Progressive Greetings August 2019 by Max Publishing: Print, Digital Media + Events (London)

August

FC_PG_August 2019.indd 1

2019

19/07/2019 14:45

a new r ange of t ypographic cards d esigned by

icon-art.com

IFC_PG_August 2019.indd 1

29/07/2019 11:50

3_5.qxp_Grid 31/07/2019 08:44 Page 3

Leader

On The Cards I remember, as a judge of the On the Cards design competition in 2017 (run by Paper Rose, GF Smith, Paperchase and Sherwood Press), the ‘oohs and ahhs’ of reactions when the unanimous decision was reached by myself and my fellow judges that Political Pals, a range based on contemporary depictions of googly-eyed politicians created by Leeds undergraduate Joe Cox, was a worthy winner. At that time the political fervor was building up to the general election, the electorate (especially the younger demographic) was engaged and politics were being spoken about like nothing before. That said, politics were really nowhere to be seen on the card racks. So much so that I recall Hazel Walker (at that time senior card buyer of Paperchase) musing for a moment as to whether there was any reason she would not be able to stock the political-inclined winning cards in the retail chain as there was nothing on the market to compare them to. Fast forward to now, and Scribbler had a field day with its ‘Breakfast not Brexit’ window displays, Really Wild Cards’ John Wignall has had kittens in anticipation of sales of its Boris Johnson Politically Incorrect new soundalike cards, and Dean Morris (rhymes with Boris, but that is where the connection ends!) had no doubts that its ‘F*** Boris’ and ‘B*****ks to Brexit’ badges would fly out. It’s worrying, yes. The uncertainty is awful. The thought of a no-deal Brexit makes me feel nauseous, but it’s not the Second World War. Boris Johnson models himself on Winston Churchill. Let’s hope that his adoration of the war-time PM extends to looking after the nation’s greeting card interests. My current research project into the history of the GCA, which this year celebrates its 100th anniversary (to be marked in

@Prog_Greetings

Above: (Left-right) The GCA’s Amanda Fergusson, Geoff Sanderson (curator of the 100th anniversary exhibition), Julian Royle of Royle Publications and PG’s Jakki Brown discuss industry history. Left: Hallmark founder Joyce Hall (back right) with his son Don Hall senior (back left) and Sir Winston Churchill (front right). Joyce Hall and Churchill were friends for 15 years and the publisher published some of Churchill’s paintings on cards. Below left: Amid all the election furore of the last month was The Retas greeting card retailer awards which saw Blue Diamond win two trophies. PG’s Jakki Brown (right) travelled to its East Bridgford centre to interview Angie Goosen who heads up its card buying.

October at The Henries awards as well as the association’s Centenary Celebration Conference and AGM) reminded me of how, when paper rationing came into force and the production and sending of greeting cards were to be banned, Sir Winston (PM at the time) listened to the GCA’s pleas of how cards were important for the war effort and morale of the troops. It was a convincing argument as they were triumphantly reinstated as a prime and valued use for the limited paper available. And that’s not all, it was through Winston Churchill having his art reproduced onto greeting cards through Hallmark that was to forge greater Anglo-American relations with Dwight Eisenhower, president of the US in the 1950s. No pressure then Bo-Jo. Just sort out Brexit and maybe then have a chat with UKG and Trump about a greeting card collection! PS. In case you hadn’t noticed, this edition of PG comes to you in a different ‘bag’. We have made the shift to a homecompostable material that is made from vegetable starch. PG is good for your garden too now!

www.max-publishing.co.uk THE HOME OF MARKET LEADING TRADE MAGAZINES

EXHIBITIONS

THE HOME OF MARKET LEADING TRADE AWARDS

Max Publishing Ltd, United House, North Road, London N7 9DP Tel: 020 7700 6740 Fax: 020 7607 6411 www.progressivegreetings.co.uk PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

00_PG_August 2019.indd 1

24/07/2019 14:18

3_5.qxp_Grid 31/07/2019 08:45 Page 5

Contents

What’s Inside? 51

7-19

33-43

News

The Retas Awards Winners 2019

Within This Issue: THE RETAS AWARDS WINNERS 2019

Art Source

20-21

60-61

What’s Hot?

Over The Counter

45-49

On A Positive Note…

Innovations

David Robertson, co-owner of JP Pozzi in Scotland, reflects on the positivity at the recent Retas Awards.

22-23

63-64 51-53

Jeremy’s Journal

Retailer Shout Outs

Landmark

Local Flavours

Jeremy Corner of publisher Blue Eyed Sun experiences The Landmark Forum, a personal development program.

Retailers share a ‘taste’ of the localthemed cards and gifts that their customers are lapping up.

Cardsharp

Don’t Panic Cardsharp muses over topical events happening in the industry.

65-78 Classified

54-55 Manchester Focus

25-27 Viewpoints - Retailers’ Top Picks

Summer Lovin’ Discover which card ranges are currently bringing a ray of sunshine to retailers’ racks.

Publishing Powerhouse

79 Appointments

A powerhouse of Mancunian card publishers champion their city as a creative hub.

56-57 Retailer Face To Face

29-31

Fertile Ground

Caught On Camera

A Frida Fiesta Captured on camera, the vibrant Retas Awards 2019.

PG catches up with Blue Diamond Group’s Angie Goosen, the garden centre multiple’s head of card, gift and book buying.

Subscribe to Progressive Greetings from £60 (UK) to £90 (International). You can organise this quickly and easily online at our secure site: Max-Subscriptions.net For assistance, please email maxsubscriptions@marketingreinforc ements.co.uk or call 0207 700 6740.

Tracey Arnaud

Jakki Brown

Warren Lomax

Gale Astley

Ian Hyder

Editor/Joint Owner

Joint Owner

Deputy Editor

Joint Owner

Sales Manager

jw@max-publishing.co.uk

warren@max-publishing.co.uk

galea@max-publishing.co.uk

ianh@max-publishing.co.uk

traceya@max-publishing.co.uk

Use your smartphone app to scan the QR code to visit our website.

Copyright© 2019. While every effort has been made to ensure the information in this magazine was correct at the time of publication, the publishers cannot accept legal liability for any errors or omissions, nor can they accept responsibility for the standing of advertisers nor any organisation mentioned in the text. Views of contributors do not necessarily reflect those of the publishers.

PG is the official magazine for the Greeting Card Association GCA: Amanda Fergusson 020 7619 9266 Email: gca@max-publishing.co.uk www.greetingcardassociation.org.uk PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

46 NEW DESIGNS

NOW AVAILABLE

ORDER ONLINE NOW! CODE 90 RRP Â£2.25

www.piccadillygreetings.co.uk

Piccadilly Greetings Group Ltd 4 Horizon Point, Swallowdale Lane, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, HP2 7FZ T: 01442 215500 E: info@piccadillygreetings.co.uk www.piccadillygreetings.co.uk

06_PG_August 2019.indd 1

Made in Great Britain

31/07/2019 10:12

7_11_13_15_17_19_muk.qxp_9/11/13/15/19/23/25 31/07/2019 09:01 Page 7

NEWS TOP STORY

Las Retas Triumphs Revealing the UK’s best greeting card retailers The UK’s very best greeting card retailers were officially recognised at The Retas greeting card retailer awards event which took place at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London’s Mayfair, hosted by comedian and improvisation maestro, Pippa Evans. The sell-out event, which this year took on a ‘Frida Fiesta’ theme in homage to the Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, was attended by over 425 greeting card retailers, publishers and suppliers. Welcoming guests, Warren Lomax, co-owner of PG, which organises The Retas, said: “As with so many of the talented retailers that we celebrate in The Retas 2019, Frida’s skills were totally selftaught, but not only that, she overcame adversity to produce brilliant end results of astonishing beauty. And much the same can be said of the inventive entrepreneurial retailers here who have fought the tough retail landscape using their own passion and tenacity to craft an inspiring retail environment to delight customers.”

Among the worthy winners were Cardzone (Best Specialist Multiple), John Lewis (Best Department Store Retailer of Greeting Cards) and Blue Diamond Group, which was crowned Greeting Card Retailer of the Year. As Carly Pearson, greeting card buyer of Sainsbury’s, which won Best Supermarket Retailer of Greeting Cards award for the second year running, summed up: “The Retas are such a fantastic way to recognise the hard work of all the publishers and retailers that make up this great industry - without each other we would have nothing!” The £5,000+ raised by the charity raffle was divided between Amnesty International and The Light Fund. (See pages 29-43 for more on The Retas, including all the winners). Above: Among the jubilant winners were Nigel and Karen Hamilton-Evans of Boroughbridge Post Office. Left: Dragonfly Gifts, The Paper Saladies and the Love Its donned ‘Frida mono brows’ for the occasion!

Spreading the love The 2019 Retas’ winners have continued to make the most of their win by securing fabulous coverage in the media, holding celebrations in their shops and notching up ‘likes’ galore on their social media channels. Bluestone Gift Shops, which won Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer - Scotland, has not only been buoyed up by the swathe of positive reactions to its triumph from those in the trade, but the good news has also spread to the Scottish press. Barrhead News jumped at the chance to share the success of a local business. Daughter of the founders, Sara Still, who collected The Retas’ trophy with her brother Haydn Park-Patterson, told the Barrhead News: “Greeting cards have always been the bread and butter of our business. People come from all over to choose cards from our shops so to be given this award is amazing… As we approach our 20th year of trading, achievements like this mean everything to our small family business.” Meanwhile, down in the south of England, Red Card in Petworth has also been clocking up column inches in the local press after its win as Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer - Home Counties. The Midhurst and Petworth Observer published a lovely article about the highly popular retailer, owned by Sally Matson. When asked by the newspaper to sum up her secret of success, Sally responded: “That we are independent, have a huge range of cards and are based in Petworth, which is a great market town.” Above: Dandelion Stationery produced a special poster for Red Card to feature in its window to fanfare its Retas’ win.

Pippa Evans’ ‘Card For Everything’ song Talented performer, Pippa Evans is wellknown for her ability as a comedic improviser with a strong singing voice. As host of The Retas this year, Pippa wrote and performed a wonderfully crafted song about greeting card retailing which went down a storm with the audience. The ditty, entitled ‘A Card For Everything’ not only highlighted the role cards play in the large and small events in our lives, but also how the ‘greeting card economy’ is underpinned by the stash of ‘just in case’ cards that fill drawers and boxes in people’s homes.

Hallmark to phase out cellowrap Prepare for nakedness from Hallmark Cards as the UK card publisher has confirmed that it is to phase out cellobags from its branded ranges where no extra protection is required for the designs. Further underlining its commitment to the environment, Hallmark has been feted in WWF-UK’s recent Timber Scorecard. Hallmark received the highest possible score of ‘3 Trees’ for its commitment to source timber and paper products sustainably, and proves it gives priority to using FSC and recycled materials in line with the requirements of The European Union Timber Regulation. Amanda Del Prete, Hallmark UK’s managing director said: “Social responsibility is high on our agenda, with all our paper and board coming from sustainable sources. Being recognised for this by the WWF affirms we are doing the right things with our sustainability practices.” Hallmark was one of 122 companies and retailers who were reviewed by WWFUK for the scorecard. Among the other industry names to be included in this annual review were IG Design Group (which was also awarded 3 Trees), Paperchase (2 Trees), Card Factory (1 Tree), UKG (1 Tree), GBCC (0 Trees) and Clintons (0 Trees). Above: Hallmark was among the 122 companies that were scored in the WWF-UK’s recent Timber Scorecard.

FOR THE LATEST NEWS VISIT PGBUZZ.net PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Christmas Collection 2019

00-00_PG_August 2019.indd 1

24/07/2019 14:22

62 Christmas designs available

Available as single cards or as 5-packs

All ranges shown are embossed with gold foil All cards are blank inside

Quality Greeting Cards

www.bugart.co.uk 00-00_PG_August 2019.indd 2

Tel: 0115 929 4776 24/07/2019 14:23

00_PG_August 2019.indd 1

24/07/2019 14:10

7_11_13_15_17_19_muk.qxp_9/11/13/15/19/23/25 31/07/2019 09:01 Page 11

NEWS On the Hunt

TOP STORY

Boris Johnson Bonanza

Below: The Boris design in Really Wild Cards’ Politically Incorrect soundalike range.

Really Wild Cards speaks out about the Prime Minister “It’s gone Boris ballistic!”, exclaimed an euphoric John Wignall, owner of Really Wild Cards, who is fighting to keep up with the influx of orders for the publisher’s soundalike card design in its Politically Incorrect range that features the new Prime Minister. “Boris is now neck and neck with Trump - on our card sales anyway!” John told PG. “As soon as it was confirmed that Boris had won the Tory leadership, the phone hasn’t stopped for our card featuring him - and

there have been some sizeable orders.” John did not waste any time in scheduling in a recording session with Boris’ voice talent to create a new sound chip that reflects him now being Prime Minister. The new Prime Minister has also received a special one off design from ‘Trump’ to welcome him into his new post, that will have the added benefit of flagging up the UK card market and the contribution it makes to the UK economy.

Dog eat dog Scribbler is one retailer that has made great play of the political engagement of the nation in its stores and on its online site, publishing its politically-inclined own brand card designs as well as stocking branded products. Commenting on the new Prime Minister and his appointment’s likely impact on the greeting card sector, John Procter, co-founder of the Scribbler chain quipped: “Without question Boris as PM is the best result for our industry for the simple reasons that he is a larger than life character and a cartoonist’s dream. Trump drives a ridiculous amount of business for us - enough said!”

