Progressive Party Europe May/June 2017

May/June 2017

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Europes leading neon cosmetics brand +44 (0)1438 525 999 sales@moonglow.co.uk www.moonglow.co.uk

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NAIL VARNISH NEW FOR 2017

A range of 33 colours including: • Neon UV - 16 Colours (Intense & Pastel) • Glow in the Dark - 8 Colours • Neon UV Glitter - 8 Colours • UV Top Coat • 15ml Nett Fill • Long lasting non-chip formula • Good coverage • A favourite for festival season

GLITTER SHAKERS NEW FOR 2017

• Top new product for festival season following this years glitter trend • Fix to body easily using our glitter fix gel • 5g Nett Fill • 8 Neon UV Colours • Suitable for body art, nails and lips.

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Immerse yourself in the greeting card world PG Live 2017 is an unmissable celebration of the exciting greeting card industry, with over 280 exhibitors showcasing thousands of original designs and exciting card collections.

With two jam-packed days of spotting trends and making friends, PG Live 2017 will be the most exciting trade show you visit this year.

We can’t wait to see you there!

“We love PG Live! It’s our favourite show, we wouldn’t miss it. The whole atmosphere of the show is great; it has a real buzz about it. Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves and it’s great for meeting new people and catching up with familiar faces.”

Lucy Sticka & Heidi Richardson, Little Paperies, Ashbourne

Book your free tickets now to receive your free show preview and start planning your visit! www.progressivegreetingslive.com

PG Live 2017

Tuesday 6 - Wednesday 7 June Business Design Centre, London

BOOK YOUR TICKET NOW!

+44 (0) 1635 297070 @PGLiveLondon www.progressivegreetingslive.com

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CONTENTS The home of market leading trade magazines

The home of market leading trade magazines max-publishing.co.uk The Thehome homeofofmarket marketleading leadingtrade trademagazines magazines March/April 2013

The home of Exhibitions The home of Exhibitions The Thehome homeofofExhibitions Exhibitions

The home of market leading trade awards The home of market leading trade awards The Thehome homeofofmarket marketleading leadingtrade tradeawards awards

Max Publishing Ltd, United House, North Road, London N7 9DP T: 020 7700 6740 F: 020 7607 6411 www.max-publishing.co.uk hello@max-publishing.co.uk

Welcome to the Party With around 8 million children under the age of ten in the UK, it’s no surprise that the youth market plays a fundamental part in driving the party industry. After all, that’s a lot of birthday parties to cater for!

We assume that most young children will have a birthday party in some shape or form, whether that is a quiet tea party at home or an invite-the-whole class affair Inset: Progressive Party Europe’s Rob Willis and Jacqui Parr. at the local soft play. It follows that – in theory, at least – party retailers should be able to rely on a number of those parties taking place each week.

However, according to recent research from Disney – which has launched its very own party website – that’s not necessarily the case. The site itself offers parents creative ideas, clever tips and helpful solutions, but it also includes the UK’s first children’s party index, which reveals the latest trends in children’s party planning.

It makes for interesting reading, and we’ve pulled out a few select highlights in our news pages which might come in useful for anyone looking to understand exactly what’s going through the mind of a party-planning parent. With the average spend sitting around £200 - £250, there’s definitely cash out there to be spent and the overall message seems to be that anything which helps the stressed-out parents will be very gratefully received – a sentiment echoed in our feature on kids’ parties!

As we move into the summer months the number of birthday parties tends to drop off, only to be replaced by festival fancy dress, wedding décor and – for the more organised retailer – preparations for the upcoming Halloween season.

Each year the Halloween season grows into something bigger and more spectacular than the last. While that may not always translate into money taken at the till, it’s a promising trend in general and means that Halloween sits securely as the biggest and most significant holiday season in the UK (and is catching up with Carnival across the rest of Europe).

As Halloween grows in popularity so too does the interest from other retailers as they also look for ways to capitalise on the event. However, although high street stores might offer witch-themed accessories and a few spooky-looking candlesticks, the bulk of the real business should still fall to the traditional party retailer – the place to go for anything out of the ordinary.

Our Halloween feature takes a look at the new product launching for this year as well as the hottest trends. Drawing people in-store remains top priority and Sergio Battaner, Palmer Agencies’ marketing director, has some advice for retailers looking to highlight Halloween this year. “Make an effort. The bigger the effort the greater the reward in interest, sales, social media presence. Make sure the window works for you. The bigger the social buzz you can create, the better the sales will be!”

Marketing and creating that all-important ‘buzz’ doesn’t need to be expensive.

Social media is free and is a great way to connect with local customers, while hanging props outside the shops is another great way to attract attention.

Of course the holy grail for party retailers is to be able to position itself as all things to all people. Our retail interviewee, Spanish party retailer Party Fiesta, does exactly that, and prides itself on offering every type of party product for every type of party.

With 134 stores across ten countries, Party Fiesta is the biggest party and costume retail chain in Europe so it was great to find out a bit more about what goes on behind the scenes.

Other highlights in this issue include a look at the dedicated greeting card trade show PG Live – which is an ideal opportunity for party retailers who carry cards to focus on the low-cost, high-profit market – and a quick chat with OppoSuits’ product designer in our new Unsung Hero feature. We hope you enjoy it – stay spooky!

Jacqui Parr – Editor @Prog_Party_Eu

Rob Willis – Publishing Director

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CONTENTS

What’s inside: MAY/JUNE 2017

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NEWS

The latest news and views from across the party world.

THE JESTER

The jester shares some wise words on the nature of retail.

NEW PRODUCTS Exciting new lines from your party favourites.

EU NEW PRODUCTS

What will be making waves in the European market?

LICENSED TO PARTY

Your favourite characters - in party form!

FIESTA TIME

Talking shop with Party Fiesta, Europe’s largest party retailer.

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THE WITCHING HOUR

The biggest event in the party calendar, don’t miss out on this selection of Halloween horrors.

UNSUNG HERO

Shining a spotlight on OppoSuits’ product designer Kris Beuk.

BAPIA

John Bowler takes an impartial look at balloon releases.

THE BALLOON BOOM

Taking a look at the rise in balloon decor.

A BIRTHDAY BONANZA Kids’ parties provide year-round business for party retailers.

BEST SELLERS

Retailers share tales from the tills.

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NEWS PAGE

NEWS UPDATE Disney Launches Party Website

The popular online platform for the Disney Store, www.disneystore.co.uk, has launched a brand new party site with the aim of helping to inspire parents as they plan for their children’s party.

The dedicated Disney Party site will offer hints, tips and ideas as well as giving visitors a place to purchase a wide selection of official Disney, Marvel and Star Wars products, from invitations and partyware to balloons and costumes.

A number of free features are offered within the website, including customisable themed invites and a personalised party dashboard which helps parents manage invitations, keep track of guests and create a schedule for the big day. The birthday boy or girl can also sign up to receive a

free birthday phone call from Mickey and Minnie Mouse.

To mark the launch, the UK’s first children’s party index, the Disney Party Index – has been

A Showroom Social Palmer Agencies' showroom is open though the year and marketing manager Sergio Battaner is extending an open invite to all party retailers to pay the company a visit and enjoy some famous Irish hospitality.

“Those planning on visiting us should get in touch,” said Sergio, “not just so we can ensure the showroom is free on the day, but also to allow us to show our visitors the best Belfast has to offer.

Irish hospitality at its best will consist of top restaurants, excellent pints of Guinness, good whiskey and the best 'craic' in the trade!”

So don’t be a stranger and pop along to see some Titanic products at Palmer Agencies’ giant showroom.

Left: The Palmer Agencies' showroom is a great opportunity to see its product portfolio close up and personal.

Up Up & Away Closes Doors It is Progressive Party Europe's understanding that party and balloon distributor Up Up & Away has ceased to trade. While no official announcement has yet been made, it is understood that notices on the closed premises point towards the wholesaler ceasing to trade on or before on Thursday 25 May. The London branch of the business closed two months ago to allow the company to focus on the Basildon branch. Up Up & Away was first established over 25 years ago and has been an important part of the balloon and party market ever since.

Up Up & Away could not be reached for comment at the time of going to press.

commissioned, which will reveal the latest trends in children’s party planning. The free downloadable guide saw Disney survey 2,000 parents to get the low-down on what really happens when planning a children's party. (See separate story) “We created the Disney Party site as we know people love putting on Disney, Marvel and Star Wars themed parties but that parents are time-poor and there are lots of different stresses and costs associated with party planning,” said Graham Burridge, md at Disney Stores Europe.

“We hope that by offering a one-stop-shop where parents can be inspired, plan and shop for all things Disney in one place, they’ll have all the tools to put on a great party for their children in an affordable and fun way.”

Above: The Disney Party website offers parents creative ideas, clever tips and helpful solutions.

The Disney Party Index The UK’s first children’s party index, comissioned by Disney, has revealed the latest trends in children’s party planning.

Talking to 2,000 parents, here's a few key highlights which might come in handy for the local party retailer...

■ Parents typically spend between £50 and £250 on their child’s birthday party.

■ Some 58% worry about the cost of the event, with 60% of parents choosing a joint party to keep costs down.

■ It gets easier – 62% of parents with four-year-olds are stressed when organising a party, but that drops to 50% by the time the kids are 11.

■ The six-year-olds’ parties get the most attention, with parents spending over six weeks making plans, on average.

■ Over half (51%) of children’s parties are hosted at home over external locations such as soft play centres, laser quest or leisure centres.

■ Long live the party bag! Brits spend an average of £5.19 on each party bag.

Global Ghouls Taking place in New York at the beginning of December, the International Halloween Show will once again be offering buyers a sneak peak at next year’s Halloween selection.

Held over four days, from Monday 5 December to Thursday 8 December, the show takes place across two locations within a short walk of each other – The Halloween Tower at 1115 Broadway, and 230 Fifth Avenue.

For more information or to register, please visit www. hiaonline.org

Fancy Dress Gets Real A brand new Watford-based party business, Fancy Dress Castle, opened its doors for the first time on 13 May 2017.

The party and fancy dress shop, located near the pond in The Parade, brought stilt walkers, face painters and a live DJ to the launch, to ensure a party atmosphere prevailed on the big day.

Chris Mee, who has been running Fancy Dress Castle online for seven years, said; “It’s always been my ambition to have a shop on the high street and this will be such a fun place for everyone to come shopping for their fancy dress and party products.”

