collection by Kate McFarlane

Artisan Candles

Comments

“Bright and vibrant and the Daffodil card is very popular here in Wales.”

“For relations the strong colours and design stand out on our stands.”

“Classy, modern and fun. Something to suit all kinds of weddings. “

“Just hits the nail on the head with its relatable humour.”

“Bright colours and fun characters.”

“Strong designs covering many sports and male interests.”

“Love, love, love! And so do our customers. Rich with gold inlay, striking images.”

“Amusing snapshots to keep us smiling.”

“Cute and quirky, perfect for all ages. Who doesn’t love a happy doughnut?!”

“Beautifully finished with dried flowers and delightful scents.”

Right: Wild Olive’s candles are finished with dried flowers.

Right: A Say Cheese design from Ohh Deer Middle right: Striking images from Essoldo Design for Woodmansterne.

Right: Yippee for kids’ ages from Rosie Made A Thing.

Right: Ginger Betty’s Owl’s Nest is so cute.

Right: Champagne comes in many guises of Second Nature pop-ups.

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PRODUCTS: World’s leading publisher of high quality plastic greeting cards. Also an extensive range of quality greeting cards covering Everyday, Occasions, Christmas and Spring seasons.

BRANDS: Cherished Thoughts, Sweet Sentiments, Buddies Always, Symphony, Thinking of You, Style, Special Wishes, Special Times, Young Editions, Groove Sensations, Forever Blessed, Grey Skies, Classics.

METHOD OF SALE: SENSATIONS –Direct to retail XPRESS YOURSELF –Now one of the leading wholesale publisher suppliers in the UK

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Simon Elvin Limited Wooburn Industrial Park, Wooburn Green, Bucks HP10 0PE Tel: 01628 526711 Fax: 01628 531483 www.simonelvin.com mail@simonelvin.com

Method of Sale: Direct to Retail

& an extensive range of superior quality, design-led Greeting Cards for all occasions, Spring Seasons & Christmas. Orders can be

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