While Jeremy Hunt was still in the running to become PM, Sue and Scott Morrish, co-owners of the Eco-friendly Card Co, met up with Boris’ challenger and made sure the politician knew all about the greeting card industry as well as the importance of supporting small independent businesses and local high streets. Sue and Scott were invited to the Conservative party hustings in Exeter, close to where the Devon-based publishing company is based, to meet with Jeremy. The connection between the Morrishs and the Tory leadership contender was that during his time as Health Secretary, Jeremy had taken an interest in issues regarding sepsis awareness raised by Sue and Scott (whose son Sam sadly died, aged 3 from this treatable condition due to lack of awareness). "Independent retailers are the backbone of our business and vital contributors to communities," Sue stressed to Jeremy. At the end of the meeting Sue presented Jeremy with a ‘Good Luck’ card filled with facts about the greeting card industry as well as highlighting concerns about the current supply issues for recycled paper and boards. Below: Jeremy Hunt with Sue Morrish, co-owner of The Eco-friendly Card Company, holding Sam’s monkey, who features in the sepsis awareness campaign.

Above: A timely post on Scribbler’s Instagram feed included a shot of a dog with a Boris Johnson dog toy in its mouth! Left: Scribbler has been hot on the political front.

DGUK expands in Aldi From politics to Postmark

Above: Leona Janson-Smith with Boris when they worked together at City Hall when he was Mayor of London.

Boris Johnson is more au fait with the greeting card trade than most Prime Ministers as Leona Janson-Smith, co-owner of the London-based Postmark mini group worked alongside him as part of his press team for over seven years before leaving to join her husband Mark in running their greeting card retailing business a few years ago. "All politics aside, Boris was a great boss. He was always very interested in Postmark and how things were going with the business, and the card industry in general while I was working at City Hall, often commenting that ‘small businesses are the backbone of the British economy’,” says Leona of her experience with Boris when she worked with him when he was Mayor of London. As co-owner of a greeting card retail business, Leona has specific requests of her former boss who is now running the UK. “If I did have a line to the top, and sadly I don't anymore, my top ask as a business owner in the retail sector would have to be a complete rethink on how business rates are set, with a shift away from rateable value. There is, it seems, a universal agreement that our high streets and shopping habits are changing, so it seems only sensible and practical that business rates, one of the biggest taxes faced by small business owners, should change too."

IG Design Group UK (DGUK) is to supply an exclusively-designed range of greeting cards into approximately half of Aldi 850+ UK stores. This news follows a two-phased extended greeting card trial with DGUK which has spanned almost 100 Aldi stores. The Aldi card range roll-out is anticipated to begin in September 2019 and be completed during December 2019. The new card selection comprises 80 designs (created by DGUK’s studio in Wales), offered at a single price point of 99p. Commenting on the roll-out, Design Group UK’s greeting card channel controller David Jackson told PG: “IG Design Group are thrilled that our partnership and trial collaboration with a bespoke range of single cards, designed specifically with the Aldi consumer in mind, has now taken a further significant step forward.” Above: Aldi is ramping up its UK greeting card offer.

FOR THE LATEST NEWS VISIT PGBUZZ.net PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

h s i Jew ! s d r a C Year New

i l a DCaridw s! 27th OC

NOW! R E D R O 55 TO 6 0 INE! 1 L 4 N 6 O 1 R 6 E 1 CALL 0 ...OR ORD

29th SEP

T 2019

2019

12_PG_August 2019.indd 1

www.davora.cards 26/07/2019 13:01

7_11_13_15_17_19_muk.qxp_9/11/13/15/19/23/25 31/07/2019 09:01 Page 13

NEWS Keen as mustard

TOP STORY

Landlords Back Paperchase Fewer store closures than anticipated as card sales hold up With the three month ‘transfer window’ of Paperchase’s CVA completed recently, (when landlords had the opportunity to serve a termination of the leases on the shops), it looks like only 11 stores are to be closed. When Paperchase’s CVA was first mooted it was anticipated that between 3550 stores would close. This means, that on top of the five stores that closed at the outset of the CVA, that Paperchase will be losing 16 stores in total, resulting in the design-led multiple continuing to trade from around 130 stores in the UK. Explaining, Timothy Melgund, deputy chairman of Paperchase told PG: “With the initial three month period concluded successfully, the CVA is now in place for three years. I am thankful that so many landlords have taken a practical and

understanding view, meaning that there are far fewer closures than many anticipated. I am sad about all the closures, for the teams that worked in those shops and the customers who shopped there, but it could have been worse if landlords had not taken a pragmatic view.” With the CVA only having been possible due to the unanimous support from suppliers, including many UK card

publishers, Timothy said: “We can’t thank our suppliers enough for bearing with us, and I am happy that throughout this transitional period that we have been able to pay to terms and will continue to do so.” Timothy is full of praise for the creativity in greeting card publishing and confirmed that its card sales are holding up well. “We sell £50 million worth of cards every year. Our greeting card sales remain resilient and in some of our stores, notably those in railway stations, we are seeing significant increases in like-for-like sales,” he revealed, attributing much of cards’ ongoing success to the creativity within the sector. “Going round PG Live I was so impressed with how publishers are continuing to up their game – the quality and diversity of illustration especially was so impressive. Yes, we are living in anxious times, and we all could do with getting Brexit sorted, but card sales are holding strong and long may that continue.” Above: Paperchase’s Glasgow store. Above left: Timothy Melgund (centre) at The Retas with Ling’s David Byk and PG’s Jakki Brown.

Lucy Ledger joins Paper Rose and merges her business The super talented Lucy Ledger, founder of the eponymous card company, has joined the Paper Rose creative team as a senior designer and her card publishing business is being fully merged into the Nottingham-based publishing group. “I’m so excited to join Reggie [Pugh, Paper Rose’s creative director] and the team - it’s such a fantastic opportunity for me and my brand,” Lucy told PG. Lucy met the Paper Rose team for the first time at PG Live 2018 and as a result Lucy went on to create a range of greeting cards for Paper Rose’s Avocado Designs’ brand published under licence that launched at the start of this year. “We are so excited to have Lucy in our team,” Reggie commented. “She is a fantastic artist with a very unique brand identity, as well as being a joy to work with, her enthusiasm for the card industry is so refreshing. It feels like a perfect opportunity to take the Lucy Ledger brand forward but also give Above: Lucy Ledger on her stand at PG Live this year her the opportunity to work on other brands and with her treasured album of historic greeting cards. ranges within the business,” added Reggie.

Things are hotting up at Soul with some Mutiny in the ranks. The card, stationery and gift company is diversifying in a number of directions - through expanding its home produced product portfolio as well as through a couple of distribution arrangements. Making its debut on the Soul stand at the Harrogate Home and Gift exhibition was Mutiny, a range of mustards that David Hicks, founder of Soul and Really Good has created. "I used to be a chef a long time ago, and have always loved cooking,” says David, explaining the rationale for the new collection. And the brand name? “It's called Mutiny because I invented all the mustard recipes on the boat where I live.”

Flavours include Vodka and Chilli, Whisky and Orange, Bloody Mary and Ginglish (English mustard with gin). The Mutiny products are all handmade in Cumbria, with even the jars and lids made in England. Soul’s stand at the Harrogate show was also the launchpad for the Karri range of brightly patterned large re-usable shopping bags. The range was created and produced by SSA (co-owned by Maranda Bukong and Greg Warrington). In addition, the Soul rep force is now also carrying the Siabann Skincare range. Above: David Hicks with the Mutiny mustards.

Ee By Gum’ from Thortful Thortful.com, the online greeting card publisher portal, is making a move into ‘local’ cards, kicking-off with a Yorkshire selection of 30 designs that it launched on Yorkshire Day on August 1. Thortful’s Yorkshire Collection brings together designs from nine different publishers/designers - Redback Cards, Jelly Armchair, Memelou, Oh My! Designs, Reyt Good Illustration, Sweetpea Print Design, Do You Punctuate?, Little Birds Talk and Project Pretty - which feature the Yorkshire dialect as well as a couple of Yorkshire puddings and flat caps! Above: A design from Memelou which features in the new collection.

FOR THE LATEST NEWS VISIT PGBUZZ.net PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

A/W 19

Image Credits: Magnetips | Portico Designs | Lagom Design | Katie Leamon

GREETINGS& STATIONERY

OUT OF THE ORDINARY Breaking boundaries, defining trends, we search the globe for an extraordinary and distinctive edit of design-led greetings and stationery so you can create something out of the ordinary.

topdrawer.co.uk/Progressive

14_PG_August 2019.indd 1

8â&#x20AC;&#x201D;10 SEPTEMBER 2019 OLYMPIA LONDON

30/07/2019 13:28

7_11_13_15_17_19_muk.qxp_9/11/13/15/19/23/25 31/07/2019 09:01 Page 15

NEWS TOP STORY

Historical Celebrations Card publishers contribute to GCA’s centenary ‘exhibition’ Greeting card publishers responded to the call out from the GCA for historical greeting card designs to feature in the GCA’s exhibition and digital archive to celebrate its 100th anniversary. “Imagine a generation of publishers in 100 years time looking at your card designs in awe. Have you been a pioneer in design, an innovator of cards, a breath of fresh air, or a greeting card disruptor? Now is your chance to become a part of history,” was the rousing rally call from GCA ceo Amanda Fergusson sent to its publisher members urging them to get involved in the exhibition. Industry creative stalwart, Geoff Sanderson, is spearheading the curating of this significant exhibition that will champion the creative evolution of our industry.

“The plan is to display the exhibition at the GCA’s Celebratory Centenary Conference and AGM on 17 October 2019, which will be held in the Central Hall in Westminster London, but then allow for it to travel around the country, as well as exist as an online resource to inspire card designers of the future,” explained Geoff. Among those who have been invaluable in sharing their knowledge and greeting card treasures have been Julian Royle of Royle Publications, Simon Elvin and Heather Marten of English Graphics.

Cherry Orchard celebrates Independents’ Day Last month’s Independents’ Day was celebrated in style by 30 independent retailers, courtesy of Cherry Orchard Publishing, who created an extravaganza of ‘Cards, Canapés and Champers’ at its design studio in idyllic rural Kent. “Independent retailers have always been at the heart of what we do. We thought Independents’ Day was the ideal date to show how much we appreciate their loyalty to Cherry Orchard,” said the publisher’s managing director and owner Jackie Collins. “We recognise what a challenging time many independents are having at present and certainly do not take their loyalty to Cherry Orchard for granted,” she added. The event, which followed seamlessly from the publisher’s sales conference, had some extra ‘Razzle Dazzle’ for Paul Winder, co-owner of Ideas of Hythe in Kent. The indie was presented with £250 of holiday vouchers as the lucky winner of Cherry Orchard’s Razzle Dazzle prize draw, which took place on the publisher’s stand at PG Live. Above: Paul Winder of Ideas in Hythe, Kent with his lovely prize presented by Cherry Orchard’s md Jackie Collins. Below: Some of the attendees at the recent Cherry Orchard Independents’ Day event.

Above: Julian Royle of Royle Publications is sharing his knowledge of industry history. Left: GCA’s ceo Amanda Fergusson (right) with Rachel Hare, md of Belly Button, who takes over as president of the association at the AGM on October 17.

The Ladder Club 2019 moves to London The date has been set for this year’s Ladder Club seminar for would-be, newbie and emerging publishers as Thursday 28 November. For the first time ever, the one-day seminar - which is an ‘in a nutshell’ course on card publishing - will be held in London at the Business Design Centre in Islington. Previous to this the event took place in Westcliff-on-Sea in Essex, but there has been a call for an easier-to-reach location. The Ladder Club was the brainchild of Lynn Tait, who over 20 years ago joined forces with PG’s Jakki Brown to organise one day seminars for card publishers with the support of key trade suppliers, experienced card publishers, retailers, the GCA and other industry experts who give their time to speak at the seminars. “Though lovely Lynn so sadly died in June 2017, I feel privileged to be ensuring her legacy lives on in The Ladder Club and I am working on the agenda for this year’s seminar that will do Lynn proud and continue the essence of this wonderful initiative,” commented PG’s co-owner Jakki Brown. The packed one day agenda will cover the rudiments of greeting card publishing - avoiding the early pitfalls, production queries and quandaries, how to price your cards, how to get your cards to market, agents, preparing for trade shows, licensing and export. Contrary to the last few years where there has been a ‘Day 2’ seminar for more established publishers, this will not be the case this year as the GCA is to cover these issues. The cost of attending is £90 (+VAT). To book a place at The Ladder Club 2019, go to www.maxsubscriptions.net or contact Clare Hollick of Keystone Communications on clare@keystonecomms.co.uk or call her on 01183 340085. Above: The Ladder Club is moving to the London’s Business Design Centre this year.

Right Frame of Mind There was a double dose of smiles in Frame of Mind, the Ilminister-based card and gift shop recently, from the retailer’s owner Richard Mitchell, and an even more beaming one from customer Charlotte Evans, thanks to Caroline Gardner. As part of Caroline Gardner’s 25th anniversary celebrations the publisher ran a competition through its stockists to offer both them and its customers the chance to win £800. Promoted on 1,000 leaflets that were distributed by participating Caroline Gardner stockists, it offered a prize of £300 worth of stock for the retailer and a £500 voucher for winning customer to spend in that shop. Above: Frame of Mind’s owner Richard Mitchell with Charlotte Evans, the customer who won a £500 voucher to spend in the shop.