He continued; “We also have plans to be the main party room decorators in Watford for weddings, birthdays and all other special events.”

Below: The new store marks a move to traditional retail for owner Chris Mee.

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M I LANO

Party Fashion

WIDMANN S.r.l.

M I LANO

Party Fashion

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Viale dell’Industria, 3/C 20020 Busto Garolfo (Milano) - Italy Tel. (+39) 0331 560001 - Fax (+39) 0331 537565 E-mail: info@widmannsrl.com

www.widmannsrl.com

National UK Wholesaler/Distributor Tel. 01702 447676 - Fax 01702 447677 E-mail: sales@sanctointernational.co.uk

www.sanctointernational.co.uk

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PARTY NEWS

Taking The Q Tour The first ever Qualatex World Tour has been taking place throughout 2017 to celebrate 100 years of business. With an emphasis on taking education direct to clients, the team is currently well into the tour, which will see it making 64 stops by the end of 2017, 14 of which will be in Europe.

Action-packed classes and workshops will be full of valuable designs, techniques and competitions, with the mystery box competition a particular

highlight.

The UK stop took place in Broxbourne on 9 May, and was a great success, with hands-on classes in birthday décor and distortion techniques led by the world-famous balloon expert Alberto Falcone CBA throughout the two-day educational event.

"It was a great day in a lovely venue,” said Christina Gordon from Balloon Blossom Events, “I really enjoyed myself. Thank you so much!”

“The Mystery Box competition

Left: The Q Tour will continue to run throughout the rest of 2017.

was a particular highlight,” said marketing manager Anna Hickman, “As it is lots of fun for the competitors as well as for the other delegates to watch.

It is amazing to see how many different designs people can come up with using exactly the same set of products!” (see separate story)

HIA Moves Foward

And The Winner Is...

Inset: Billy 'Big Billy' Mawhinney was an important figure in the early days of the party industry.

In Memory Billy Mawhinney, director of Palmer Agencies from the early 1970s, has died peacefully at hospital in Belfast at the age of 80.

Billy remained at the company well into the new millennium and will be remembered by many of the old 'school' from when the party business was in its infancy.

At the time Palmer Agencies was the British distributor for several overseas companies including César Masks (France), Papillon Domino Masks (Italy) and Funworld (USA).

Billy was particularly well-known throughout Ireland and Scotland and could always be found wearing a César mask, whether it was at a show in Glasgow, Brighton, London, Birmingham or Dublin!

Outside of business Billy lived a busy life as a scout and cub master.

He leaves behind his much-loved wife Diane, son Gareth, daughter Alison and three grandchildren. He will always be fondly remembered by all the staff at Palmer Agencies.

The Mystery Box Competition takes place at every stop of the Qualatex World Tour with entrants creating a sculpture or piece of décor in 30 minutes, with no prep time.

The overall winner will be crowned World Champion and will receive free registration to the World Balloon Convention 2018, San Diego (14 – 18 March 2018).

Ten teams competed in the UK event, with Aimee Smith (Celebrations Party Shop) and Mike Hurst (Reds Balloons and Parties) taking first place and proceeding to the next stage of the competition.

“During the morning of the event, Alberto Falcone was teaching lots of awesome designs using the new birthday range,” said Mike. “This got my hopes up as I've been using a lot of these in the shop recently. I was overjoyed when we saw the box contained the new confetti dot latex and

There are still quite a few Q Tour stops to take place right across Europe, and plenty of time to book.

■ Ireland, 6 June ■ Germany, 17 June ■ Poland, 20 June ■ Spain, 2 September ■ Italy, 10 September ■ Portugal, 11 September ■ France, 17 September ■ Hungary, 25 September ■ Netherlands, 2 October ■ Sweden, 7 November For more information visit www.qualatex.com/worldtour

foil, which have been very popular!”

“When the winner was announced I couldn't believe that we'd beaten some incredible designs to take the award and move forward to the worldwide finals,” he continued. “It was an incredibly proud moment and I am so happy to share it with Aimee. I'd also like to give a huge shout out to the Pioneer Europe staff at the event, as they all contributed to make it a fantastic day.”

Above: Aimee Smith (Celebrations Party Shop) and Mike Hurst (Reds Balloons and Parties) with their winning design.

The Halloween Industry Association (HIA) is moving forward on its two key marketing initiatives for this year.

The first will involve establishing a National Trick-or-Treat Day on the last Saturday of October, dedicated to the safe celebration of Halloween. The second focuses on promoting the celebration of Halloween, particularly with regard to purchased costumes.

HIA is currently seeking a marketing director for a period of 12 months, who will be tasked with executing these initiatives. Interested parties should send a cover letter, resume and compensation requirements to Michele Biordi at mbiordi@hiaonline.org.

Visit www.halloweenpartyexpo. com for more information and to read the full description of the role.

Famous Fancy Dress Adele celebrated her 29th birthday on Friday 5 May in style. Not in typical celeb style; donning a glamorous dress and having a swanky party, but by dressing up as an old lady.

Adele shared a picture of her fancy dress outfit on Twitter, with the comment, "Nearly 30! Thanks for the well wishes. See you soon x."

Bristol Novelty Celebrates 20 Years Bristol Novelty will be celebrating its 20th year this summer with an open day, taking place on Sunday 20 August 2017.

“We would love to see you all, so please put the date in the diary and come down to Bristol,” said business development manager Gary Vincent. “We have plenty to offer! New lines and a brand new showroom plus an open day discount and the opportunity to look take look at our new warehouse. And of course let’s not forget our legendary buffet!”

Doors open at 10am until 4pm. For further information and to register your attendance please email susan@bristolnovelty.co.uk

Above: Adele celebrated her birthday by dressing up as and old lady.

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PARTY NEWS

Delhi Celebrates Balloon Art

The first ever International Balloon Art Festival was held in New Delhi, India, earlier this year. Taking place from 14 to 27 January, 2017, the event was organised in partnership with Qualatex and featured a 30-feet tri-coloured hot air balloon installation – titled The Hot Air – to celebrate Republic Day. Live stage performances and other sculptures were also created by international balloon artists including Keith Stirman, Pratap Puli, Rama Krishna and Guy Sheffer.

The installation was created by international balloon artist Fiona Fischer CBA, of Worldwide Balloon Decor in Portadown,

Ireland. As one of the world’s most renowned balloon artists, Fiona has travelled the world installing large scale balloon décor and teaching her skills at balloon conventions and events.

Sue Bowler CBA had the privilege of working on the project. “We agreed that it would be more exciting and enjoyable for the mall shoppers and visitors to watch the sculpture being built from start to finish,” explained Sue. “So on the first day, we marked out a large space in the centre of the shopping mall and started work on building the frame for the hot air balloon.”

By day two the pair were

ready to start adding balloons, using four Premium Twin-Air Inflators, thousands of Qualatex balloons, and an eager team of helpers! “This was the first time that we had used the inflators on such a large project, and we were not disappointed,” said Sue. “By the end of day two, we had completed the top half of the balloon. It felt great, and we were totally on schedule.”

The pair spent a further two days completing the hot air balloon and basket, so all that remained was to add a few characters and to shroud the base of the basket within balloon clouds. “During the five days we attracted many admirers

Just Like That It's the end of an era for Tommy Cooper's niece as she is forced to close the Eastbourne-based Cooper’s Magic Shop.

Cooper’s also carried one of the largest selections of fancy dress and accessories in East Sussex.

The magic shop – which had been part of the family business from 1960 until now – will soon be disappearing forever, as owner Sabrina Cooper blames supermarkets and the internet for her business closing.

“In the last five years, the internet has destroyed all the independent shops. Everyone goes online now, or shops in superstores.... Will superstores allow people to try on costumes? Or explain how to deal with the latex and fake blood and special effects?”

She lamented the closure, calling it 'heartbreaking', saying that; “People should go to their local shops and stores and support them.”

Fiona’s magnificent sculpture used approximately 10,000 balloons. who took the time to come and tell us how wonderful they thought the sculpture was!”

The dates have not yet been announced for next year's festival.

Birthday Balloons Proving that there's no such thing as being too old for balloons is Ivy Smart who celebrated her 107th birthday last week with plenty of Amscan balloons!

This now puts her on the official list

of the UK's oldest people so of course she had to throw a party to celebrate.

Thanks to Andy Smart, head of independent sales at Amscan (and Ivy's grandson) for the photo.

Above: Sabrina Cooper with her mother Zena and daughter Natasha.

New Name For Halloween & Party Expo Keith Mackintosh will be the new point of contact for retailers who meet the buying criteria for the four-day Halloween & Party Expo.

Urban Exposition, a division of Clarion Events, has appointed Keith as the key buyer account manager for the show, taking place January 12-15, 2018 at the Ernst N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, LA. “We are committed to providing our key retailers with white glove service and are confident in Keith’s abilities to bring special treatment to these individuals who take time out of their busy schedules to attend

Doing It For The Kids The youngest collection within OppoSuits will be released soon. The company has been 'working like crazy' to get its kids range wrapped up and the finishing touches are now almost done.

After showing the new range at various trade shows, the team has high expectations for this new collection and is aiming to officially introduce the new range in July.

PPE will keep you posted!

Right: Mini-versions of the adult OppoSuits collection will be available soon.

our events,” said Mike Carlucci, senior vice president for Urban Expositions special events portfolio.

“The hosted buyer programme will include hotel accommodation along with additional at-show amenities and scheduled meetings with exhibitors,” he continued.

“I look forward to being the liaison with our VIP attendees and providing them with personal customer service to enhance their experience at this leading industry trade event,” said Keith.

Keith can be contacted at (203) 202-3825 or at kmackintosh@ urban-expo.com.

Inset: Happy Birthday from all of us at PPE Ivy!

Rubie's Keep It Inclusive The recent Bentonville Film Festival (2 – 7 May 2017) saw the largest-ever gathering of superheroes coming together to celebrate diversity and inclusion.

The special annual event celebrates women and diversity in all parts of entertainment media and as a top-level sponsor, Rubie’s donated over a thousand costumes to the superherofilled crowd, who assembled prior to the 'A League of Their Own' reunion ballgame.

Above: More than 1,000 superheroes gathered on Sunday May 7, at the third annual BFF event.

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PARTY NEWS

Jackson's New Catalogue Out Now

Inflated Inspirations An interactive and immersive balloon art installation will be transforming the Waterfront Gallery at the University of Suffolk this summer. Named Inflated Inspirations, the exhibition has been created to tell the story of Pop My Mind, a curated online hub for artists of all disciplines.

“Most people have seen balloon models made at fetes and festivals, some have seen impressive displays at weddings and parties,” said Samuel Stamp Dod CBA, owner of Suffolk-based VIP Balloons. “However, we will be taking things much further and creating designs that tell a story and challenge the viewer to think of balloon art in the same way as they might view theatre, pottery or even paintings.”

The installation build will be taking place between Tuesday 25 July and Thursday 27 July, with an exclusive preview taking place on the Thursday evening. The exhibition will then be open to the public until Monday 7 August

and will see a full size tree (12m x 8m) and forest area 'grow' from the centre of the gallery, with its branches leading out to other exciting new designs.

The exhibition will be open for ten days and will be used to host a full programme of inspired events, such as storytelling, teddy bear’s picnics, art demonstrations and dance and theatrical performances.

“The work will be immersive and interactive, encouraging visitors to walk through, touch and explore the art,” explained Samuel, “as

Going Native It's been a grey area in the party trade for some time, but an official statement from the US Department of Interior has issued the definitive statement on how suppliers and retailers should list their Indian style costumes and accessories.

In a letter which went out to several US manufacturers, the department stated that these items should be marketed as 'Indian Style' or 'Native American Inspired' in order Above: Widmann's Native American to avoid potential confusion.

-inspired headdress.

The clarification has not been requested in order to avoid potentially causing offense, but rather to ensure that there is no confusion as to the origin of the goods. Citing the Indian Arts and Crafts Act (Public Law 101-644), the letter states that; 'it is unlawful to directly or indirectly offer or display for sale, or sell, any art or craft product in a manner that falsely suggests it is Indian-produced, an Indian product or the product of a particular Indian tribe.'

The act is essentially a truth-in-marketing law which has been designed to prevent the marketing of products as 'Indian' when they are not made by Indians as defined in the act. First-time violations of the act can see businesses fined up to $1,000,000, while civil actions can also be bought.

What The Fake?!

Following on from our feature on fakes and counterfeits in the last issue of PPE, we came across this little gem. Whoever tried to copy the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle line from Rubie’s might have lost a little something in translation….

well as hopefully inspiring new art! We hope that visitors see the sculptures as art before they notice they are made from balloons.”

Balloon artists from across the UK are being invited to be part of crew which will be building the ambitious project in just three days with several hands on workshops that will lead to the final creation of the artwork.

For more details and to find out how you can get involved with this exciting project, visit www.iiart. co.uk Above: Samuel Stamp Dod CBA in front of a Mondrian backdrop he created for a card publisher exhibiting at last year's PG Live trade show.

Rubie’s Restructure

The brand new Celebration trade catalogue from Jackson's features over 3,000 items and is available now.

The wideranging catalogue covers party items, gift wrap, greeting cards, novelties, cake decorations, banners, badges, themed ranges, balloons, picture frames, candles and much more.

“We have been planning to have our unique Celebration catalogue for some time and now it’s here we have been overwhelmed with the positive customer response,” says Gary Jackson, the company’s md.

Jackson's Celebration range has been developed alongside its traditional greeting card, stationery and toys wholesale business at their Sheffield head office and distribution centre.

Above: The brand new Celebrations catalogue from Jacksons focuses on party product.

Rubie’s UK has confirmed the restructure of its UK field sales operation. The changes, which will take effect from 1 July, will introduce new sales reps to cover Ireland, Wales and a large part of England.

This will bring about the end of a 19-year relationship with Neville Kay and John Melvin and a 13-year relationship with Leon and James Keys. Existing agents Tony Jones, Graham Hurrell and Stewart Rankin will remain with the sales team but on revised areas.

“I wish to place on record my personal thanks and also the thanks of Rubie’s for the commitment and professionalism shown by Neville, John, Leon and James during their long association with the company," said Chris Isitt, Rubie’s vice president EMEA and Australia.

"They have all played a huge part in getting Rubie’s to the position it is in today and will always be part of the Rubie’s family. I am delighted to be able to continue our relationship with Tony, Graham and Stewart so we can benefit from their skills and experience to develop the new field sales team.”

The team will continue to be managed by field sales manager Stuart Goodman under the direction of UK head of sales, Karen Athill.

Training Day The NABAS training day and AGM will be taking place on Monday 26 June at The Maudsley in Coventry. The one-day event will see members of the balloon and party professionals association coming together to enjoy a number of dedicated training sessions throughout both the morning and the afternoon.

The AGM will be taking place during a working lunch, while both the morning and afternoon sessions will cover a number of key balloon décor specialisms, including basic bouquets, double bubbles and pearl arches, as well as a focus on quick links (Mike Harris) and tulle and lights (Matt Lewis). Everyone attending the training will receive a certificate equivalent to a NABAS 1 course.

To attend the full day (9am – 4:45pm) costs just £25 (plus VAT), which includes lunch. For more information or to book your place, please contact the NABAS office on +44 (0) 1989 762204 or at info@nabas.co.uk

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TRADESALES@OPPOSUITS.COM

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OPPOSUITS.COM

+44 1592 657 120

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Behind The Scenes

THE

JESTER

S SAY

Writing freely, from behind a magical cloak of confidentiality, The Jester draws on an entire lifetime of party experience to bring us controversial opinions, interesting viewpoints and all the latest industry gossip, fresh from the grapevine...

ONE STOP SHOP Right: When life gives you lemons...

“I

t’s rather ironic that I have been somebody somewhere undercutting thinking about writing this article your prices, selling things that for several issues now, and with the you do not stock or being able sad news announced in the last issue of to offer things that you do not this magazine that Pam’s of Gainsborough have room for. But if suppliers were closing up shop, it thought now keep closing or buying out other was the right time to say my piece. suppliers, we retailers will end I know that some of you will think up with much less choice of what that I am a hypocrite, but while I believe to sell and everything will just in one-stop party retail shops, I do not become a clone of the same thing. agree with one stop party suppliers.

A long time ago I was in The thing is, that no matter what you Canada, and, on thinking that both retailers and the public all the stock there will always be somebody I would check out some party retailers, poorer for the choices we once had. else that will carry something that found that near to me were two large With all the excitement following what you do not have. It’s like the old joke; shops. On entering the first I noticed is happening in the party industry I nearly a lady walks into a shop and says that 90% of its stock was from Unique forgot that we are having an election a the ‘How much are your red noses?’

Party. They were stocking nearly the moment. With all the talk about how “£2.50,” I reply. they will spend taxes the one thing “But they are only £1.50 in the that they all seem to forget is that it shop down the road,” she says.

There will always be somebody us that pays this money, everything “Well I suggest that you buy somewhere undercutting your we earn and everything that we buy. it down the road,” I reply. prices, selling things that you do not They even tax us when we die!

“But they are out of stock I have no problems with paying my down the road,” she says. stock or being able to offer things fair share of tax, but whoever is in “Ah,” I say, “well when that you do not have room for. power must remember that in order we are out of stock ours for us to remain a nation of shop are only £1.50 as well.” keepers, the tax burden must be shared That’s what is called healthy complete range of Unique’s products. fairly, so that the larger corporations competition (and a poor joke!), but that When I visited the next store – which pay their fair share. Whether we are is the point in retail. There will always be was only a block away – it was the same talking about a large coffee chain or the story but was stocking Amscan’s product.

Below: Retail is all about supply and demand. largest internet seller in the world, if This is not really how an independent everyone paid their fair share it would party store should be – these are make the high street a better place. really no better than franchises.

On that serious note, I’m Another occasion – not quite so reminded of another joke. many years ago – I was shopping Once there was a bartender who around for the best price for Snazaroo claimed he was the strongest man on makeup. I was looking for my Halloween order and found that saving earth and bet $10,000 that nobody could squeeze more juice out of a lemon he has a few pence on each tub would equate squeezed. Many tried and many failed. to a large saving and more profit Then one day a skinny little guy walks margin overall. The best deal, by a in and everyone laughs when they hear long way, was offered to me by Pam’s. he is there to take the challenge. The So now where do I go? With fewer bartender squeezes a lemon into a cup suppliers available to choose from and hands him the rinds. Then the guy and the ones left getting bigger and squeezes out three more drops of juice in bigger I fear prices will inevitably seconds! Amazed, the bartender asked rise. Suppliers will also be able to what he did for a living. “Oh,” he replied, start to dictate how they do business “I work for the inland revenue...” and who they do it with – leaving

“

”

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Rose Gold MEDFORD HOUSE, EAST COMMON LANE, SCUNTHORPE, NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE, ENGLAND DN16 1DE FREEPHONE: 0800-052-4977 TELEPHONE: 01724-281113 FAX: 01724-281119 OUTSIDE UK TELEPHONE: 0044-1724-281113 FAX: 0044-1724-281119 WEBSITE: www.uniqueparty.co.uk EMAIL: sales@uniqueparty.co.uk

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What’s New?

What’s New?

New products don’t come much better than this...

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Hair-Raising Fun

A great new collection of wigs from Fun Shack includes this fantastic glam rock wig. As part of the company’s new range for 2017 – which also includes new instant dress-up kits – the wigs are now stock in time for the summer party months. And with a range of designs including the blue/green mermaid and and bright red doll, the fun styles are perfect for festival season! Ready to order now.

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Changing Rooms

A new, extended range of co-ordinated backdrops, murals, décor and tableware from US company Beistle are being distributed across the UK and Europe by 360 Degrees. Ideal for everything from children’s birthdays to murder mystery evenings, themes include Alice in Wonderland to Sherlock Holmes.

Collections include everything from party games to fun cutouts and photo props.

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Yo Ho Ho!

This year’s must-have colour right across the high street (and Instagram!) is the fabulously fashionable rose gold.

Unique Party has introduced the ontrend colour to its popular 34” numeral foils, star burst balloons, air fill letter balloon banners and tableware.

With a nod to this year’s addition to the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Palmer Agencies has a new Double Pirate Sword Set which doubles as costume accessory and decoration. The set includes a Pirate Skull backpack and two ‘distressed’ pirate scimitars.

It can be worn as an accessory on the back or can be hung as a cool pirate decoration for a swashbuckling party!

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Going For Gold

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Fairytale Ending

The 2017 costume collection from New Temptations’ Dreamgirl brand features a vast range of fresh and original designs, as well as popular classics and seasonal pieces. Fairytale couples are proving to be particularly hot this year, and these ‘Fairytale Beauty’ and ‘The Brute’ costumes are ideal for couples looking to team up for their fancy dress occasion.