FOR THE LATEST NEWS VISIT PGBUZZ.net PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

from the

A r a n g e o f o v e r 6 0 0 b e s t s e l l e r s f r o m Wr i t e f ro m t h e H e a r t featuring exclusive designs only available through Paper Rose .

Grass Roots & Write from the Heart now exclusively available from Paper Rose

C o n t a c t u s t o d ay f o r o u r l a t e s t c o l l e c t i o n : e customerservices@paperrose.co.uk w w w w. p a p e r r o s e . c o . u k t 0 11 5 9 8 6 0 11 5

PaperRose advert JULY.indd 1 00_PG_August 2019.indd 1

22/07/2019 16:01 24/07/2019 14:14

7_11_13_15_17_19_muk.qxp_9/11/13/15/19/23/25 31/07/2019 09:01 Page 17

NEWS NEWS IN BRIEF

TOP STORY

Peppa Pig’s New Puddles Danilo, Amscan and IG Design Group pick up from Gemma As PG went to press, PWC, joint liquidators for Gemma International, was about to exit the publisher’s Andover premises with only the final totting up to do before informing creditors of any likely recompense. On a much more positive note, new partnerships have been announced for some of the key licences the company held for greeting cards, giftwrap and party. Entertainment One (eOne), home of Peppa Pig and PJ Masks has announced that Danilo (already a licensee for calendars) has become the greeting card partner for both these brands; IG Design Group (which already produces Peppa Pig stationery) adds giftwrap and gift bags for both licences, while Amscan has been appointed to produce a collection of party products for both Peppa and PJ Masks (to join its existing foil/latex balloons and dressup costumes for both brands). “The greetings and party category is an extremely important part of the licensing programme as it deepens the emotional connection that fans have with our brands at a very special time in their lives,” stated Katie Rollings, svp licensing - UK, family & brands at eOne. “We’re excited to be strengthening our partnerships with market leaders in these categories.” All parties have worked together with PWC to successfully manage a delicate situation, to ensure close control of these brands’ products following Gemma’s

demise and safeguard their future growth in the market. Gemma’s agreement with eOne was terminated when PWC was appointed as liquidator for the business. In addition to acquiring a sizeable amount of Gemma’s Peppa Pig and PJ Masks’ cards from the liquidators in order to facilitate a continuous supply for customers, Danilo also acquired the Gemma design bank for these brands, though its own talented in-house design studio is now full-steam ahead developing new Peppa Pig and PJ Masks collections that will launch in Q4. Sharing his joy at the signing of Peppa Pig and PJ Masks, Dan Grant, Danilo’s licensing director said: “Both brands are two of the leading preschool properties in the market and licences which I have admired for many years. The addition of these brands to the Danilo portfolio will provide an even stronger proposition for us to take to retail. Danilo already has an established relationship with eOne through the calendar side of the business and we very much look forward to building this relationship further with the new opportunity on greeting cards.” Above: The first Peppa card design to have been developed by Danilo. It will also be carrying some former Gemma cards (such as this PJ Masks one) to provide customers with supply.

The Calies 2019 open for entries The UK Calendar Awards 2019, now known under its friendlier moniker of The Calies, are now open for entries. Launched in 2017 by Max Publishing (owners of Progressive Greetings and PG Buzz), with huge support from the calendar and diary sector, The Calies are annual awards that recognise excellence in the calendar, Advent calendar Above: The Calies 2019 and diaries sector, including retail, charity and corporate (B2B) titles. are open for entries! Calendar and diary producers are being invited to enter their 2020 dated titles, while Advent calendars can be for those available for the 2019 season. Entering The Calies is easy and free of charge for all publishers selling into the UK. The deadline for entering is Friday 4 October. The retail entries will be judged by a panel of knowledgeable retail buyers, while the corporate (B2B) categories go under the scrutiny of industry and design experts. A downloadable entry form is available from The Calies website (www.theukcalendarawards.co.uk) The Calies 2019 looks set to build on the success of its last two years’ awards, with the winners to be announced at a late afternoon/early evening event that will take place at Stationers’ Hall, in the City of London, on Tuesday 19 November.

l David Thomson, founder of Two Little Monkeys, had good reason to miss a day of Harrogate Home and Gift show, at which the company was exhibiting, as he and his wife Allison were proud to attend the double graduation of the ‘two little monkeys’ after whom the company is named – their now 22 year old identical twin daughters Jennifer (second left) and Rachel graduated with a First Class Honours degree apiece from Manchester University. Above: David with his ‘two little monkeys’ and wife Allison.

l Cirencester-based retailer Gardiner Haskins won Widdop & Co’s The Happy News competition for its ‘happy initiative’. Gardiner Haskins won the £500 prize of The Happy News stock for its 40th Anniversary Fun Day charity fundraiser for local specialist charity care centre Maggie’s of Cheltenham, which helps people living with cancer. It raised over £1,300 for the charity. Above: The Happy News display in the making at Gardiner Haskins.

l Jessica Hogarth has collaborated with Sarah Hamilton, founder of Just A Card to produce a giclee print that celebrates creative makers and will raise funds for the campaign. In the print, Jessica’s distinctive illustrations surround the ‘We are the makers’ poem, written by The Bespoke Bard. Above: Jessica Hogarth created some bespoke illustrations for the Just A Card giclée print.

l Julie Ashworth, owner of Yoojoo card company is on the search for used plastic gift cards. Julie upcycles spent plastic gift cards by cutting guitar plectrums from them, which then form an attractive part of the card designs in her appropriately named Plectrum range. “I hope that one day there will be no plastic giftcards, but until then, I want to help make music not waste!” she adds. Above: Julie Ashworth on her stand at the recent Harrogate Home and Gift exhibition showing the array of plectrums that she has been able to cut from spent plastic gift cards.

FOR THE LATEST NEWS VISIT PGBUZZ.net PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

New

licensed COLLECTION

Please contact your Sales Representative to view our full range - +44 (0) 20 8756 7793 www.xpressionsgifts.co.uk 00_PG_August 2019.indd 1

25/07/2019 10:17

7_11_13_15_17_19_muk.qxp_9/11/13/15/19/23/25 31/07/2019 09:01 Page 19

NEWS PEOPLE

TOP STORY Below: WHSmith’s high street stores are ramping up the quota of unwrapped cards it stocks.

WHSmith Strips Off Varietal chain asks publishers to remove cello WHSmith is the latest retailer to be ramping up the number of unwrapped cards it is stocking. Claire Castle, senior buyer for cards for WHSmith’s High Street stores confirmed that the multiple has “started to take steps to ask suppliers to remove cellophane wrapping from the cards they supply to us wherever possible.” Around a quarter of the cards sold in WHSmith’s high street stores have always been sold unwrapped, but Claire explains that the retailer has been in dialogue with suppliers to ask them to take steps to remove packaging from other ranges. “Father's Day this year was our first event unwrapped and the majority of publishers are now delivering without cellophane wrapping - unless there are practical reasons such as handmade

elements or decoration that would be damaged without some sort of cover,” clarifies Claire. She explains it will take a little while for old wrapped stock to be sold through so wrapped cards will continue to be on display in its high street stores for a while longer. However, Claire hopes that “eventually the vast majority of our cards will be unwrapped”.

Cardies’ plastic waste art Jo Sorrell, owner of Cardies in Stevenage (which won the Best Retail Initiative for its inspiring community arts programme in The Retas 2019) is well underway on a new project, which will see Stevenage Old Town making a stand against plastic waste and plastic pollution in our seas, through a series of attractive ‘pictures’ made entirely from plastic bottle tops collected by the shop’s customers and members of the local community. “I wanted to do something that would raise awareness of the issue of plastic waste, but something that the whole community could be involved in too,” said Jo. By spreading the news of the project in the shop on social media and through local community groups and schools, the support has snowballed with the result that Cardies is now a major hub for plastic tops. The idea is to create a series of sea-themed scenes to raise awareness of the harm plastic is doing to our seas. Above: Some of the wave pictures made from plastic bottle tops that are being displayed in Stevenage as a result of Cardies’ latest community arts in initiative.

l Rebecca McCulloch (who was creative director of Ling Design for many years) has joined Elle Media Group as its new product and creative director. Beccy has been working freelance since she left Ling last year, which has saw her doing some design work for longestablished Essex-based Elle, which produces bespoke cards collections (notably for the charity sector) as well as printing for other card publishers and brochures, packaging, magazines. “I have been brought on board to explore new opportunities and improve their creative offering,” said Beccy. “We are working on a fabulous new everyday card offering and strengthening our Christmas seasonal offering for 2020 to maintain our position as a market leading charity publisher,” added Beccy. Above: Beccy McCulloch takes on a new challenge at Elle Media Group.

l Doug Morrice (right) has joined Paper Rose to work on special projects, most notably in connection to the relaunch of Grass Roots. “I am really excited to be back in the industry. Three months away from it was enough!” said Doug. Doug headed up the sales side of Grass Roots/Write from the Heart for many years until its sad demise earlier this year. l Wrendale Designs has appointed Kirsty Hicks (right), the longtime card buyer for Waitrose, into a newly created role of head of product development. “I am very excited to be joining the Wrendale team as head of product development and equally delighted to be staying within the industry to continue working with such fantastic people,” said Kirsty.

Caroline Gardner is to move towards ‘naked’ cards by using an InFold, invented by the company, that holds the card and envelope together while protecting the card’s top right corner. The branded paper InFold is affixed to the envelope using a plastic-free peelable label. The InFold design, for which the publisher has applied for a patent, also provides the opportunity for the company’s branding. “We feel strongly about reducing the amount of single use cellobags and so set about creating a way of keeping the envelope with the card,” explained Luca Bridges, marketing and independent sales manager of Caroline Gardner. “We also envisage that consumers will pick the card up using the InFold, thereby minimising any damage to the card,” added Carolyn Verderame, the company’s head of sales. Having showcased at the recent Harrogate Home and Gift show, the first Caroline Gardner cards presented using the InFold will be its October release, which will comprise some 30-40 designs. “We will then begin a transition across all our ranges,” confirms Carolyn.

l Adam Dury, the man behind Tesco’s overhaul of its greeting card offer with Hallmark, has left the supermarket giant to join Card Factory. He takes up the post of chief commercial officer on August 26, reporting to Karen Hubbard as ceo. Adam freely admits that he has been tracking Card Factory’s growth and enviably verticallyintegrated business model for some time. “I have been watching and admiring from afar as the business has delivered growth year after year while remaining true to its core mission of being trusted for quality and value,” said Adam, who also joins the company’s executive board and will be responsible for Card Factory’s commercial strategy.

Above: Caroline Gardner has applied for a patent for its corner ‘tab’ that keeps the card attached to the envelope by a plastic-free peelable label.

Above: Adam Dury is to join the Card Factory executive board as its new chief commercial officer.

Caroline Gardner undresses

FOR THE LATEST NEWS VISIT PGBUZZ.net PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

20-21.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 15:44 Page 20

OVER THE COUNTER Left: Fiona Trees, owner of Memorable Moments, Ripon (centre), with daughter Jen Trees and David Robertson at The Retas 2019. Below left: Scribbler celebrated the Pride Week on its Instagram page. Bottom: Carl Dunne and Oliver Guise-Smith of Cards & Gifts, Sheffield, were overcome with emotion (as was most of the audience) when they heard that they were the winners of a Retas award last month.

On A Positive Note Independent card and gift retailer, David Robertson, co-owner of JP Pozzi in Scotland, reflects on the positivity in the room at the recent Retas Awards and how retailers can keep their chin up in difficult times. The Retas Awards 2019 have been and gone and I write this literally the day after the greeting card retailing ‘Oscars’! Normally this day is one where I am really tired as I have commuted to and from Scotland to London in a day, or it can be one of wandering around London trying to clear my head as best I can before a flight home. This year was the 14th Retas Awards event, and yet again it highlighted so much positivity about the product category we work in and the people within our industry. A 14th anniversary is Ivory, and, as we are all about the planet, I won’t be sending The Retas’ organisers Jakki Brown and Warren Lomax any tusks in the post to congratulate them and their team on their achievement. What I do want to do is kinda give us all a pat on the back. Now “self-praise is no honour” my granny used to say, and in a week where it is reported that these sayings are disappearing I wanted to highlight some positives without blowing our own trumpet too much. It was well-publicised that The Retas switched its venue from London’s Dorchester Hotel to The Grosvenor House Hotel, as owner of The Dorchester, the Sultan of 20

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Brunei’s stance on the gay death penalty is one that no human being can agree on. While I respect other religions and beliefs, to stone someone for simply being themselves and being true to how they feel is simply wrong. As we recently celebrated Pride Week, love is love and I am proud to work in an industry where people accept all. Indeed with my own staff we have a great cross section of society and this adds to the working environment and makes for a better workplace I feel. The card industry is one which is very inclusive, and while we can never say never I don’t think I have ever seen or heard any ‘anti’ language. We embrace all the myriad of skills and talents that everyone brings. It is also great to see that many of our humour cards are reflecting society, and in the best cases are changing, adapting and still having fun. It is often said that we can’t be funny anymore and that is not true. Comedians, like cards, will simply adapt and find humour in different places. So I think, while not being complacent, we can say as an industry that we are inclusive.