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(Rose) Gold Rush

Amscan has launched a stunning collection of foil balloons featuring the hottest colour trend; Rose Gold! The range includes SuperShape numbers, Orbz, Cubez and Diamondz, as well as standard hearts and circles and Mini Shapes. The balloons, which are perfect for stylish bouquets and décor, are in stock and ready to order now.

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HALLOWEEN Order now at Folat

info@folat.eu www.folat.eu +31 (0)23 511 25 11

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What’s New?

What’s New In Europe?

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Looking for something a bit different? Then it’s time for an international shopping spree!

Animal Magic

As part of a larger offering for children’s party and birthday accessories, Godan is introducing a number of exciting new items across partyware, décor and balloons.

Fancy dress also features strongly in the 2017 line-up, with these fab new masks and felt bands featuring an assortment of forest animals including owl, deer, bear and raccoon.

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Hit It!

The new pinata collection from Folat features a number of popular designs, including football, pirate, donkey, crown, star and large numbers (perfect for milestone birthdays), all just waiting to be filled with candy or gifts. Available to order now, these pinatas bring a special touch of excitement to the celebrations.

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Colourful mermaid-inspired products are a popular trend at the moment, across the high street and social media. Leg Avenue has introduced a number of new wigs ideal for creating a mer-mazing look, featuring either a mixture of pastel colours or a black and blue/green ombre effect. A dedicated mermaid shop also brings all the costumes and accessories together in one place.

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Dead Colourful

This colourful new Day of the Dead costume from Magic By Freddy’s is ideal for a number of different fancy dress occasions, from festival to Halloween. The high-quality outfit, detailed accessories and attention to detail make it perfect for the hire costume market, both at Halloween and throughout the rest of the year.

Mermaid Magic

■

Make A Rainbow

These brand new Rainbow and Butterfly Kits are being launched by Globos Payaso later this year and are expected to be extremely popular. The handy decor-made-easy kits contain everything consumer need to make their own mini-sculptures at home, and complement the extensive range of balloon decoration arch kits already available for the DIY balloon décor market.

Terrifying A Tradition

A great addition to this year’s alternative Christmas scene is this licensed Krampus mask by Trick or Treat Studios. Based on an old continental tradition (from Austria, Bavaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovenia and Italy), the Krampus works alongside Father Christmas and takes the children who haven’t been ‘good’ to his lair. Limited edition, so order now!

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Progressive Party - Advert - June 2017.pdf

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GIVE PARTIES CHARACTER! ranges from Amscan

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TEL: +44 (0)1908 288 500 E-MAIL: sales@amscan-uk.co.uk WEB: www.amscan.co.uk ©Amscan 2017, ©Anagram 2017 All rights reserved

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■S onic Boom!

Have a blast with Amscan’s new licensed range of partyware and balloons featuring the speedy Sonic the Hedgehog! Fans of all ages – including adult fans who remember it from the first time round – who will love the collection including tableware, favour cups and foil balloons, selected items in stock now.

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Licensed to Party Spring Fair

Progressive Party rounds up the latest licensed releases.

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GOT fans rejoice! The newest Game of Thrones season is about to start and Palmer Agencies is the sole and exclusive distributor to the officially licensed masks from Trick or Treat Studios. The uncanny masks are already fan-favourites and include key characters in the series like the Night King, his legendary warrior the White Walker and the ‘Evil Sons of the Harpy’ Sect.

As anyone on social media or who spends any time with schoolchildren will know, the Emoji trend is still proving to be very popular. In order to ensure it keeps up with demand Unique Party has introduced a range of officialy licensed Emoji Halloween tableware. It is the perfect ensemble for this year’s on-trend Halloween parties, with plates, napkin and a 16oz plastic cup.

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■W eb Slinging Spider-Man is back in cinemas setting the screen alight with a brand-new high-tech suit and so is MorphCostumes! The new 2017 Spider-Man Homecoming (July 2017) suit is built by Tony Stark, which means it has tons of new features and upgrades and so it’s no surprise that the new Morphsuit is also incredibly detailed, making it perfect for web-heads far and wide.

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■B old Bunny Classic preschool literary character Miffy takes centre stage on a new party offering from Neviti. Author Dick Bruna’s charming and instantly recognisable illustrations can be seen across a range key party essentials including paper cups and plates, napkins and balloons. All in Miffy’s famous primary colours, the illustrations show her holding a balloon and ‘Birthday’ text.

■T iny Heroes Gemma International has launched a new range of licensed cards, gift packaging and partyware for PJ Masks, the latest action adventure hero brand taking the UK by storm. The initial party range complements the card and wrap collection and will include invites, plates, cups, napkins, banners, masks and stickers, latex balloons and loot bags, all available from September 2017.

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Talking To: Party Fiesta

Fiesta Time The Spanish party retailer Party Fiesta prides itself on offering every type of party product for every type of party. PPE spoke to marketing manager Gabriela Hernandez to find out what goes on behind the scenes at the biggest party and costume retail chain in Europe.

A

great party needs great party product and that’s what Party Fiesta prides itself on providing, right across Europe. With a leading multilingual website (www. partyfiesta.com) and 134 stores in ten countries, including Europe, Morocco and the Dominican Republic, Party Fiesta aims to understand and surpass its customers’ expectations at every stage, from competitive pricing to breadth of product range.

First created in 1994 by founder Manuel Hernández, Party Fiesta is currently run by Manuel and his two sons Lolo Hernández (general manager) and Gabriela. The company’s family values are reflected in the relationship it creates with each customer, where it is continually looking to offer both proximity and

individualisation in its customer service, whether that is online or offline.

A wide range of products and themes means that Party Fiesta is able to help customers source the décor or costume they are looking for, while the retail stores also offer event decoration services which can help customers create the party of their dreams.

“Our wide variety of products and commitment to the latest trends in parties mean we are the perfect solution for consumers looking to organise any type of celebration or event,” Gabriela explained. “From personal celebrations such as baby showers, children’s birthdays, wedding decorations and adult parties to seasonal events such as Carnival, Halloween and Christmas, we offer everything a person needs to help them create a truly special occasion.”

With more than 10,000 quality items in its extensive portfolio Party

Fiesta offers a huge choice of tableware, decorations, costumes, balloons, sweets... and for the last year it has been designing a number of own-brand products as well.

The product split between dressup, partyware, balloons and décor is fairly equal, and the distribution of product across all Party Fiesta stores is the same. The retailer follows its own model, organising products both by type of product and the event it is likely to be chosen for, making it as simple as possible for customers to make an easy, straightforward purchase.

In order to ensure that it is always up-to-date with the latest trends, Party Fiesta monitors the fashions seen at trade exhibitions (Spring Fair and Spielwarenmesse), on Google trends analytics, on social media and on consumers themselves. “Following all the information about the industry is key to ensuring Party Fiesta remains constantly updated,” said Gabriela.

So how has 2017 been for Party Fiesta so far? “This year has been very good for us,” said Gabriela, “despite the economic crisis and the great competition throughout the sector, we have still seen remarkable growth in the last few months.”

Gabriela puts this down to the retailer’s ability to always offer what

The Spanish Party Market “The recent financial crisis and changing use of technology have changed the consumption habits of of our customers,” explained Gabriela.

“The Spanish customer has become a much more rational customer and now compares prices more, while looking for unusual products which provide something extra. The party sector is currently growing across Europe, as consumers strive to ensure that each party is unforgettable. People will always want to celebrate good times and create new memories!”

Above: A recent revamp has seen many of the Party Fiesta stores undergo a modern facelift. Inset: Creating a fantastic party experience is important to Party Fiesta.

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Talking To: Party Fiesta

Left: The Party Fiesta website is a multilingual platform, offering over 10,000 products. Below left: Personalised event planning helps Party Fiesta create the perfect individual event.

Getting Social Social networks are an important tool for retailers, allowing them to interact with the customer and bring them valuable content, offering inspiration and suggestions for their next event. With a Facebook page which is followed by almost 130,000 fans and an Instagram following that is growing daily, Party Fiesta’s new strategy is to remain focused on providing useful information and trend updates – indeed, the company credits it with being the key to its steady growth across a number of social networks. the customer asks for, its efficiency at the point of sale and the smoothness of its shipment logistics. The popular franchise model provides benefits for both Party Fiesta and its franchisees.

“This attractive business model has also been the key to our rapid expansion,” he continued, “and the strength of our brand has aroused the interest of many franchisees who have then opted to become a Party Fiesta store.”

The successful franchise model is not the only reason that Party Fiesta is able to stand out from the competition.

Keeping abreast of the most current trends across fashion, cinema and television is also important, as is being able to adapt to the ever-changing demands of the consumer. Currently, the overall party experience and product personalisation have been prioritised as two of the most important factors in giving Party Fiesta the competitive edge.

“We like to think that we do not sell products,” said Gabriela, “we sell experiences! Entering a Party Fiesta store is like stepping into a world of illusions and happiness. The client is asked Below: A colourful retail balloon wall in Cartagena, Spain.

Youth Gone Wild The youth market plays a fundamental part in Party Fiesta’s plans for the future. Taking advantage of its strong brand presence both online and at retail will allow Party Fiesta to penetrate the Spanish youth market more effectively. “We know that the youth market is the future of our existence,” said Gabriela.

to imagine his ideal party and Party Fiesta helps to bring the idea to life.”

By offering a personalised and professional service to each individual consumer, the dedicated approach to customer service acts as another key differentiating factor for the retailer, both online and offline. And ensuring that service is top-notch is also important.

“All our ‘Party Experts’ who deal with customers on a day-to-day basis are in constant training,” explained Gabriela.

“We invest to make sure they learn from the very best in the party sector.”

Because customer service is so very important to Party Fiesta, the online side of the business has a whole department dedicated exclusively to customer care. “We are also able to offer customer service through the customer’s preferred social networks, because it is a comfortable, direct and instantaneous way for them to communicate with us.

We need to be as accessible as possible.”

By having such a significant and wide-reaching online offering, Party Fiesta is able to target the widest audience possible, crossing physical borders as well as

Special Seasons In Spain the most important celebrations are Carnival and Halloween, two key party seasons which see both children and adults enjoying time spent with friends and family. Weddings, baptisms and communions are important party occasions, especially for the sale of personalised balloons.

the different tastes and fashions seen in different territories.