Another positive is that we are supportive. The Retas Awards ceremony always highlights this. I didn’t win an award but friends of mine did, and other friends sitting alongside me didn't win, but we all enjoyed the day, and the warmth that many of The Retas winners were shown from the audience was fantastic. I knew three of the six finalists in my category (Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer - Scotland) and I could honestly say I would have been pleased for any of them to win, but obviously I wanted those I knew to do so more; that is just human nature. The atmosphere at The Retas, for anyone who hasn’t been, is not one of aggressive competition or an awards event for ‘the chosen few’. And the new venue seemed to bring everyone together even more than usual as we were all in one central area. For those who maybe thought it’s not for them or would find it awkward, don’t feel like that. Enter and if you are selected as a finalist then go. It really is a celebration. Talking of celebrations…Cards & Gifts, Sheffield’s owners, Carl Dunne and Ollie

20-21.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 15:44 Page 21

OVER THE COUNTER Guise-Smith - or the two guys in the red Hawaiian shirts - the winner of Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer Newcomer - North, made my and many other Retas’ attendees’ day. I am lucky that I have attended every Retas awards, and while I cherish my Retas trophies you can sometimes get a little complacent about how much it means to win one. It was great to see these guys so excited and have such fun with their trophy, or Tim Gould, co-owner of Objectables in Folkestone (winner of Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer Newcomer - South) live streaming the event on his phone - even the collection of his trophy on stage and pulling faces at the podium. Or Tim Reynolds, manager of Medici Gallery in Kensington (winner of the Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer - London) positively sprinting to the stage, and hugging the life out of anyone on it, it all adds to the great fun and it is comforting to know others love this industry as much as I do. Even the reaction from the lady from Sainsbury’s, senior buyer Carly Pearson, was fantastic, and quite a number of people

around me were saying how great she is at The Henries Awards judging day, so maybe they are not the enemy after all! The supermarkets that is, not Carly herself! It was also touching for me as a number of people I know, and some I don’t, stopped me and asked how my mum and I were, mentioning the PG column I wrote about the loss of my dad. On each occasion they went on to tell me about the loss of their own parent. The Retas ceremony really was one of positivity. Being negative is very easy at the minute. All the headlines are of the terrible June figures and there were lots of people at the awards who were discussing how difficult trading is right now. One lady I chatted with at the awards described how it was a struggle with just herself and one member of staff to keep up with all the bills and also keep the shop fresh. She said she had been using her own

Above: A incredibly proud Nigel Hamilton-Evans, partner of Boroughbridge Post Office, took his Retas trophy to "an Italian craft beer pub, enjoyed a pizza with us in Notting Hill and then had her photograph with the staff at a gelataria (pictured) after the awards. Below left: Medici Gallery, Kensington, created a window display about its Retas triumph almost the very next day!

personal credit card to keep it all going - you have to admire the commitment and passion she still has for her business. She loves the industry and having her own store… you could just tell. I shared some of my stories and hopefully she will realise the problems she has are the same for most of us at the minute. Being your own boss is always a challenge but something you never really want to give up once you have done it. You find ways to keep going, and I know better than most that even when you have battles on all fronts you simply have to keep positive and keep working through. ‘Pennies maketh the £pounds’, to carry on Granny’s theme! Or maybe ‘when the going gets tough the tough get going’ (Billy Ocean - not my granny!) You need to get your head down and push through, while, of course, still keeping your head up and looking at everything that is going on around you. So how do you do that? How do you keep up that positive vibe? Well, the obvious things are eat well, take time for yourself, exercise and sleep plenty. Excellent advice, but these are the things that get sacrificed when you are trying to keep it altogether, and I am pretty rubbish at most of them. Other key things that I find help me is to remove any negativity from around me. Yes, there can be disappointing days where footfall is slow and likewise money, and yes it can be frustrating, but you don’t need the opening gambit to the question what has happened today in your store to start with…

“Oh it’s been very quiet” or, “We haven’t seen a soul”. That sucks the life and energy from you so avoid as best you can. I always have a detailed plan, both with short and long-term goals. If you think it, believe it, work towards it, you can usually make at least a version of ‘it’ work! Give yourself and your team achievable goals that will build their confidence and belief. Sometimes accepting reality is crucial, even if it is not what you want. When something is failing, whether it is a process or a product, once you have given it enough of a chance, and it is still not working, move on. It doesn’t matter if the agent is nice or the terms are good, if it doesn’t sell or doesn’t work for you then you have to be brave enough to move on. And don't let personal emotions cloud decisions. I am guilty of this but I am trying to be better at it. Finally, ‘turning a negative into positive’ is another of Granny’s sayings, or in Scotland it’s ‘Make the best oh a bad lot’! Everyone gets knocks, everyone has challenges, but they will make you smarter, stronger, more adaptable and just better at what you do. I imagine that in that Retas Awards’ room that afternoon a few weeks ago, there were literally 100s of success stories and the same again of those that were not maybe quite so good. That is the reality of it but we can’t be negative. There will always be a light at the end of the tunnel somewhere and you just have to head towards it. Speaking of lights, The Light Fund is the charity set up by Max Publishing, owners of PG. It has now raised an unbelievable £1.5million and championed many causes. This year at the Retasit was great to see half the funds donated to Amnesty International, who pressurises those who are intolerant to others. In times of trouble when things are challenging this is, and I think will always be, a positive industry filled with characters that make a difference in many ways. In fact, the most positive thing you can do today is send a card to tell someone you wish them a happy birthday, you care, you are thinking about them, you love them, you are sorry for their loss, you thank them. Send that positivity in the best way we know how and strengthen our fantastic creative industry. P.S. Looking out for a red Hawaiian shirt for next year as I need to win another Retas trophy! To contact David email: jppozzi@btconnect.com PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

22-23.qxp_Layout 1 30/07/2019 10:56 Page 22

CARDSHARP

Inset: Will a no-deal Brexit mean panic stations?

Don’t Panic

Brexit! A withdrawal agreement or a no-deal? The subsequent effect of either on the UK economy! Boris Johnson as Prime Minister! Jeremy Corbyn as Prime Minister? The continued threat of global trade wars with the unpredictable Trump as US President! A global economic downturn or an oil crisis sparked by an international incident in the Persian Gulf? Cardsharp knows every businessman hates uncertainty and there is certainly an awful lot of it around at present. In fact that is the only thing that is certain. Added to this are all the challenges any retail-facing business is confronted with, notably the decline in bricks and mortar footfall, and it is no wonder that the UK greeting card industry finds itself in a tricky old year. All this got Cardsharp thinking nostalgically. Cardsharp thinks back to the period from 1991 up until the financial crisis of 2008-9, when the greeting card industry enjoyed unparalleled growth on the back of the longest periods of sustained economic growth in modern history. Consumer spending rose consistently every year and physical shopping was the nation’s favourite pastime. There were admittedly a few major international crises, such as the invasion of

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Iraq, the bitter civil war in former Yugoslavia, and the 09/11 terrorist atrocity in New York, but none of this really impinged on the daily life of the UK consumer. Governments, whether Labour or Conservative, were moderate and there was far less of the rancor in political debate than there is now. Cardsharp accepts he may be looking at that era with rose-tinted spectacles, but

in hindsight these were the golden years for the greeting card industry. True, there were casualties both on the publishing side and the retail side - Cardsharp recalls the Athena collapse and the disappearance of many historic wholesale publishing names. However, these were mainly brought about by poor management decisions or structural changes in the market. Margins were great and sales were growing. Clintons dominated the prime positions in the high streets. Fortunes were made, the largest one being the estimated £200 million that Andrew Brownsword received from Hallmark for his eponymous company in 1995. The Spring Fair saw publishers building stands that were three storeys high and/or the size of football pitches, which seems astonishing now in these more chastened times. It really was the days of wine and roses for the UK greeting card industry, and so many of the grizzled veterans of the industry that Cardsharp talks to about this era willingly agree, adding that they

22-23.qxp_Layout 1 30/07/2019 10:56 Page 23

CARDSHARP would have enjoyed it more if they had realised they were ‘the good old days’! The financial crisis and the subsequent rise of internet retailing since 2009 changed all that. Incomes since then have not been growing, retailing has got more difficult, and margins have been squeezed, both for the retailer and publisher, in the face of intense competition. The 20% drop in the value of the £pound that occurred immediately after the EU Referendum hit many card publishers and retailers who had outsourced their production to the Far East terribly. Overall the last decade has been tough. If the era prior to 2009 were the days of wine and roses, the last decade has been that of tea and daisies.

And now we have to deal with all the fresh challenges that 2019 is throwing at us. Some of these at a macro-level have been brought about by national political and economic decisions made at the very top level. The increasingly protectionist attitude to global trade is already effecting the US greeting card industry as Trump’s punitive tariffs on Chinese export have been applied to giftwrap and boxed greeting cards. And the fall in the value of the £pound has made many publishers and retailers bring more of their manufacturing back to the UK. At the time of writing, Cardsharp has little idea about how a no-deal Brexit will affect the UK greeting card industry. Our nation’s health is inextricably linked to that of the general UK economy. To Cardsharp’s mind a no-deal Brexit will either unleash the dynamic creative forces of UK business or

Left: Andrew Brownsword. Below leftt: Trump from Really Wild Card’s Politically Incorrect range. Below right: New PM, Boris Johnson.

be a huge blow to economic growth, depending on who you listen to. Cardsharp thinks that the subsequent further fall in the £pound, which everyone predicts, will be a result of a no-deal, and will further accelerate a trend that has already started ie an increase in UK production at the expense of the Far East. Luckily the card industry’s international supply chains are not as concrete as in many industries such as automobiles, but nevertheless it will still cause considerable disruption to many. The UK’s thriving export business of greeting cards may actually be helped by the depreciation of the £pound, but, in the short-term at least, its trade with EU partners such as The Netherlands and Germany may be adversely affected by a no-deal. Added to all this are the greeting card industry challenges that are distinct from the geo-political. The continued debate on environmental issues is certainly sucking up management time. Although the move to ‘naked’ cards is being welcomed by many, it is creating logistical (and financial) problems for publishers and distribution companies who are currently having to run ‘naked’ and bagged production lines during what is a period of transition. The year 2019 has seen a few wobbles. The news that Paperchase was negotiating a Creditors Voluntary Agreement (CVA) got the year off to a shaky start. Then we had the business failure of a well-loved supplier in Grass Roots International. This was followed in June with the liquidation of Gemma, a trailblazer on licensed children’s cards. Its failure, being such a big and established publishing name, sent shockwaves through the industry. And from the audible rumbles of concern Cardsharp is hearing, he suspects

Gemma may not be the last major name to fail in 2020. Any publisher not innovating product wise, not providing the service, and/or is heavily leveraged with a hefty overhead base, could fall victim to the icy winds that are blowing through the retail economy at present. But it is not all doom and gloom. Cardsharp has also noted the strong growth of a whole host of design-led publishers. Names such as The Art File, Dandelion, Wrendale, Paper Salad, Rosie Made a Thing, Janie Wilson, Wendy Jones-Blackett and Belly Button and many more. That said, given that this is a market that is flat (at best) their respective sales growth must be coming from somewhere - those who are less agile are bound to be feeling it. But as Cardsharp mused, markets thrive through upsetting the established order in what is called the theory of Creative Destruction. ‘Zombie companies’ kept alive by low interest rates and inflated stock valuations do little to help any industry, while the constant arrival of new and improved product (ranges) and companies (publishers) help satisfy customers’ demands, thereby rewarding risk-taking entrepreneurs. This, it is believed is the hallmark (no pun intended!) of a healthy economy.

Relatively speaking, despite all the uncertainty that Cardsharp has reflected on, the UK greeting card trade is still a healthy industry. Admittedly the sector is not without its challenges, but it is one that is creative, vibrant and competitive. So Brexit D-Day on October 31 will come and go, and whatever the outcome the UK public will still be buying greeting cards by the million this Christmas, concludes Cardsharp. So whatever happens, in the immortal words of Corporal Jones of Dad’s Army, “Don’t panic”!

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

ZR G

4. 9.

cle

plie

t ap

pat

cle

4. 9.

Za nd ra d R Th istin hod e is bo sig guis s is ld na he on pa tu d e Th ig ne an of tte re is d an d t e r n ran d co m s, ge ex he w ad Ba c e ric in n Brit d h cele itin orld aim ain. g co b f ’s lo ra Des s to ur te ash mo ig n io st © re an s a M n du us d de rec eu c irre fifty m o s& e p pre ye sign gn Gal las le e is ti rie ss ar c s Lt c w ib are rs. able d a le 20 ste , 19 sty er o . – ec oB le f p le an .