“Online stores can offer plenty of things that ‘real life’ stores cannot,” said Gabriela. “And not just in terms of sheer volume of product – although we do have a large variety of products for each theme. In fact, customers can browse from than 10,000 items.”

“Having a fully-functioning, userfriendly website means we are able to offer suggestions to help our customers organise a complete theme party,” Gabriela continued. “For example, if a client wants to organise a Hawaiian party our website offers all the products they could possibly need, from costumes and accessories to table decorations and balloons.”

The website also offers consumers the choice of sending the products to their own home address or to the Party Fiesta retail outlet that best suits the client. This ‘Click and Collect’ approach is a great way of drawing customers into the store.

So what is a Party Fiesta store like, once the customer steps inside? Gabriela explained; “It’s like entering a world of imagination! Our colourful merchandising helps the client visualise party ideas and concepts – especially with our personalised balloons bouquets, costumes and table decorations. And because we specialise in creating experiences and events, customers come to Party Fiesta because they know that we will find the solution for any type of party or event.”

“We seek to help the customer by offering easy solutions thanks to our wide range of products,” concluded Gabriela, “but we also put a lot of emphasis on creating experiences. We always look to offer doses of happiness so we can be part of an unforgettable experience!”

As Party Fiesta’s rapid growth across Europe has shown, this emphasis on creating personalised experiences has allowed the business to go from strength to strength. And by ensuring it offers an unforgettable retail experience, Party Fiesta has ensured it too, remains unforgettable.

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Focus On: Halloween

THE

Witching Hour As the most significant season for the party and fancy dress industry, many party retailers begin preparing their Halloween offering months in advance. PPE pays a visit to the dark side to find what’s in store for the main event in the party retail calendar.

Inset: A great new SAW Billy Puppet prop from Palmer Agencies.

Above: This eight-legged monster is just one of Smiffys new large scale Halloween props. Left: A trendy new Halloween Humour collection from Creative Party offers coordinating colours with classic Halloween motifs.

U

ndoubtedly one of the busiest and most important times of the year for fancy dress and party retailers, consumers now openly embrace Halloween as a key party occasion. The number of dedicated Halloweenthemed celebrations, parties and events has been increasing across the UK and Europe year-on-year as the industry has seen the holiday get busier and expenditure increase.

It is, therefore, no surprise that both retailers and suppliers

Halloween Highlights “Halloween is a very competitive market so retailers need to be thinking in terms of the products they stock.

Halloween is appealing more and more to a wider audience, no longer is it only for children – a lot of adults have Halloween parties, so a good mixture of specific Halloween lines and generic Halloween coloured products will help to avoid overstock on seasonal collections.

Our trendy new ‘Halloween Humour’ collection is sure to stir up some spooky fun at adult Halloween parties.”

Courtney Johnston, product and marketing, Creative Party

alike spend a huge amount of time planning how they intend to meet this growing demand and ensure that their Halloween season is a success.

“Retailers see Halloween as a key piece of their turnover where significant profit can be made,” said Sergio Battaner, marketing director at Palmer Agencies. “Every year it takes a more central role in the party calendar as both retailers and consumers actively look forward to the start of the Halloween period.”

A sure-fire sign of success; that Halloween period seems to be starting earlier every year and spreading across the high street, with fashion chains joining the supermarkets and discount stores in launching their own dedicated Halloween collections.

A well-deserved reputation for being the ‘go-to guys’ for Halloween means that Palmer Agencies is able to fall back on its 50 years’ of experience, while continuing to look forward. “We are constantly looking at new products, trends and Above: Amscan has added some hauntingly good new hanging decorations to their Halloween offering including a range of hanging reapers! Left: This Devil Master latex mask from Boland Party is perfect for the shrinking violet at Halloween parties.

ideas,” said Sergio. “We predict that zombies, clowns (both evil and funny), vampires and Día de los Muertos will still lead the way for 2017. One new trend we have seen slowly creeping in is Voodoo, the natural successor to Day of the Dead.”

Palmer Agencies works very closely with the US market – often hailed as the home of Halloween – representing stateside companies FunWorld, Trick or Treat Studios and Cinema Secrets and in doing so, adding to its prosthetics, masks, costumes, décor and make-up collections. “Accessories are a key part of our great revamp for this year,” said Sergio, “while animated props and high-end décor are getting more and more attention in the market.”

With a wide offering spanning fancy dress, décor and balloons, Amscan spends many months preparing its

Halloween Highlights “We review our Halloween range on an annual basis to stay on top of trends – monitoring sales of classic lines to ensure that they are performing well and finding new lines that will add something different to our range. The classics always sell well – some of our best sellers include a giant Frankenstein monster costume, and many different versions of witches, zombies and the Grim Reaper. Themes such as Day of the Dead will continue to be popular. In the UK, there is still a much stronger focus on more traditional, scary costumes such as witches, ghosts and ghouls.”

Emma Angel, director, Angels Fancy Dress

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Focus On: Halloween

Halloween Highlights “Halloween is certainly one the peaks of the year and as such it is vital that the newest and best lines are made available well in advance to ensure maximum sales and profit – which go hand-in-hand with happy customers.

Our new lines are now added throughout the year and 2017’s offering includes plenty of new masks, such as a burnt man mask (with a nod to 80s horror classics) and a vampire mask, complete with ‘tash and goatee.”

Anna Solly, Sancto (Widmann)

new Halloween ranges each year. The company aims to appeal to all ages and tastes, from cute family-friendly themes to something more traditionally gory.

“The ongoing appeal of Halloween means consumers are looking to make their party or costume more spectacular each year,” explained Charlotte Cox, marketing executive. “Retailers who can complement party decorations with costumes and accessories will see the benefit of providing a complete offering.”

Last year saw Amscan’s Creepy Carnevil costumes performing particularly well, as the scary clown and circus theme was huge last year and is likely to continue for 2017.

“We generally add new items to the classic themes each year in line with the latest trends,” continued Charlotte. “We’re predicting the Witch Doctor theme will

Left: Leg Avenue’s mermaid-inspired wigs are ideal for Halloween mixing ad matching.

Halloween Highlights “Balloons provide a great décor option at Halloween and are perfect for children and as an incremental sales opportunity. Our Halloween Bubble Balloons are always great sellers, they provide big impact! We review and revamp the range every year to keep up with the key trends we see on the market. Our new designs for Halloween 2017 are quite traditional – we have extended the range around witches, skeletons and iconic Halloween icons.”

Anna Hickman, marketing and communications manager, Pioneer Europe

Right: The Giant Head range from Rasta Imposta collection includes ‘Giant Skull’, which is expected to be a big hit this Halloween. Below middle: This zombie schoolgirl from Bristol Novelty is expected to be popular for Halloween 2017.

Bottom: Decorations such as this bag of bones are key to Henbrandt’s 2017 offering.

be big this year and have launched a variety of wearable accessories and costumes in line with this trend.”

Predictions for this year cover a broad spectrum of styles and products, with Bristol Novelty’s business development manager Gary Vincent leaning towards Day of the Dead as a key theme for the 2017 season, due to its ‘classy and stylish look’.

“Recent figures still suggest strong growth across the party sector,” said Gary “which is encouraging news for the industry. As the event grows in popularity non-traditional Halloween retailers will look to capitalise on this growth, so retailers need to focus on what makes buying from traditional party stores a more unique and positive experience than buying on-line or from big high-street names.”

With a number of strong best-selling lines such as Creepy Schoolgirl and Dark Bride returning for 2017, Bristol Novelty is also predicting growth across Halloween décor and partyware as consumers look to hold more Halloweenthemed house parties and specialised events.

Fancy dress experts Smiffys also expect this pattern of growth to continue, and puts the current popularity of Halloween-themed props and decorations down to the UK adopting more of an American approach to the event.

“Halloween isn’t about dressing up your kids and taking them street trick or treating anymore,” said director, Dom Peckett. “Now we see fullblown parties throughout Halloween week, everyone in costume and houses decorated to the max.”

Although props are becoming more popular in the UK, we’re not at US levels just yet, so Smiffys has created a range of smaller products which offer the same gruesome appearance and spooky effect. It will also be bringing in a selection of new licensed lines for Halloween 2017, including an adult Goosebumps Scarecrow, a brand new Scream costume based on the hit

Halloween Highlights “Halloween is the busiest time of the year for dress-up. We saw healthy sales of our new Five Nights At Freddy’s costume range aimed at older kids and young teens when it was introduced last year and will be bringing in larger numbers this year. Our best-selling Halloween costumes continue to be Joker-related; whether from the Arkham City game, Dark Knight trilogy or Suicide Squad movie. We also saw strong sales of Day Of The Dead-themed dresses.”

Struan Robertson, trade marketing manager, Rubie’s

TV show and a (spoiler alert!) post-explosion Gustavo Fring costume (Breaking Bad).

Ultimately though, it’s almost impossible to predict what will really be this year’s hot Halloween trends, as Mark Brett, UK agent for Boland Party, points out. “Day of the Dead is still very strong and is even starting to hold a prominent position in the year-round market,” he says, “but it is always the consumer who decides in the end.

One of our best-selling lines last year was a scary latex clown mask!”

Mark also agrees that there there is clear growth in the decoration market as the consumer looks for new, bold items to create a scary atmosphere.

“We believe people are looking to mimic the popular Halloween experiential events at home,” he explained, “so we have included a range of animatronics as some of our 150 new lines for this year.”

As the cornerstone of the party industry and an essential season for many retailers, the Halloween holiday can make the difference between a good year, an indifferent year or even a bad year. So plan ahead, let your consumers know what you’re going to be offering – and get spooky!

Far left: The Witch Doctor trend is hotly tipped for 2017 and this voodoo poncho from Palmer Agencies is ideal.

Middle left: The team at Fun Shack expands its Halloween range every year.

Unusual options for 2017 include this ventriloquist’s dummy. Left: This gory Bloody Hands suit from Rubie’s is sure to turn heads at any Halloween party.

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Spellbinding Halloween trends from Amscan!

C

M

Y

CM

MY

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CMY

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witchr o t c o d See the full collection of partyware, balloons and costumes on our website!

TEL: +44 (0)1908 288 500 E-MAIL: sales@amscan-uk.co.uk WEB: www.amscan.co.uk ©Amscan 2017, ©Anagram 2017 All rights reserved

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Focus On: Halloween

HAlloween Horrors

A set of fun tumblers and other partyware accessories from Henbrandt are great party add-ons to boost basket value.