Des

plie

Des ig ne d

pat

18 07 89 4.

cle

fo r:

en t ap plie d

Za nd ra d R Th istin hod e is bo sig guis s is ld na he on pa tu d e Th an of tte re is an d t e r n ran d co m s, ge ex he w ad Ba c e ric in n Brit d h cele itin orld aim ain. g co b f ’s lo ra Des s to ur te ash mo ig n io st © re an s a M n du us d de rec eu c irre fifty m o s& e p pre ye sign gn Gal las le e is ti rie ss ar c s Lt c w ib are rs. able d a le 20 ste , 19 sty er o . – ec oB le f p le an . d

pat

en t ap plie d

18 07 89 4. 9.

cle

fo r:

ZR G

_Z AN DR A RH OD ES .in dd

4. 9.

t ap

it 07

Des ig ne d Des ig ne d

pat

cle

GB 18 07 89 4.

fo r:

en t ap plie d

fo r:

cle

9. GB 18 07 89 4. 9.

Za nd ra d R Th istin hod e is bo sig guis s is ld na he on pa tu d e Th an of tte re is an d t ec r n ran d m oB s, ge ex he w ad c e ric an in Brit d h cele itin orld aim ain. g co b f ’s lo ra Des s to ur te ash mo ig n io st © re an s a M n du us d de rec eu c irre fifty m o s& e p pre ye sign gn Gal las le e is ti rie ss ar c s Lt c w ib are rs. able d as le 20 , te 19 sty er o . – ec oB le f ple an . d

Za nd ra d R Th istin hod e is bo sig guis s is ld na he on pa tu d e Th an of tte re is an d t ec r n ran d m oB s, ge ex he w ad c e ric an in Brit d h cele itin orld aim ain. g co b f ’s lo ra Des s ur te ash mo to ig n io st © re an s a M n du us d de rec eu c irre fifty m o s& e p pre ye sign gn Gal las le e is ti rie ss ar c s Lt c w ib are rs. able d as le 20 , te 19 sty er o . – ec oB le f p le an .

ZERO PLASTIC 11

11 /0

6/2

ZERO PLASTIC 6/2

01 9

:0 3

ZERO PLASTIC 4. 9.

ZERO PLASTIC

_G e_

.in

cle

it 07

pat

cy fo

cle GB 18

d Des ig ne d

plie

cy fo

re d

Za nd ra d R Th istin hod e is bo sig guis s is ld na he on pa tu d e Th ig ne an of tte re is d an d t ec r n ran d m oB s, ge ex he w ad c e ric an in Brit d h cele itin orld aim ain. g co b f ’s lo ra Des s ur te ash mo to ig n io st © re an s a M n du us d de rec eu c irre fifty m o s& e p pre ye sign gn Gal las le e is ti rie ss ar c s Lt c w ib are rs. able d as le 20 , te 19 sty er o . – ec oB le f p le an . as

t ap

plie

Des

ZR G

Eco

t ap

pat

–p le

pat en

–p le

Polypropylene & biodegradable bag specialists ZR

.in

Za nd ra d R Th istin hod e is bo sig guis s is ld na h o Des pa ture ed ne Th ig an of ne tte is d d t an r n ran ec d m s, ge ex he w oB ad c ric e an in Brit h cele iting orld d aim ain. co b fa ’s lo r D s a m es u to ig r a tes shio os n © re n a M n t d r us d u d eu c irre fifty es eco m s& e p ig gn pre ye Gal la ne is lerie sti ss ar c a s Lt c w ib are rs. ble d as le 20 , te 19 sty er o . ec le f . oB

ask about our ‘Mr Abbot’ sample pack Za nd ra d R Th istin hod e is bo sig guis s is ld na h o Des pa ture ed ne Th ig an of ne tte is d d t an r n ran ec d m s, ge ex he w oB ad c ric e an in Brit h cele iting orld d aim ain. co b f ’s lo r Des s to ur ate ash mo ig n io s © a s re n M du us d a fift n d t re eu c irre y es co m s& e p ig gn pre ye Gal la ne is lerie sti ss ar c a s Lt c w ib are rs. ble d as le 20 , te 19 sty er o . ec le f . oB

ZR G

Siz

RH 4. 9.

A 89

it 07

DR 18

cle GB

4. 9.

AN r:

it 07

plie

cle GB

6/2

t ap

cy fo

re d

Eco

_Z en

plie

t ap

/0 pat

–p le

ZR G

4. 9.

pat

–p le

Za nd ra d R Th istin hod e is bo sig guis s is ld na h o Des pa ture ed ne Th ig an of ne tte is d d t an r n ran ec d m s, ge ex he w oB ad c ric e an in Brit h cele iting orld d aim ain. co b f ’s lo r Des s to ur ate ash mo ig n io s © a s re n M du us d a fift n d t re eu c irre y es co m s& e p ig gn pre ye Gal la ne is lerie sti ss ar c a s Lt c w ib are rs. ble d as le 20 , te 19 sty er o . ec le f . an

ZR G

Our innovative greetings card finishes include:

_v5

.in

cle

fo r:

4. 9.

Siz e

3 plie

it 07

:0 t ap

cle

fo r:

re d

Siz

14 en

plie

t ap

9 pat

Eco

ZR G

6/2

–p

pat

–p le

T 01206 396209 E sales@badgerconverters.co.uk www.badgerconverters.co.uk

Home of the finest arts brands

Eco

Za nd ra d R Th istin hod e is bo sig guis s is ld na h o Des pa ture ed ne Th ig an of ne tte is d d t an r n ran ec d m s, ge ex he w oB ad c ric e an in Brit h cele iting orld d aim ain. co b ’s f lo r Des s to ur ate ash mo ig n io s © a s re n M du us d a fift n d t re eu c irre y es co m s& e p ig gn pre ye Gal la ne is lerie sti ss ar c a s Lt c w ib are rs. ble d as le 20 , te 19 sty er o . le f . ec

26/07/2019 15:01

24_PG_August 2019.indd 24

6/2

22/07/2019 12:39

Progressive_Greetings_HPage_Ad_AW_Aug_Issue.indd 1

6/2

Tel: 01373 462165

museumsgalleries.co.uk

E: sales@mgml.co.uk

.in

Siz

Eco

Siz

ZERO PLASTIC

Over 40 years quality service to the trade Hotfoiling also available 3 :0

GREETING CARD

Museums & Galleries’ exclusive collaboration with Dame Zandra Rhodes – one of the world’s most recognisable, distinguished and exciting fashion designers – is out now. This new signature range of cards and stationery celebrates her fiftieth year in fashion and a lifetime irrepressible style. Please visit our website, contact your local agent or ask our sales team for more information. Eco

:0 9 14

ZERO PLASTIC ZERO PLASTIC

14 01 6/2 9

.in ES

11 01 6/2 /0 11

RH DR AN _Z v5 e_

dd 1 dd

Siz nd Ba Eco

OD .in ES OD A

RH DR AN _Z v5 e_ _G

Siz nd Ba

To discuss your next greetings card range call us on 01797 223355 www.abbotprint.co.uk sales@abbotprint.co.uk Eco

01 6/2 /0 11

:0 3

.in ES

14 :0 9

14 01 6/2 /0 11

RH DR AN _Z v5 e_ Siz

dd 1 dd

_G nd Ba Eco

OD .in ES OD A

RH DR AN _Z v5 e_ _G

Siz nd Ba Eco

Celebrating iconic style.

Thermography Foil Intense Glitter Snowraise Liquid Metal Blended Glitter Embossing Textured Foil Laser Cutting ZERO PLASTIC ZERO PLASTIC

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT...

FRIENDLY, EXPERT ADVICE DEDICATED AND KNOWLEDGEABLE TEAM FAST AND EFFICIENT SERVICE HIGH QUALITY FILM BAGS

ZERO PLASTIC

25-26-27.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 15:49 Page 25

VIEWPOINTS Retailers’ Top Picks

Summer

Lovin’

With the sun beating down and summer in full flow, PG checks in with retailers to find out what of the mid year product launches are adding rays of sunshine to their respective card racks. Above: Here’s to the sunny climes spreading some positive rays to the card racks for retailers and publishers.

Maggie Wynn owner of Just Cards, Honiton:

Siobhain Watkins assistant buyer of Oliver Bonas: “We are really loving the Oh Squirrel glitter text range, and some recently added lines have had really great reactions for us. Also Ohh Deer’s new pin range looks great and we’re really excited to see these in our stores. Cards with added extras are real winners at the moment for us, and are really driving sales.”

“We really like what Dollyhotdogs is doing. The company is based in Devon so it is nice for us to have local cards to sell in our shop. The cards are very different and the colours are so vibrant. We were also impressed with what Apple & Clover launched at PG Live; the Bow Ties range was fantastic. We also ordered the nice male range from Richard Partis at the show. On the humorous front, I really like Some Ink Nice’s captioned occasions designs. Other highlights are the new designs from Jonny Javelin, IC&G’s new juvenile range and code 250, plus all the great new stuff from Redback, White Cotton Cards and Emotional Rescue.”

Above: Oliver Bonas’ Siobhain Watkins (right) with Sadler Jones’ Cath Jones (centre) and Natalia Kostereska (who has recently left Oliver Bonas to join Urban Outfitters) Left: Oh Squirrel says it with sparkle!

Above: One of Apple & Clover’s Bow Ties collections. Left: Just Cards’ Maggie (right) and Angie Wynn (left) spending their Retas Silver Ticket with Dollyhotdogs’ Michelle Fisher at PG Live.

Rachel and Paul Roberts co-owners of Mooch, two stores in Northampton, Olney and Towcester: “It's so hard to single out anyone among so much talent, but we totally fell in love with Lucy Ledger’s cards [who has just joined Paper Rose and is merging her company in] and The Grumble & Co. Both presented totally gorgeous cards that offer something a little different and special for our customers.” Left: Rachel and (second right) Paul Roberts with The Grumble and Co chaps. Right: One of the Crystal Wishes designs from Lucy Ledger.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

25-26-27.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 15:50 Page 26

VIEWPOINTS Retailers’ Top Picks

Miles Robinson co-owner of House of Cards, a small group of six card shops based in the Home Counties: “Publishers whose new ranges really stand out for us include Paper Salad, Louise Mulgrew, Doodleicious and Poet & Painter. Of our existing suppliers there are some great new designs

Debbie and Jerry Brown co-owners of First Class Greetings, Hadleigh, Essex: “Our ‘something new’ discovery is Crumble & Core its earring cards are a great new addition to our Plum Green gift shop. New for our First Class Greetings shop, we really like Punk Cards (no plastic, 100% recycled and 100% recyclable) as well as Special Delivery’s 3D animal cards. We also love the great new designs from the lovely Lucy and Bryn at Poet and Painter.” Above: First Class Greetings’ Debbie (right) and Jerry Brown (far left) with Spirito’s Denise and Allan Laird. Left: A new design from Poet & Painter’s Motley Crew range.

from Bexy Boo, Lucilla Lavender, Redback, Second Nature, Tache, Tracks, Woodmansterne and Wrendale.” Above: Miles Robinson (second left) and his business partner Nigel Williamson (far right) with Cardgains’ Chris Dyson and Penny Shaw at the recent Harrogate Home and Gift show. Left: Sarah Capper’s astonishingly detailed work on a Doodlelicious design.

Ellie Kleinlercher buyer of Between The Lines: “I am particularly impressed with all the suppliers that have brought out new ranges featuring plastic-free packaging. We have stocked the plastic-free cards from Woodmansterne since March and have received fantastic feedback from our staff and customers, who now seek out the plastic-free cards over the

cellowrapped cards, so we are really looking forward to adding more of these to our selection. We also really love Toasted Crumpet's Christmas range. We originally discovered the company at the GCA’s Dragons’ Den event in 2018 and are so happy to see the extension to the original ranges.”

Amanda Oscroft

Above: One of Toasted Crumpet’s new Christmas collection. Left: Between the Lines’ Ellie and Florian Kleinlercher.

co-owner of Love it, Stamford and Bury St Edmunds: “As well as Paper Salad’s new ranges, we love Lucy Ledger’s absolutely stunning original designs featuring crystals and their meanings for the birthday month. We are also very impressed with The Rusty Pencil’s very funny new designs, which made us howl with laughter when we first saw them at PG Live.” Above: Love It’s Will and Amanda Oscroft (centre) with fellow indie Sally Wilde (of Planet Sal) enjoying some summer fizz. Right: One of the latest designs from The Rusty Pencil.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Maurice Esofsky managing director of QLM, Leeds: “I love Glick’s new gift bag designs, Woodmansterne’s Genius range, Twizler’s fab Christmas humour, Wendy Jones-Blackett’s latest selection, Dandelion’s very funny humour and Punk - for its creative and different approach with its recyclable packaging concept.” Right: QLM’s Maurice and Debby Esofsky. Left: David Nicholas, co-founder of Punk Cards showing a ‘record sleeved’ card.

25-26-27.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 15:50 Page 27

VIEWPOINTS Retailers’ Top Picks

Deborah Tingay owner of Southbourne Cards, Southbourne: “My summer product highlights include two new ranges from The Art File - Snap to Grid and Emily Brooks. Also the new Neon additions to Redback’s Shine range

and hilarious new range of sport humour from Worry Less Design - I especially liked the design, ‘Fancy a threesome? Swim, Cycle, Run’ also stand out.”

Abigail Ball assistant buyer of cards and stationery of Fenwick department store group: “Louise Mulgrew has particularly caught our eye, expanding her range into many more categories, such as occasions and relations. Her ranges always stand out on our display stands offering a completely different look to any other brand with her delicate use of watercolours, therefore we are expanding her range in our stores! Poet and Painter’s new range, Well Said, also stands out, capturing topics on a card which are very much relevant in the media today.” Top: Fenwick’s Abigail Ball (right) and Lizzie Tillmanns with Paper Salad’s Jack Wilson. Above: Louise Mulgrew has recently added nine new additions to its Little Celebrations range.

Above: (Right-left) Southbourne Cards’ Deborah Tingay with Redback’s Kate Stanley and agent Rosie Trow. Left: Sport-related humour from Worry Less Design.

Kim Ralph owner of Tidings Cards in Cirencester and Westonbirt: “Angela Chick’s new designs have caught my eye - she has such a unique range. Abacus also has some really colourful and fresh new relations and ages in its Velvet Ink collection. Redback’s constant refreshing of its ranges is also great to see!” Right: Cheers to the summer, says Tidings’ Kim Ralph! Left: A design from Angela Chick’s Always range.

Sarah Holmes owner of Pencil Me In, Elgin: “Bird Brain, Mock Up, Oh Squirrel and Passenger Press. Another designer who has caught my eye is Type Shop. Mister Peebles is a publisher I have always loved, and I used to buy her cards from my local card store when I lived in Manchester, I especially like her David Meowie card.” Right: Pencil Me In’s Sarah Holmes (right) with Mister Peebles’ Helen McGinley. Left: The David Meowie card from Mister Peebles.

Jo and Martin Johnstone

Anita Thorpe

Paper Moon of Sidmouth: “We love all the new designs from Jonny Javlin. However, in terms of new companies we are now buying from (having spotted them at PG Live), Twizler, The Grumble & Co and Louise Tiler, and Apple & Clover were sensational. And going by the designs we saw, it’s definitely the year of the sloth, which suits us!!” Above: (Far left and second right) Jo and Martin Johnstone with Jonny Javelin’s Judy McEwan and Jonny Spears. Left: New from Louise Tiler.

owner of Diverse, Brixton:

Above: Anita Thorpe, full of the joys of summer. Right: One of the handmade designs from Dayo Cards.

“Shout out to the new designs from Huetribe, Kitsch Noir, Roger la Borde, Dayo's Cards, Davora, My Ethnic Cards, Out of the Box Cards, Njeri Illustrated and Karmuka - all companies that reflect diversity and inclusiveness. This a real move forward in the industry and good for business.” PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Greeting Cards Display Solutions

• FSDU • CDU • POS We also do: • Cartons • Boxes • Diecuts

Call: 0121 557 1891 email: sales@nsmithbox.co.uk

web. www.nsmithbox.co.uk

n.smith, Hainge Road, Tividale, Oldbury, West Midlands B69 2NZ OVER 115 YEARS OF MANUFACTURING IN THE UK

CHEEKY CHOPS CARDS

(E) SALES@REALANDEXCITINGDESIGNS.CO.UK (T) 01223 207 080 (F) 01536 401 031

28_PG_August 2019.indd 28

WWW.CHEEKYCHOPSTRADE.CO.UK

31/07/2019 10:32

Retas Party pages 2019.qxp_Layout 1 29/07/2019 13:51 Page 29

A Frida Fiesta Frida Kahlo was known for her vibrant, creative spirit, passion for life and extraordinary achievements. The recent Retas 2019 awards event certainly did her proud. PG was there at the Grosvenor House Hotel to lap up the Mexican flavour of The Retas 2019… Top: All The Retas’ winners on stage at The Retas with their trophies. Above right: Frida’s watchful eyes gave her approval from the striking graphics that the Frida Kahlo Foundation was happy to endorse.

Above: The Grosvenor House Hotel Ballroom had the ‘ﬁesta’ feeling, helped along by the ﬂowers that were donated by Budget Greeting Cards.

Below: (left-right) Alan and Denise Laird (Spirito); Claire Williams (Paper Salad); Will and Amanda Oscroft (Love It); Jack Wilson (Paper Salad); Rita Knibbs, Rachael Barnes and Emma Knights (Dragonﬂy Cards & Gifts) and Karen Wilson (Paper Salad) enjoying the champagne drinks reception.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Retas Party pages 2019.qxp_Layout 1 29/07/2019 13:52 Page 30

Caught On Camera

Above: GCA’s ceo Amanda Fergusson (centre) with Between the Lines’ (left-right) Florian Kleinlercher, Lindsey Kleinlercher, Lucy Minerva and Ellie Kleinlercher. Below: (left-right) Alison Crosbie (Tesco), Tracy Preston (Hallmark), Anne Borrett (Tesco), Phil Covey (Tesco), Sara Gibson (Tesco) and Matt Critchlow (Hallmark). Above: (left-right) Joanna McFarlane (agent), Hazel Small (RHS Wisley), Katharine MacLaverty (Dulwich Trader), Siobhain Watkins (Oliver Bonas) and Jo Bannister (agent). Left: Pippa Evans hosted the event and even wrote special song all about card sending that she delivered superbly well. Below right: Agent Rosie Trow (far right) in her Frida garb with (left-right) Cards 2 Confetti’s Denise Keers and Nick O’Brien, Cilla & Camilla’s Sally Ann Palmer and Nikki Weir.

Above and below: The Adelitas all female mariachi group certainly blew the cobwebs away and added to the Mexican feel! Below right: How much did the heaviest burrito weigh? What was the biggest Mexican wave? Ask Richard Turnbull, md of Greetings House as he won the fun ‘higher or lower’ elimination quiz that was sponsored by Cath Tate Cards. Cath Tate (left) and Rosie Tate presented Richard with his prize of a magnum of champagne and book about Frida Kahlo.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Retas Party pages 2019.qxp_Layout 1 29/07/2019 13:52 Page 31

Inset: Over £5,000 was raised in the charity raffle, the proceeds for which were divided between Amnesty International and The Light Fund. Indie retailer Sarah Laker of Marple’s Stationery Suppliers was the lucky winner of four VIP tickets to a big Man United V Arsenal match. She was presented with her prize by Max Publishing’s creative director Mark Grayson.

Below: Severe train delays and cancellations saw (left-right) Wendy Jones-Blackett and colleague Jacqui Godber as well as Glick’s Michelle Airth and Becky Dobson not reach the Grosvenor until the event was almost over – but they celebrated on a train until they got there! Bottom: (right-left) Glick’s Michelle Airth and Becky Dobson with Retas’ ﬁnalist Klondyke’s Kerry Sorbie.

Caught On Camera

Right: A jubiliant trio of winners. (Leftright) Hallmark’s Graeme Francis with Simon Bailey (Bailey’s), Alison Baker (Island Greetings), Lynda Bygrave (Celebrations) and Penny Bailey (Bailey’s). Left: Boxer Chris Eubank found himself in the ‘ring’ with several hundred Retas celebrators, but was more than happy to be ‘papped’ with Budget’s operations manager, Mike Spencer holding the wholesale group’s trophy. Below: The Retas was a great chance for friends to meet up. (Left-right) Karen Ebers (Something Special), Andy Paterson (Woodmansterne), Christine Harrison (Xpressions Gifts) and Pete Goodman (Heritage Art and Design).

Above, below and below left: Oh goody! The striking Eurowrap Mexican-themed giftbags were full of lots of great ‘goodies’ for everyone to take home.

Below: The celebrating continued well into the evening at the nearby Market Tavern!

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

01924 950500 The perfect solution for all of your Greeting Card Software requirements Enquiry Hotline

CARD manager

Ready-made WEBSHOP

for Customer and Salesforce Orders

Salesforce MOBILE Ordering

using iPhone, iPad, Tablet, etc. incl. Consignment and Van Sales Email us at enquiries@exponential.co.uk or visit our website at www.card-manager.com

UK- 01924 950500 / USA- (617) 8618-517 / Australia- (0432) 846546 Exponential Limited 1-3 Tithe Barn Street Horbury Wakefield West Yorkshire WF4 6HN

32_PG_August 2019.indd 32

29/07/2019 16:33

RETAS Winners pages Grid 2019_v2018.qxp_Layout 1 25/07/2019 11:23 Page 33

Greeting Card Retail

Employee of the Year 2019 Winner: Mandy Baker

manager of Celebrations, Aylsham

Initial Reaction: “Our reaction was shock, and is that her/my name? It was deﬁnitely whoop whoop! And I know Mandy was shaking as she collected her award… and very proud.” Linda Bygrave, owner, and Mandy Baker, manager of Celebrations, Aylsham

SPONSORED BY

Above: Manager of Celebrations, Aylsham, Mandy Baker, receives the Greeting Card Retail Employee of the Year Award from Matt Critchlow, customer & category director of category sponsor Hallmark Cards. Also pictured is the Retas awards’ host Pippa Evans.

Right: Mandy and her lovely shiny Retas trophy.

Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer

London (inside the M25) 2019 Winner: Medici Gallery, South Kensington Left: Tim Reynolds, manager, and Charlie Wheatley, assistant manager, for Medici Gallery, South Kensington, receive their trophy from Mark Callaby, managing director for Ohh Deer, category sponsor.

Below: Tim holds tight to his Retas trophy.

SPONSORED BY

Initial Reaction: “Thrilled, delighted and over the moon! It was great to be up on ‘the stage of honour’ with so many wonderful award winning Retas retailers.” Tim Reynolds, manager for the Medici Gallery, South Kensington PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

RETAS Winners pages Grid 2019_v2018.qxp_Layout 1 25/07/2019 11:25 Page 34

Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer

Home Counties

2019 Winner: Red Card, Petworth

SPONSORED BY

Left: A very happy Sally with her Retas trophy.

Initial Reaction: “Wow, that’s brilliant I can’t wait to ring my mum!” Sally Matson, owner of Red Card, Petworth

Above: Sally Matson, owner of Red Card, accepts her trophy from Simon Snow, director of Regal Publishing, category sponsor.

Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer

East Anglia

2019 Winner: Sincerely Yours, Shenﬁeld and Hornchurch Left: Kaye Thurgood (left) owner, and Emma Thurgood, manager, of Sincerely Yours, Shenﬁeld and Hornchurch accept The Retas' Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer – East Anglia award from Fabian Santoro, business development manager for Santoro, sponsor of this category. Below: Kaye and Emma proudly hold their Retas trophy.

SPONSORED BY

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Initial Reaction: “When our name was called Emma and I looked at each other in disbelief! As we hugged all I could hear were the cheers from our table, such fantastic support, and I thought what a pleasure it is to work in such a lovely industry.” Kaye Thurgood, owner of Sincerely Yours, Shenﬁeld and Hornchurch

RETAS Winners pages Grid 2019_v2018.qxp_Layout 1 25/07/2019 11:26 Page 35

Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer

South West

2019 Winner: Island Greetings, two stores in St Helier

SPONSORED BY

Left: Island Greetings' director Alison Baker, accepts her Retas award from Alison Butterworth, managing director for Nigel Quiney, which together with Glick are the category sponsors.

Left: In bloom, Alison takes home a lovely shiny Retas trophy.

Initial Reaction: “It was one of total disbelief!! I felt very humble among those nominated but so elated to have won that I want to do it all again now so I can savour the moment!!" Alison Baker, director of Island Greetings, two stores in St Helier

Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer

Wales and the Midlands

2019 Winner: In Heaven At Home, Market Harborough

Initial Reaction: “WOW, I was completely shocked. What a wonderful amazing surprise! We are absolutely thrilled and delighted and I have a feeling my husband is looking down feeling just a little bit proud.” Anne Barber, owner of In Heaven At Home, Market Harborough

Right: A big smile from Anne. SPONSORED BY

Above: Anne Barber, owner of In Heaven At Home, Market Harborough, accepts her Retas trophy from Chris Bryan, general manager for category sponsor, Second Nature.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

RETAS Winners pages Grid 2019_v2018.qxp_Layout 1 25/07/2019 11:29 Page 36

Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer

North and Northern Ireland 2019 Winner: Bailey’s Cards and Gifts, Southport and Crosby

Initial Reaction: “Simon and I were having such a fabulous day; all dressed up, meeting fellow retailers that all work as hard as we do. So to have our shops recognised and our team rewarded was very exciting and made it a day to remember, thank you.” Penny and Simon Bailey, owners of Bailey’s Cards and Gifts, Southport and Crosby

Below: Simon and Penny are delighted and surprised with their Retas award.

SPONSORED BY

Above: Penny and Simon Bailey, owners of Bailey’s Cards and Gifts, Southport and Crosby, are delighted to accept their Retas award from Darren Cave, commercial director for category sponsor, UK Greetings.

Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer

Scotland

2019 Winner: Bluestone Gift Shops, Largs, Glasgow, Lochgilphead and Barrhead Right: Sara Still, area manager and Haydn Park Patterson, coffee shop manager of Bluestone Gift Shops, Largs, Glasgow, Lochgilphead and Barrhead are thrilled to receive their Retas trophy from Andrea Pinder for, Wendy Jones-Blackett, category sponsor. Left: Sara and Haydn are pleased with their Retas trophy.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Initial Reaction: "We were over the moon! We were humbled to ﬁnd out we were a Retas ﬁnalist but hearing our name being called out as the winner was something else!" Sara Still, area manager of Bluestone Gift Shops

RETAS Winners pages Grid 2019_v2018.qxp_Layout 1 25/07/2019 11:30 Page 37

Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer

Newcomer or New Branch

-South

2019 Winner: Objectables, Folkestone Initial Reaction: “Oh god, we’ve won, I suppose I have to keep ﬁlming this now - as when I started live streaming on my phone our category I was convinced we would lose. Then it was fear, because after collecting our award I went to text my wife Annie to tell her we had won and my phone ran out of batteries! But in one word, overjoyed." Tim Gould, co-owner of Objectables, Folkestone

SPONSORED BY

Above: Tim Gould, co-owner of Objectables, Folkestone, is over the moon to receive his award from Kirsty Broere, event director for Spring Fair, which together with Autumn Fair are sponsors of this category.