Add a mini pumpkin patch to any Halloween party with Amscan’s honeycomb centrepieces or hanging decorations.

Enjoy a family-friendly Halloween with this fab partyware and décor collection from Amscan.

This fun Happy Haunts partyware range from Creative Party features colourful ghost, bat, spider and pumpkin designs.

FX make-up kits from Tinsley Transfers include an entire Halloween look, with one Big Mouth tattoo, three aqua-fill colour make-up tubes and an FX make-up brush.

For fun, gory fancy dress InCharacter offers a perfect range of high quality costumes, including GOREmet Chef (pictured), Dead Zone Zombie and Zombie Beer Maiden.

This Skull Bones Ultrashape foil balloon by Anagram is a real showstopper; available from Amscan.

Widmann has an abundance of new costumes and accessories for all ages, including this Zombie nurse.

This Day of the Dead Doll is a newly introduced line from Bristol Novelty which is already selling well throughout the UK at a good mid-price point.

The Scream Machine Halloween range from Davies Products is bigger and better than ever, with a range of new products for 2017, including these face paints.

This fabulous ‘fur’ cape from Boland Party is ideal for the guy who fancies himself as Jamie Lannaster or the lady who would be Brienne Tarth.

Mr Bone Jangles from Bristol Novelty offers a more upmarket voodoo-style top hat and tails costume and has already been a strong seller.

These couples costumes from Fun Shack – Hallowed Hatter and Hallowed Hatter Lady – offer a great twist on a classic fancy dress costume.

This year’s Halloween offering from Bristol Novelty also includes a range of exciting high-quality kids’ costumes.

Fun Shack has added a Day of the Dead range to its children’s collection, as well as the more traditional Black Cat Girl and Jester Boy.

A wide range of masks, novelty headbaands and other Halloween accessories are available from Godan.

This vibrant new Señora Sugar Skull adult costume from Amscan is also available in plus size.

It’s voodoo time this Halloween with Amscan’s new collection of Witch Doctor costume accessories.

These Piggy Back costumes from Bristol Novelty were a huge success last year and this Skeleton version is expected to be popular for this Halloween.

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Focus On: Halloween

HAlloween Horrors

Specially crafted high quality foam latex pieces from Smiffys allow customers to achieve a professional look in a fraction of the time.

This new 40” Qualatex Microfoil shape from Pioneer Europe is expected to do well as witches remain a popular theme at Halloween.

A new line for 2017 from Leg Avenue, which adds to its Halloween lines once a year, officially launching at the end of summer.

The zombie theme will never die at Halloween, and so Smiffys zombie range is continuing to grow.

New couples costumes from Magic by Freddy’s include this classic ghost bride and ghost groom.

The circus of horrors theme is still a top seller, and this Freakshow Tightrope Walker dress from Palmer Agencies is expected to do well.

New tableware, decorations and scary inflatables from Unique Party include this fabulous new ‘BOO’ letter banner.

Bubble balloons from Pioneer Europe are always popular and this 22” Witch-themed design is new for 2017.

New for this year and already proving high in demand are Widmann’s fun new bat and skeleton hoodies

Continuing the Day of the Dead theme is Mask-arade, with these stylish and simple masks.

This Happy Clown from Palmer Agencies was well-received at Spring Fair and is expected to be a top seller for Halloween 2017.

New for 2017 are Rubie’s fun new ‘Selfie Shocker’ T-shirts which include card cut-outs to help create the perfect ghoulish Halloween selfies.

This Day of the Dead Doll is a newly introduced line from Bristol Novelty which is already selling well throughout the UK at a good mid-price point.

The Boo-collection from Deco Party includes photo props and other fun additions.

An 18” Qualatex Microfoil Halloween Skeleton Mirror from Pioneer Europe will add a nice touch to Halloween décor.

Classic and traditional Halloween dress-up costumes from Pretend to Bee include mini wizards and witches.

Rubie’s hot tip for Halloween is Freddy Fazhbear from Five Nights at Freddie’s, who is expected to be big with young adults and teens in 2017.

Hanging decorations from Deco Party’s Boo collection create a fun atmosphere for children’s Halloween parties.

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Behind The Scenes

UNSUNG

Unsung Heroes takes us behind the scenes at some of our favourite suppliers, to find out who keeps the wheels turning behind the scenes.

This issue’s hero is OppoSuits’ product designer, Kris Beuk – PPE finds out how his design skills get put to use at the novelty suit company...

VITAL STATS Name: Kris Beuk.

Role: Product designer.

Time Served: Just over and a half years.

Experience: Studied mechanical engineering before going on to work as a freelance graphic designer/videographer.

CAN YOU DESCRIBE YOUR JOB IN LESS THAN 50 WORDS?

“My main task is to design new prints for our collection. In addition, I also work on developing new products such as a women’s line. Which is quite exciting!”

IS THERE SUCH A THING AS A ‘NORMAL DAY AT WORK’?

CAN YOU DESCRIBE IT?

“The process of designing suits begins with the idea of a theme. Then you make some fast sketches to see what works and what doesn’t. Once you have chosen the right style you finalise your design and start sampling. My job is done when all samples are approved and the production starts; the whole process takes about three to six months. Most of the time I’m working on five designs at the same time.”

designed. I’m also part of a successful DJ collective (with another member of the OppoSuits team) and we perform at many festivals. We love seeing someone in the crowd wearing an OppoSuits design – it is an awesome and surreal feeling!”

Inset: The

WHAT’S THE MOST DIFFICULT / TRICKY PART OF YOUR JOB?

officially licensed Pac-Man suit holds a special place in Kris’ heart.

“Coming up with new ideas. We always want to be innovative and move forward with designs, but OppoSuits Inset: Where the magic takes place – OppoSuits HQ is based in Amsterdam.

created a new market niche, so there’s not much to compare our products to. You never know how people will respond.”

HOW ESSENTIAL IS YOUR ROLE TO OPPOSUITS’ SUCCESS?

“The beauty of creativity is that there are multiple ways to get a result. Many themes would have the same basic start point, but probably look very different based on the guy or girl designing it. OppoSuits wouldn’t been OppoSuits without its prints, so my role (or the graphic designer who makes the prints) is important for the company.”

WHICH OF THE DESIGNS YOU HAVE WORKED ON IS YOUR FAVOURITE?

“The Pac-Man suit is my favourite... so far! We’re currently working on finishing a galaxy, confetti and blackboard design and I’m really looking forward to seeing those new suits go out into the world.”

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE THING ABOUT YOUR ROLE?

“The best thing is when I see people walking on the streets in a suit that I

HOW DO YOU IDENTIFY CLEAR TRENDS AND FASHIONS IN ADVANCE?

“I follow a lot of blogs and brands that make cool products and who are on the forefront of their market and combine this with the input I get from our sales team, who regularly visit trade shows and tell me what they have seen there.”

WHAT ONE INVENTION WOULD MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER? Inset: A sense of fun is important to OppoSuits, which recently launched a new range of skirt suits.

Team Talk “One of the reasons Kris is so valuable for us at OppoSuits is that he has the capability to always come up with new things. By using his creativity he always finds a way to look at things differently and finds a new angle to approach the challenges we face as designers.”

Jasper Castelein, co-founder, OppoSuits

“A machine that predicts if a design has the potential to become a bestseller.

That would be priceless!”

WHAT’S THE STRANGEST REQUEST YOU’VE EVER HAD?

“A few years ago, we received a request for a French toast design combined with an owl’s pattern. I am still wondering how this guy envisioned this ‘print’ into an actual suit.”

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BAPIA

THE

BAPIA

ST BOO

John Bowler has been part of the party industry for more years than he cares to remember! John currently runs the Balloon And Party Industry Alliance (or BAPIA) and can be contacted on info@bapiaonline.com

BALLOON RELEASES – WHAT’S YOUR OPINION? Balloon releases are a hot topic throughout the balloon and party industry, across Europe and indeed the world. In his latest column, John Bowler takes a look at the concerns and reminds us of the industry best practise.

“W

ith a number of balloon release bans being enforced by councils and some governments, and numerous companies and organisations committing to no longer using them it was time we took a closer look at the issue.

Balloon releases have been used for many years as a way to celebrate and to remember. They are popular at product launches and major events such as weddings, parties and even funerals. Many of us love to see a balloon release and watch the balloons float away into the distance.

However, there are numerous campaigns aimed at banning balloon releases and they focus mainly on two points. The first being The Environment, with the claim that the releases result in litter. We cannot really argue against this, although a government report found that only 0.5% of all beach litter content is balloons.

The second is the potential harm to wildlife, which is a far more ambiguous claim and little factual evidence is provided to support these claims.

The balloon industry has always taken a responsible position regarding balloon releases with the European Balloon and Party Council (EBPC) and BAPIA, along with other industry organisations, implementing a strict code of conduct for balloon professionals who do choose to offer balloon releases.

The code of conduct is designed to ensure that any balloon release is carried out in a safe and environmentally friendly manner, including: ■ Only bio-degradable latex balloons are to be used, ■ O nly use certain sizes of balloon that are fully inflated, ■ Never use plastic valves, and ■ Never tie balloons together.

If inflated and released in accordance with the code of conduct the released balloons should reach a certain height, shatter into narrow strands and return to Earth in a harmless manner.

However, earlier this year, the European Balloon and Party Council (EBPC) stated that it; “does not encourage or promote balloon releases, accepting that balloons used for this purpose cause litter to a certain degree. However, neither the EBPC or DEFRA have found evidence that balloon debris is a major hazard to marine or land animals and birds.”

Having spoken to a number of BAPIA members it appears that there is a general decline in requests for balloon releases and a trend among balloon professionals Above top: Much has been towards not offering made of the environmental or supplying products impact of ballon releases.

Above: Balloon releases for balloon releases. can look spectacular and are Greg Brown of a great way of marking an Balloon Market is event or celebrating a life. one distributor who has taken a committed stance to not supporting balloon releases. He says; “Littering, no matter how low-impact, is not something I can support. As a business, we therefore choose not to sell balloon

release equipment such as release nets and race labels. Also, if we are aware that a customer will be using balloons for a release, we will not sell them the balloons or helium and we will try to share with them the reasons behind our decision whilst explaining that there are alternatives.”

Greg went on to say; “Another reason we advise our customers not to carry out a balloon release, that has become far more pronounced in the age of social media, is that it can cause damage to your brand.”