Right: Tim proudly clasps his Retas trophy.

Best Independent Greeting Card Retailer

Newcomer or New Branch

2019 Winner: Cards & Gifts, Sheffield

-North

Initial Reaction: “Hearing our name was overwhelming… the rest was a blur of ecstasy and amazement: WE WON!! WOW!!” Carl Dunne and Oliver Guise-Smith, partners of Cards & Gifts, Sheffield

Above: Carl Dunne (right) and Oliver Guise-Smith, owners of Cards & Gifts, Sheffield, accept their Retas trophy from Jack Wilson, manager of Paper Salad, sponsor of this category.

SPONSORED BY

Left: Carl and Oliver are incredibly excited to win their award.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

RETAS Winners pages Grid 2019_v2018.qxp_Layout 1 25/07/2019 11:32 Page 38

Best Independent Bookstore

Retailer of Greeting Cards

2019 Winner: Blandford of Broadway, Hereford and Ledbury Below: Andrew and Elizabeth Blandford, owners of Blandfords of Broadway, Hereford and Ledbury, receive their Retas trophy from Seth Woodmansterne, deputy managing director of category sponsor Woodmansterne Publications.

Left: Elizabeth and Andrew and their sparkling Retas trophy.

Initial Reaction: “We at Blandfords were over joyed to win! It’s a real honour and a huge boost for our shops and staff. A fantastic and memorable day, thanks Retas!!” Andrew and Elizabeth Blandford, owners of Blandfords of Broadway, Hereford and Ledbury

SPONSORED BY

Best Non-Specialist Independent

Retailer of Greeting Cards - North

2019 Winner: Boroughbridge Post Office’s, Well Good Card Shop, Boroughbridge Right: Nigel and Karen are overjoyed to win a Retas trophy.

Initial Reaction: "It took an age to realise it was us, then shaking, and with tears ﬂowing, we went to the stage". Nigel Hamilton-Evans, partner of Boroughbridge Post Office SPONSORED BY

Initial Reaction: “It felt amazing, like I had won an Oscar!” EMMA WALTON, CARD BUYER FOR THREADS, HARPENDEN

Above: Nigel and Karen Hamilton-Evans, partners of Boroughbridge Post Office, Boroughbridge, accept the Best NonSpecialist Independent Retailer of Greeting Cards – North award from Alister Marchant, ceo of sales for Carte Blanche Group, category sponsor.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

RETAS Winners pages Grid 2019_v2018.qxp_Layout 1 25/07/2019 11:32 Page 39

Best Non-Specialist Independent

Retailer of Greeting Cards - South

2019 Winner: Mooch, two stores in Northampton, Olney and Towcester

Initial Reaction: "When they called us out we just couldn't believe it was us - Paul and I were frozen to the spot for a moment. As we got back to the table we sent our team a pic of the awesome trophy they'd won - I think there were squeals of delight all over Northants and Bucks!" Paul and Rachel Roberts, owners of Mooch SPONSORED BY

Above left: Paul and Rachel Roberts, co-owners of Mooch, Olney and Towcester and two stores in Northampton are delighted to accept the Best Non-Specialist Independent Retailer of Greeting Cards - South award from Steve Baker, sales and marketing director of Pigment, sponsor of the category. Right: Rachel and Paul are over the moon with their award.

Best Greeting Card Small Multiple (4-20 stores) 2019 Winner: Zo & Co - four stores in Greater Manchester and Cheshire

Below: Tracey Rushton-Thorpe accepts the award for Zo & Co, four stores in Greater Manchester and Cheshire, for the Best Greeting Card Small Multiple award from Michael McGunnigle, business development manager for The Great British Card Company, the category sponsor.

Below: Tracey is all smiles.

Below: J

SPONSORED BY

Initial Reaction: â&#x20AC;&#x153;When we found out the fabulous news we felt so proud!â&#x20AC;? Paul and Zoe Carter, partners of Zo & Co

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

RETAS Winners pages Grid 2019_v2018.qxp_Layout 1 25/07/2019 11:35 Page 40

Best Department Store

Retailer of Greeting Cards 2019 Winner: John Lewis, Oxford St Initial Reaction: “We were delighted to win our award! It’s great to be recognised for the work that we do and for our publishers who work so hard to provide us with an assortment that we are really proud of.” Lisa Rutherford, buyer for stationery and seasonal events for John Lewis, Oxford Street

Below: Buyer for stationery and seasonal events, Lisa Rutherford (left), and Payal Shah, merchandiser, for John Lewis, Oxford Street, receive The Retas' Best Department Store Retailer of Greeting Cards award from Nick Carey, managing director for Abacus Cards, the category sponsor.

SPONSORED BY

Right: Pictured with PG’s Jakki Brown and Paul Woodmansterne, Lisa (centre) and Payal (left) are absolutely thrilled with their award, and all the Retas 2019 winners will receive a Golden Ticket worth £150 to spend at PG Live next year.

Best Supermarket Retailer of Greeting Cards 2019 Winner: Sainsbury's Initial Reaction: “It was absolute joy followed by absolute fear of falling up and then back down the stairs!!” Carly Pearson, senior buyer for Sainsbury’s

Far left: Carly Pearson, senior buyer for Sainsbury’s, is delighted to accept her Retas award from Simon Boyd, co-owner and operations director for category sponsor, Progressive Greetings Live. Left: A beaming Carly with her Retas trophy.

SPONSORED BY

2-3 June 40

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

RETAS Winners pages Grid 2019_v2018.qxp_Layout 1 25/07/2019 11:36 Page 41

Best Non-Specialist Multiple Retailer of Greeting Cards (4+ Stores) 2019 Winner: Utility, 3 stores in Liverpool and one in Manchester Below: A shiny Retas Award for Utility’s Kate, Steph and Dick.

Above: Owners Kate Cowie (centre) and Dick Mawdsley, and retail buyer Steph Lloyd, of Utility, 3 stores in Liverpool and one in Manchester, are delighted to accept the Retas award for the Best Non-Specialist Multiple Retailer of Greeting Cards from Jack Straw, managing director of BrownTrout, category sponsor. SPONSORED BY

Initial Reaction: "Thanks for a wonderful day. The icing on the cake was receiving our award. We were totally overwhelmed, and myself and the whole team were delighted." Kate Cowie, partner of Utility

Best Specialist Multiple Retailer

of Greeting Cards (20+ Stores) 2019 Winner: Cardzone Group, 130 stores Below: A delighted James.

Initial Reaction: “Winning the award was a lovely surprise after a challenging year! It’s great to have some recognition for all the hard work that everyone at Cardzone puts in!” James Taylor, director of Cardzone Group

SPONSORED BY

Above: James Taylor, director for Cardzone Group, receives the Best Specialist Multiple Retailer of Greeting Cards Retas trophy from Bill Greeno, sales director of category sponsor, Paperlink.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

RETAS Winners pages Grid 2019_v2018.qxp_Layout 1 25/07/2019 11:38 Page 42

Best Garden Centre

Retailer of Greeting Cards

2019 Winner: Blue Diamond Group 36 garden centres Below: Angie proudly clasps her Retas trophy.

Left: Angie Goosen, category manager – paper products for Blue Diamond Group, accepts the Best Garden Centre Retailer of Greeting Cards award from Michael Griffiths, sales manager of Noel Tatt, category sponsor.

SPONSORED BY

Initial Reaction: “When I heard our name I thought, “YES! Fantastic!” Blue Diamond strives to delight customers with card ranges that are different and unique, and it’s great that we’re being recognised for it.” Angie Goosen, category manager – paper products for Blue Diamond Group

Best Greeting Card Retailer Initiative 2019 Winner: Cardies, Stevenage, for its community street art programme Initial Reaction: “We were absolutely over the moon to win our Reta! It was such a proud moment for us and for our wonderful community who took part in the initiative. It was a super special moment.” Jo Sorrell, owner of Cardies, Stevenage

Left: Jo Sorrell (with husband Andrew McReynolds) owner of Cardies, Stevenage, accepts the Best Greeting Card Retailer Initiative award from Daniel Prince, managing director of category sponsor Danilo. Far left: Jo and Andrew are overjoyed with their Retas trophy.

SPONSORED BY

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

RETAS Winners pages Grid 2019_v2018.qxp_Layout 1 25/07/2019 11:40 Page 43

Best Greeting Card Wholesaler 2019 Winner: Budget Greeting Cards, nine branches UK and Eire Initial Reaction: “We are absolutely delighted to have been given this award. We would like to thank all of our staff, who work tirelessly to maintain our branches to the standards we and our customers expect. We would also like to thank our customers themselves for their continued support in voting for us as Best Wholesaler.” Paul Lavery, managing director of Budget Greeting Cards SPONSORED BY

Sensations THE PERFECT CHOICE

Above: Paul Lavery, managing director of Budget Greeting Cards, is pleased to accept the Best Greeting Card Wholesaler award from Ade Longe, managing director for Sensations/Xpress Yourself, sponsor of this category. Right: A delighted Paul Lavery (centre left) with (left to right) Budget’s director Gavin Chadwick, operations manager, Mike Spencer, director, Allan Dunn and a lovely Retas trophy.

Greeting Card Retailer Of The Year 2019 Winner: Blue Diamond Group 36 garden centres Initial Reaction: “I wasn’t sure I could get to the stage without tripping over my dropped jaw! It was an absolute surprise considering the calibre of retailers we were up against! All the winners were so deserving, it was an honour to accept this award.” Angie Goosen, category manager – paper products for Blue Diamond Group garden centres Right: Angie Goosen, category manager – paper products for Blue Diamond Group, wins the Retas double accolade and accepts the Greeting Card Retailer of the Year award from Karen Mace, co-owner of category sponsor, The Art File.

SPONSORED BY

Right: A double Retas win for Blue Diamond Group.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Explore Keep in touch with the latest greetings products and stationery in Hall 6 at Autumn Fair. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a celebration of pen, paper and partyware. Disover more at autumnfair.com

44_PG_August 2019.indd Progressive Greetings AD.indd 44 1

26/07/201917:12:58 13:10 25/07/2019

PG Innovations August 2019_muk.qxp_38-39/40-41 25/07/2019 12:04 Page 45

PG showcases a selection of new product launches

A Feast Of Colour Jane Faires Art’s radiant butterfly greeting cards are a magical delight. Created from Jane’s original artwork and highlighting her passion for the natural world, they are painted in vibrant shimmering shades. This collection of eight butterfly designs form part of the Jungle range. The cards are 150mm square, and come with brightly coloured envelopes. Jane Faires Art Jane Faires Art 01803 862123 www.janefairesart.com

In The Ascendance You’ve Been Framed

Chilli Cards’ new Uplifting range features designs offering words of encouragement, strength and support to those who need it most. Each card contains a three verse, heartfelt poem written by Trudy Swain. All the cards (127mm x 178mm in size) are printed on FSC approved board and come with a classic white envelope.

Given its popularity, not surprisingly, Cinnamon Aitch is adding to its Framed collection with some delightful new designs. The range incorporates painted illustrations that continue inside the card, details of which are ‘framed’ with an illustrated and foiled die-cut aperture on the front. Among the latest additions are quirky characters including a leopard, butterfly and the ever popular bee.

Chilli Cards 07939 571417 www.chillicards.co.uk

Cinnamon Aitch 0121 773 6833 www.cinnamonaitch.co.uk

Hip To Be Squaire Squaire has added 12 cheeky designs to its Squaire Words collection. The colourful range of cards are inspired by quirky phrases, words and even songs. The new designs celebrate birthdays, new babies, Valentine’s, mums, dads and everything inbetween. The cards are 148mm square and come with a brown kraft envelope. Squaire 07866 993 284 www.squaire.co.uk

Festive Shimmer Redback is extending Shine, its reversible sequin range, into Christmas. Debuting with eight festive designs, each card includes a peelable and reusable keepsake sequin patch. This Christmas collection includes festive favourites such as snowmen, elves and reindeer brought to life in an eyecatching and contemporary way. The cards are 160mm square and are paired with a premium white envelope. Redback Cards 01752 830482 www.redbackcards.com

High Fashion Haute Couture is a sophisticated and elegant hand-finished collection of greeting cards designed by Talking Pictures as a follow on to the brand’s popular Manuka black and gold range. The 12 completely new designs feature a selection of impressive finishes including organza, ribbons, emboss and foil, giving the collection real ‘stand out’ impact. The femaleorientated designs veer towards the glamorous, featuring cocktails, cake and perfume. Talking Pictures/Ling Design 01892 838574 www.lingdesign.co.uk/talking-pictures

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Twingles Ad PG Jul 19.pdf

26/06/2019

11:05

New

Four, Five, Six, Eight ... What do we appreciate ?

Twingles

Brighter Bolder Better!

Four, Seven, Nine, Ten ... Twingles Magic back again!

46_PG_August 2019.indd 1

30/07/2019 13:21

PG Innovations August 2019_muk.qxp_38-39/40-41 25/07/2019 12:05 Page 47

PG showcases a selection of new product launches

Wing And A Care Love Birds is one of the designs in Deckled Edge’s Eureka collection of blank art cards that lends itself to a number of sending situations. The collection, which spans 12 designs, features the art by the company’s founder Janna Cossettini. Measuring 124mm x 178mm and printed on lovely thick tactile FSC 350gsm board, each of the cards come with a matching metallic coloured envelope. Coordinating art prints are also available.