Clearly a ban on balloon releases would impact on a number of balloon professionals but maybe we should consider some voluntary action before we find ourselves having bans imposed upon us with potentially far stricter regulations.

The fear is, that if left to government and the campaigners, we could find ourselves fighting a blanket ban on balloons at public venues and events. How do you feel about this, what impact would it have on your business? Do you offer balloon releases or do you decline to supply them? Do you offer an alternative option instead?

I would really like to hear your opinions on this and how you feel it would impact your business if a ban were imposed. If you have an alternative that you offer instead of a balloon release, it would be great to hear your ideas on this too. You can e-mail me at info@bapiaonline.com - I look forward to hearing from you!”

For more information on the European Balloon and Party Council, visit www.ebpcouncil.eu

What Is BAPIA? The Balloon And Party Industry Alliance, or BAPIA as it’s more commonly known, is designed to work for the party industry to promote the benefits of using industry professionals and to bring significant benefits to our members.

BAPIA is a member of the European Balloon and Party Council (EBPC) and keeps members updated on the latest news, including the most recent initiative – the Code Of Best Practice for balloon retailers and professionals.

You can read more about this in BAPIA’s latest quarterly newsletter. Mailed directly to members, John is happy to send a copy of the latest edition to interested parties – simply email him at info@bapiaonline.com.

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Pioneer® Europe Ltd. now official distributor of Procos Partyware for England, Scotland and Wales.

©Disney

©2017 MARVEL

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Request your Party Collection Catalogue along with our pricelist today! Contact Pioneer Europe Ltd. by calling +44 (0) 1279 501 090 or emailing at pelorder@qualatex.com USA ©2017 PBC SB – PPE1703061

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Featuring

Balloons

31/05/2017 13:22

Industry Issue: The Rise and Rise of Balloons

Inset: Stunning decolinks from Northstar Balloons.

Boom THE BALLOON

According to this year’s PPE party barometer, balloon décor has been taking the party market by storm. PPE spoke to some key players in the market to find out more about why balloon décor is doing so very well.

T

he modern balloon market is a very stylish place to be. The days of bunching a few balloons together in the corner of the room are long gone, and have been replaced with elaborate designs, clever techniques, a fashionable colour palette and a seemingly never-ending source of inspiration.

In the 2016 party retail barometer, retailers told us that balloons were their best-selling product area throughout 2016, with sales increasing across the board. Commissions for large-scale balloon décor also rose in the same period, by an impressive 60%.

So why the dramatic change? Has the public’s perception of balloons changed – and if so, why? With an ever-increasing range of interesting new balloon ideas, Northstar Balloons is well-known for being a promoter of the new and innovative,

Left: This masquerade magic design from Pioneer Europe shows off some impressive skills. Below: Party table set-ups using script balloons – such as Creative Party’s air-fill ‘One’ balloon banner – are popular on Instagram as a simple but effective way to complete an overall look.

always thinking up the next new and fun way to decorate with balloons.

“There are so many fantastic ways balloons can be used to decorate, besides a bouquet, and consumers are starting to understand that and take notice,” said Briana Nash, marketing director at Northstar Balloons.

“Like any consumer product, retailers, decorators and consumers want what is new and fresh. The balloon industry had been pretty stagnant for many years. People don’t want the same balloons their parents were buying for them when they were kids.”

Dan Parsons, Fun ‘N’ Frolic, Reading “In the last 18 months we have seen an incredible increase on all things balloon! Things have certainly changed since we started out 30 years ago.

From corporate décor to that last minute foil balloon or arrangement, balloons have really taken off.

We have at least 15 different arrangements on display in-store, so we can achieve that ‘wow’ factor as soon as a customer walks in. The Qualatex Balloon Boutique and our portfolio shows the customer there is more to balloons than just a foil on a weight.

We are seeing a massive upturn in sales for all sorts of occasions, from graduation and anniversaries to christenings and funerals. There are lots of blue chip HQs in Reading and the big rise in sales goes to these corporate customers – we are doing lots of larger jobs, which is fantastic, even if it does leave us a tad tired! right: The H&Pthe Expo attracts The future Above looksandbright for over 2,500 buyers from all around the world. balloon industry as a whole. We are always looking to create and diversify, and within the balloon décor industry, the possibilities are almost endless. New designs and creations will keep inspiring artists and customers alike and hopefully generating more and more sales!”

Right: A fiery arch for a corporate event, by the Fun ‘N’ Frolic team.

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to y d a Re er d r O W! NO

TEL: +44 (0)1908 288 500 E-MAIL: sales@amscan-uk.co.uk WEB: www.amscan.co.uk ©Amscan 2017, ©Anagram 2017 All rights reserved

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Industry Issue: The Rise and Rise of Balloons

Tony, Academy Balloons, Liverpool “Our shop has consistently done well with balloon decorating for a period of over 15 years; we have done so well in that period that we have not had to do much advertising other than through social media. We have relied on networking and word-of-mouth, and on acquiring business through relationships with venues who give out our leaflets or recommendations.

There is far more to the market than just birthdays and weddings.

Approximately 10% of our sales are for weddings, 10% for anniversaries, 20% for corporate functions such as awards evenings, 40% for milestone birthdays (18/21/30/40 etc) and 15% for christenings and communions.

The last 5% is for other occasions such as funerals, bat mitzvahs, etc.

The rise of social media has been a mixed blessing – balloon decor is very visual and so posting pictures on social media helps people visualise what a room can look like. Price lists, colours charts, themes, particular function rooms can all be posted on social media to try and target particular consumers. The only drawback with social media is that you are always contactable, day or night!”

Inset: Academy Balloons, using 36” latex for an event at The Titanic Hotel.

Briana believes that as long as balloon décor continues to evolve, the art will continue to grow, and that it is essential for suppliers to introduce new designs and concepts as quickly as consumer demands change. “Things are moving at a much faster pace now that everyone

is able to share their new ideas with the world via social media. But, blink and it’s onto the next best thing!”

“In recent years there has been a lot of exposure to balloons across a wide range of media,” agreed Anna Hickman, marketing manager for Pioneer Europe.

“Lots of television advertisements include balloons and using them as décor seems to be very trendy at the moment. The rise of Instagram has certainly helped and this exposure has increased the demand for balloon décor. As a result, more space is being dedicated to balloons at retail and more brands are using balloons for promotions.”

“Instagram has definitely had a positive effect on balloon sales,” said Courtney Johnston, Creative Party’s product and marketing assistant. “As a visual media platform customers are able to see the finished product and can aspire to create a visually stunning set-up at their events to get that ‘Instagram-factor’!

Latex balloons have been a key category for Creative Party in the last year, with a significant rise in demand making it one of the company’s biggest growth categories. Many top-selling designs and ranges are now available in packs of 50 for decorators as well as the retail packaging for customers.

Balloons are also a constantly growing sector for Delights Direct, explained Stuart Wheeler, account manager at Delights Direct. “The beauty is that – compared to traditional decorations – the creative possibilities are almost endless. It really helps that our team is trained on balloon basics as newer decorators always require more specialised help. We always recommend that they go through an independent balloon organisation for training.”

Training is an essential part of the balloon décor market, as Chris Horne, Amscan’s international creative projects manager can attest. Chris has been part of the balloon world for almost 25 years and is highly-respected throughout the industry for his training programmes and creative approach to décor.

“In the past, balloons were often seen as an unnecessary extra, and at times, even a bit naff,” he explained. “But perceptions

Above: Delights Direct stocks over 4,000 balloon and balloon accessory products, including these current favourites, confetti-filled clear latex.

Left:Amscan has seen the public embrace balloons for less traditional occasions, such as new baby.

are changing, and now the public is beginning to see balloons as an essential part of event decoration. As people become aware of the positive effect balloon décor can have on their events, they are enquiring after it wherever balloons are sold. Retailers are responding to this by offering various levels of décor at retail, depending on their situation and ability.”

As a result, the giving of balloons as gifts is definitely on the increase for key annual events such as Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day (where balloons are increasingly being seen as essential purchases!) along with other lessobvious occasions such as new baby, first birthday, confirmation and communion.

The final word goes to Chris; what is this boost in business likely to mean for retailers and balloon artists in the future?

“It can only be positive,” he said. “The greater the awareness of the effectiveness of balloon décor, the greater the possibilities!”

Above: A stunning balloon scene inspired by the movie Trolls, created by Lisa Dussek.

Lisa Dussek, Inspired Balloons, Hemel Hempstead “Customised balloon décor is definitely becoming more popular as consumers engage more with the work of balloon artists through websites and social media, as well as attending events where they can see the overall impact.

As a deco-twister, most of my early work was customised gifts and deliveries, now my customers are transforming whole venues into scenes featuring their favourite characters!

Although birthdays and weddings

are obvious contenders for the balloon market, the corporate world can also benefit from balloon art. Balloon workshops provide a fun, hands-on learning experience for employees, carnivals and floats lend themselves very well to large décor and balloon twisting is always a winner for engaging people of all ages. The possibilities are limitless.

Social media has had a huge impact because balloon artists have been inspired by the collective creativity

of the industry as a whole. Seeing innovative designs and creative techniques from across the international balloon community and joining local jams and courses gives balloon artists the confidence, inspiration and passion to share more of their work. In turn, customers are seeing what can be achieved and are asking for even more clever designs.

The bandwagon is just beginning to get going... let’s see how it’s going to roll.”

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Focus On: Children’s Parties

Inset: Northstar’s bright, fresh new script balloons in ‘Fun’ and ‘Party’ are the perfect addition to any kid (or adult) party.

A Birthday!

Bonanza Seasonal events and passing fashions may come and go, but there’s one thing party retailers can always rely on – children will always have birthday parties. PPE finds out what’s new for the kids’ market.

I

n a world where the average cost of a child’s birthday party is well over £300, it’s no surprise that suppliers are keen to lay claim to a significant share of that market. Despite the current fashion for taking parties out of the home and into the soft play centre / local petting zoo / village hall, partyware and decorations are still in high demand as parents seek to personalise their little darling’s special day.

Mark Brett, the UK agent for Boland Party summed it up well, saying that; “Kids’ parties are the day-to-day bread and butter for every party retailer in the UK.” Amscan’s marketing executive Charlotte Cox agrees, pointing out that; “The demand to create an all-encompassing party theme continues to grow as parents are willing to spend more.”

These themes are often favourite film or tv characters and Charlotte advises offering a good mix of generic and licensed themes.

“Offering coordinated products across party, balloons and dress-up is a great way to increase basket spend,” she continued.

Amscan has introduced a number of new lines for 2017, including Bing!,

Right: ‘Doughnut Time’ has been one of Creative Party’s strongest new launches this year. Below: New birthday collections from Godan include tableware, garlands and invitations as well as fun accessories such as masks and hats.

LEGO Batman, Shimmer & Shine, Yo-Kai Watch and Num Noms, while evergreens such as Fireman Sam and Thomas have been refreshed.

Licensed lines are also important to Gemma International, as marketing executive Louise Ellison explains; “The children’s party market is key to our sales strategy, as the younger generation really buys into big brands.”

Louise points out that parents can pick and Below: A refreshed Thomas & Friends line from Amscan Right: The children’s market is expanding for Henbrandt

Lovely Loot Don’t forget the party bags! Henbrandt has a number of new designs (licensed and generic) across party bags, themed fillers, pinatas and lunch boxes as well as the more usual tableware and décor.

Licenses include Peppa Pig, Paw Patrol, PJ Masks, Avengers, Disney Princesses, Mickey Mouse and Star Wars.

Pick A Party Pack Rubie’s has introduced a new range of licensed ‘Party Packs’ perfect for themed children’s parties. The Super Hero or Disney Princess-themed ranges are officially licensed by DC Comics, Marvel and Disney. Supplied in a branded CDU, each pack contains a printed top with either an accessory or mask, providing a cost-effective solution for parents who want multiple dress-up costumes for their themed party.

Rubie’s will be adding further licensed ranges including Paw Patrol, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and My Little Pony.

Right: Rubie’s Party Packs are ideal for any themed children’s party offering.

choose which key licensed party pieces to use. “Invites, plates, cups, and loot bags are our bestsellers,” she said.

“They set the scene of a party.”

While Shopkins, Peppa Pig and Ben and Holly remain firm favourites, Louise believes that PJ Masks should be at the top of the list for retail buyers in 2017.

Pioneer Europe has also seen significant sales in both balloons and tableware (via Procos) across two of its movie-led brands; Trolls and Beauty and the Beast. “There are also lots of strong opportunities this summer with Despicable Me 3, Cars 3 and Spiderman Homecoming all being released in the next few months,” said Anna Hickman, Pioneer’s marketing manager.

“2017 seems to be a really productive year for licenses which is great,” agreed Stuart Wheeler, account manager at Delights Direct, “but there are also some very strong generic themes at the moment too. Unicorns in particular have been popular, we’re keeping a wide selection of that style currently.”

A consistent and steady demand for generic non-licensed ranges sees Creative Party focusing on classic children’s ranges such as pirates, dinosaurs, mermaids and ballerinas.

“We believe that many retailers will benefit more from stocking our fantastic generic designs rather than a specific license, as they have better longevity,” explained product and marketing assistant Courtney Johnston.

Creative Party is also offering a whole host of new and exciting ranges this year, with a huge focus on children’s parties; covering classic themes such as emojions, magic, dragons, ballerina and sweet treats. It looks like kids really do get all the best stuff!

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Focus On: Children’s Parties

CHILDREN’S PARTIES

An extensive Shimmer & Shine range from Amscan has been launched for 2017, with 30 lines across tableware, decorations, favours and balloons.

In keeping with the fashion-led trend, this colourful range of Unicorn partyware and balloons is available now from Delights Direct, and is already proving very popular.

Perfect for very young children is Amscan’s new Jungle Friends partyware and décor collection.

Pioneer Europe’s new pink and bold birthday collection has proven to be a big hit this year, and is great for Princessthemed birthday parties!

The new PJ Masks partyware set from Gemma International is due to launch in September and will include tableware lootbags, balloons, banners, posters and favour packs.

A very popular license for Godan is Paw Patrol, and these shaped balloons do well right across Europe.

The new Celebrations brand from Creative Party is ideal for retailers looking for a value offering. Each range includes all the tableware essentials and party favourites.

Stunning Prestige Fairy Sets from Pretend To Bee are a must-have for little princess parties. The range includes Amethyst, Sapphire, Aqua, Diamond and Garnet.

New baby or baby shower parties are always popular and these new Baby Boy and Baby Girl collections from Boland Party (featuring décor and tableware) are expected to do well.

Licensed product lines from Henbrandt include Peppa Pig, Paw Patrol, PJ Masks, Avengers, Disney Princesses, Mickey Mouse and Star Wars across party bags, lunch boxes, tableware, pinatas and masks.

One of Creative Party’s fab new launches for 2017 is this colourful ‘Magic Party’ design which features iconic magicianthemed motifs such as a magic wand, top hat and cards.

The recent Trolls comeback has been fully embraced at Pioneer Europe with this extended collection of Trolls partyware, which has sold exceptionally well.

The new Farm Animal range ‘Moo Oink Baa’ from Unique Party is perfect for early years’ celebrations, with neutral pastel colours and friendly farm animals.

This all-new Princess and Unicorn ensemble from Unique Party is ideal for kids’ themed birthday parties.

Pretend to Bee has a wide array of costumes including this Thunderbirds are Go! range which is popular among fans of the new TV show.

This Procos tableware is a welcome addition to Pioneer Europe’s classic Beauty & the Beast balloon collection, with cups, napkins and plates all now in stock.

The new Rubie’s Party Packs - officially licensed by DC Comics, Marvel and Disney - are the perfect addition to any retailer’s themed children’s party offering.

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Best sellers Frog Orange Party CAT E G O R Y

As retailers gear up for the summer season, PPE finds out what has kept the tills ringing over the last few weeks.

Rebecca Lee-Allen/ Oxford

M A N UFACTURE RS/RANGES

Two stores in Oxford, one specialising in fancy dress and one a successful balloon decorating and event business.

COMMENT

Adult Costumes

70s and 80s lines, Smiffys and Bristol Novelty

These are easily our best sellers at the moment - the 1970s and 1980s themed gear always sells well.

Kids Costumes

Historical costumes, Smiffys and Bristol Novelty

Historical costumes cover a wide range of occasions, and they’re always popular for school events and plays. Harry Potter (Rubie’s) always sells well too.

Novelty glasses, NPW and feather boas, The Ostrich Feather Co

Gift company NPW has a good range of novelty glasses that sell well. Feather boas are also very strong all year round; we get ours from The Ostrich Feather Co as they have the best range of colours and the best quality feathers.

Hawaiian-themed accessories are also selling well at the moment.

Accessories

Dress-up Extras

Grimas make-up and Bristol Novelty masks

Our best selling make up is Grimas, its a top quality water-based paint and our customers love it. Rubber masks by Bristol Novelty sell well all year round, as do Mask-arade celebrity masks.

Donald Trump continues to be the best seller. Smiffy’s wigs sell really well as the packaging is really strong.

Partyware

Alice in Wonderland, Talking Tables and spots and stripes, Unique Party

Talking Tables do a great range of Alice in Wonderland tableware and props which are doing well… Oxford loves a bit of Alice! We also have two spinners dedicated to Unique Party’s ranges and they sell really well.

Balloon Décor

Foils, Unique Party and latex, Qualatex

Unique Party do the best foils, we use them for all our personalised foils and for all of our bouquets. Qualatex latex are superb and are the only make we use in our décor business.

Balloon Retail

Bubbles, Qualatex and Orbz, Amscan

Our current best sellers are Qualatex bubbles and number foils and Amscan Orbz - the new rose gold is the ‘in’ colour at the moment.

Anything Else?

Fireworks, Jonathan’s Fireworks

Fireworks are essential to us all year round and we sell lots of in the summer months. Jonathan’s Fireworks is our best supplier, but we use Kimbolton and Brother’s too.

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Smiffys

Talking Tables

Grimas

Amscan

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Best sellers Party With Reds CAT E G O R Y

Mike Hurst/ Brackley

M A N UFACTURE RS / RANGES

Based on a busy high street, Reds specialises in providing balloons and party supplies across Northamptonshire.

COMMENT

Balloons (Foil)

Qualatex rainbow cake and candle 42” foil, Northstar 16” numbers

We use the Northstar numbers in a very popular display and they fly off the shelves.

The rainbow cake foil has started to be very popular - I used it in the winning design on the Qualatex World Tour mystery box competition!

Balloons (Latex)

Qualatex confetti dots 5” and 11”

I absolutely love this design, we’re selling a lot of bouquets containing these latex.

Balloon Retail

Qualatex

We are a Qualatex Balloon Boutique and have just celebrated our second birthday of the concept. Going down this route transformed our business. We have gradually increased the size of our “balloon wall” and also stock the partyware range.

Balloon Décor

Qalatex Quick Links

Décor will always be a huge part of our business, and Quick Links are a constant feature in most of our work.

Anything Else?

Fidget Spinners!

These things have taken over my shop. I was instructed by my kids to get them in and they’ve been a great seller. First batch of 100 sold out in less than 24 hours.

JollyJesters CAT E G O R Y

Qualatex

Fancy dress retail and hire shop with thousands of quality costumes to choose from.

Kate Moore/ Derbyshire M A N UFACTURE RS / RANGES

Northstar

COMMENT

Female Costumes

80s/90s, Wicked Costumes and Smiffys

Customers like to mix’n’match the colours themselves, so rather than go for prepacked sets they buy tutus, tops, beads, bangles, gloves, legwarmers, and tights etc.

Male Costumes

Lots of 80s, Wicked Costumes and Smiffys

Characters from films and television such as Top Gun, Superheroes, also tracksuits and Mexican ponchos. We recently had a run on medieval knights and other costumes in the style of Game Of Thrones.

Kids Costumes

Historical, Wicked Costumes

Wicked’s Romans, Victorians, vikings, and pirates are attractively packaged and a sensible price. Sales of Smiffy’s Roald Dahl characters peak around Book Day.

Wigs and Masks

Wicked Costumes and Smiffys

Sandy, Frenchy and Danny Zuko wigs, and also bright blues, pinks, and multi-colours.

Masquerade masks are good sellers too but people expect a huge range of colours and styles to choose from. We don’t have the space to stock as many as we’d like.

Make-Up and Extras

Paint Glow and Snazaroo

Neon and Dayglo are the buzzwords this year. For Snazaroo it’s the 18ml green (Shrek and Hulk), yellow (Minions and Simpsons), orange (Oompah Loompahs) and blue (Smurfs) we sell most of.

Wicked Costumes

Paint Glow

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