Life actually began at birth.

Deckled Edge 0800 771 0771 www.decklededge.co.uk

Vegging Out Never one to let a trend pass it by, Go La La has launched a range of 12 quirky but humorous vegan-themed everyday greeting cards. These bright tongue-incheek cards are designed by company co-founder John Higgins, who has been vegan since the late 80s when there were just twigs and leaves to eat! Each 125mm x 175mm card is printed on a lovely uncoated board and comes complete with a gunpowder grey envelope.

Marking The Moment Deadpan’s new Arbitrary Milestones collection celebrates the wonder that is reaching an age the world has randomly deemed more significant than average. The new range, which comprises 35 designs, covers 1st, 18th, 21st, 30th, 40th, 50th, 60th and 70th birthdays, all enhanced with some shiny foil elements. All 127mm x 177mm in size, the cards are accompanied by a brown envelope.

Go La La 01458 830913 www.golala.co.uk

Deadpan 07917 710194 deadpancards.com

Material World Clever Marquet-ing Laura Darrington is augmenting its Marquet Collection with the addition of some beautifully classic anniversary designs. The new special anniversary designs cover Silver, Pearl, Golden and Ruby, each incorporating textured emboss and hot foil finishes to give a luxurious feel. Each card measures 165mm x 165mm and comes with a pearlised envelope. Laura Darrington Design 0116 2849660 www.lauradarrigton.com

Responding to the phenomenal success of the final series of Game of Thrones, Catherine Kleeli Cards pays tribute, in her inimitable style, by adding her very own ‘Direwolf’ as one of the latest additions to her Stick & Stitch animal and wildlife range. Each design, based on Catherine’s distinctive and intricate hand-crafted collages, is printed onto 177mm x 127mm heavyweight board and is supplied cellowrapped with a brown ribbed envelope. Catherine Kleeli Cards 07814 293155 www.catherinekleelitrade.co.uk

Out For The Count Number Ones is a colourful, glittery and fun children’s age range of cards from Hello Geronimo. Celebrating children’s birthdays from ages 1-9, each design has been created to suit the age then hand-finished in the publisher’s signature style with a die-cut glitter embellishment. The collection is debuting with nine designs with more to follow. Each comes with a kraft envelope. Hello Geronimo 07867585965 www.hellogeronimo.com

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

99p RRP

Ideal for all sorts of celebrations and occasions!

CDU Dimensions: Height (Including Header) - 613mm Width - 332mm Depth - 80mm

00_PG_August 2019.indd 1

25/07/2019 10:12

PG Innovations August 2019_muk.qxp_38-39/40-41 25/07/2019 12:06 Page 49

PG showcases a selection of new product launches

Way With Words New from Really Good is Diffy Does, a collection of bright, bold and relatable range of cards that come with a twist of banter! The vibrantly coloured, foiled designs are 137mm x 169mm in size, printed on recycled board and the envelopes are made from recycled paper. Really Good 01235 537888 www.reallygood.uk.com

Making A Point

Feathering Your Nest

Specktacular is a new contemporary collection of 16 designs from Noel Tatt, based on the illustrations of the talented Gerry Murray. The designs, which each include a speckled background, cover birthdays, ages and female relations. All 7”x5” in format, the greeting cards are enhanced with emboss and gold foil detail, and come complete with a patterned envelope.

Continuing the vibe of Fashion Week, Five Dollar Shake’s latest collection, Flight of Fancy, struts straight onto the card racks. The 18 exquisite designs, all lovingly handmade, incorporate real feathers and are finished with a liberal sprinkling of genuine crystals! Each card is supplied with a complementing envelope. Five Dollar Shake 01424 434062 www.fivedollarshake.com

Noel Tatt 01227 811600 www.noeltatt.co.uk

All Revved Up The Brooklands Museum (in Weybridge) is revered as the birthplace of British motorsport and aviation. Clanna Cards is delighted to have secured a licensing agreement with the museum to produce greeting cards based on designs from its extensive archive. The inaugural collection includes some wonderfully retro designs of aircraft, motorcars and motorcycles.

Clanna Cards 01242 575574 www.clannacards.co.uk .

Early Days With accreditation from Fundamentally Children, Danilo’s My First Calendar range is off to a great start in life. The new product, aimed at preschoolers, is a non-dated calendar that allows children to turn wheels to find the days and months, features a white wipe clean panel to write play dates in, as well as sections for children to note the season, weather and temperature. The inaugural collection includes Peppa Pig, PJ Masks and Paw Patrol designs. Danilo 01992 702900 www.danilo.com

Festive Feelings It may be sunny outside now, but Christmas beckons! Lesser and Pavey has just the job to decorate the shop and windows with its new range of reindeer, snowmen and gonks - some even in their Christmas jumpers. The products range from 35cm up to 1.5 metres. Lesser & Pavey 01322 279225 www.leonardo.co.uk

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

00_PG_August 2019.indd 1

24/07/2019 14:08

51-52-53.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 16:00 Page 51

Retailer Shout Outs

L o c al

F l av our s

Above: Retailers are increasingly catering for local flavours with their card selections. Below left: The Cher MaChips in Liverpool card from Lowe & Behold Design that Utility sells. Below right: A Utility card design that goes down a storm in its Liverpool stores. Below middle: Utility’s windows often champion the local pride. Bottom: Liverpool is well known for its sense of

In last month’s PG Fenwick department store group revealed that it is to dedicate 30% of the card displays in its stores to ‘local cards’, be that specific captions, language used, subject matter or artists/publishers from the vicinity of the store. PG checked in with a handful of retailers to find out the strength of the local flavours in their neck of the woods.

Steph Lloyd, retail buyer of Utility, four stores in Liverpool and now one Manchester too The tribal call: “There is definitely a loud tribal calling in Liverpool especially. Liverpool-themed gifting has always been a very strong department for us, and while we always see a rise in sales over the summer months when the city is full with tourists, we also find Liverpool gifts are extremely popular with our local customers, especially in the lead up to Christmas. Year to date our Liverpool gift sales are up 22% on last year which is largely thanks to LFC’s Champions League win and the addition of Wotmalike’s Jurgen Klopp and Mo Salah keyrings and coasters to our range. We’re also very lucky that Liverpool has more listed buildings (more than 2000!) than anywhere outside of London and numerous iconic ones, such as Royal Liver Building, Royal Albert Dock and the Anglican and Catholic Cathedrals to name a few.” Local action: “Our ‘Liverpool cards’ is our fastest growing card department and thanks to the introduction of our own

brand Scouse range in the spring of 2018 our Liverpool card sales are up a massive 38% on last year. We’ve had great success with this range that features local colloquialisms and phrases that tap into the local sense of humour. Some of our bestselling phrases from this range are ‘Appy Birthdee Aar Kid’, ‘Appy Birthdee Queen’ and ‘Appy Birthdee Ye Divvy’. Certain other Scouse phrases during key gifting seasons - ‘Appy Valentine’s Soft Lad’ and ‘Av a Boss Crimbo’ have also done particularly well.

Along with our own brand postcards featuring Liverpool landmarks, we’ve also had huge success with I Drew This’ range of postcards and gifts, along with our perennial bestselling prints and coasters from local designer Tula Moon. We also commissioned a bespoke pop-up Liverpool card from the ever-helpful guys at The Art File which has been a strong seller. Coming soon is a fabulous bespoke Liverpool bauble card from the lovely Sarah at Stormy Knight for Christmas 2019! During the summer months we often create window displays based solely around Liverpool gifting and imagery, which sees a good increase in footfall that is reflected in the sales in our dedicated Liverpool gift department and card section. Our previous Liverpool window displays have featured local contemporary sculpture Superlambanana, Moorland Pottery’s Scouseware ceramic range, Scouse Press’ Liverpool Colouring Map (which features Utility owners Richard, Dick and Kate along with our three Liverpool stores). This August we’re planning a window display featuring our Scouse phrase cards and fridge magnets, mugs and coasters. It’s still early days in our Manchester store, which has so many student customers who aren’t from the city, but that said, we have developed our own cards featuring Manchester phrases and quotes. I think it’s the joy of the ‘in joke’ that makes PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

51-52-53.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 16:00 Page 52

Retailer Shout Outs

these cards feel so personal to our customers in both Liverpool and Manchester - even if you’re not a local. Our bestselling Manchester gifts are Martha Mitchell’s mugs and tea towels, which have seen a spike in sales as the academic term has come to an end as they make great gifts for those leaving the city. The Manchester Cookbook sells well, along with Moorlands Mancware ceramics, and

anything with a bee [Manchester’s symbol] on, from cards to enamel pin badges! We’re also looking to develop more of our own Manchester greeting cards and gifts ready for the students’ return in September and the important lead up to Christmas!” Favourite flavours: “The best thing about Liverpool is the people! Warm and chatty with self-depreciating humour and a strong sense of identity.”

Graham Fraser, owner of Alba in Oban: The tribal call: “Local is good, very good! This gives us our unique point of difference from large chains and the dreaded Internet. Customers like ‘local’ because they are able to show off where they live/visit to the recipient of the card and/or gift.” Local action: “We constantly celebrate the uniqueness of our area with feature displays of our exclusive products, a wall of local cards, and window displays to highlight our local flavour. At Christmas the Alba exclusive Christmas card is based on a new painting each year that we commission. We also work with our suppliers to curate a range of packet and boxed cards, which incorporate a charitable donation to Mary’s Meals, a local charity. On the everyday cards front we offer Oban images by Scotland’s best and most famous artists, as well as those by very local artists. This enables us to offer a broad choice, which allows local customers to stay local, but buy a different card each time. We have also put together a range of Oban gifts, which includes a mug (made just for us by Dunoon Ceramics) as well as exclusive dish towels, ceramic tiles and candle. We also offer three exclusive prints of Oban by Scotland’s most famous artist, Jolomo (John Lowrie Morrison), whose work is collected by Madonna and is a painter to The Queen. We also have an exclusive range of unique pieces of Highland Stoneware featuring Oban. This company has made special ranges for a few selected retailers like Harrods. And we have the Oban skyline, unique in the world! One of our most local ‘specialities’ are puffins and we are ‘Puffin Central’, aided and abetted by Emma Ball who supplies us with puffin cards, books, stationery, tea towels, bags, aprons – in fact if you can put a puffin on it Emma Ball has done it! And the new woolly puffins are ‘jumpering’ off the shelves! We also are constantly searching for new varieties of cards covering Gaelic greetings and captions that include Papa, Seanair (Gaelic for grandpa), Nanna and Grannie, and featuring our local ways of addressing friends and relatives. Pink Pig is good for this, as is Jonathon Glick, The Handcrafted Card Co and Tracey Russell. Good to see larger companies like IC&G and Noel Tatt are making inroads into this and too.” Favourite flavours: “As for the best thing about Oban: Speaking for the entire ‘Alba Taskforce’, while we revere the reputation of our many local whiskies, we relish a shortbread finger with our coffee, get riotous on the weekend at Gaelic rock festivals. None of us can keep pace with all the new local gin varieties emanating from all parts of Scotland, though we try, we really do!!” Top: Graham presenting a cheque from the proceeds of its Christmas card to Mary’s Meals, a local charity (whose proceeds are used to feed over a million children, providing school meals in areas in Africa and Eastern Europe and other trouble spots). Above: Sunset in Oban, by John Lowrie Morrison (better known as Jolomo) that is offered by Alba.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Laura Houlston, owner of Hallmark West Kirby, the Wirral: The tribal call: “There has certainly been an increase in demand for local interest products, with members of the public becoming more ‘town proud’ and keener to help local businesses to survive. I believe that Brexit has played a part in this movement.” Local action: “I source local cards as much as I possibly can, from a local photographer that produces greeting cards to fridge magnets to canvas prints. I also try to support local publishers and small businesses, and I stock candles that are made and produced in Liverpool. I am currently in the process of getting my new shop in Prestatyn up and running which will bring with it a new challenge on catering for local tastes!”

Sarah Green, co-owner of Wave, Bungay and High Tide, Southwold:

The tribal call: “’Local’ has become a important side of the business, particularly in High Tide.” Local action: “We are so lucky that artists have been coming to Southwold and this part of Suffolk for hundreds of years and there is a huge wealth of fantastic paintings of the area, which publishers, such as Orwell Press, have turned into greeting cards and postcards. We have a spinner outside High Tide with a mixture of cards and postcards, mainly painted in the early part of the last century but with a selection of contemporary ones too. These cards sell all day long. Green Pebble has a really extensive range of cards by local artists and being based in Beccles - only eight miles away - it has a Above: Wave’s Sarah Green in Frida Kahlo mode at the recent Retas with her partner Guy Mitchell.

51-52-53.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 16:00 Page 53

Retailer Shout Outs

real interest in local artists and images. We are also lucky that Emma Ball loves Southwold and she has developed several bespoke ranges for us making her our top selling gift supplier. Above: A Tabitha Mary Abigail Mill who works design from Star Editions which is High with Emma Ball is also Tides’ best selling greeting card, postcard local and she has and fridge magnet. Below: An Emma Ball chosen Southwold Southwold special! images for many of her Coastal Stitches range. Both Emma and Abigail visit the shop which makes for a really special relationship. Star Editions has taken to stocking bespoke town products to a new level. Previously high minimum order quantities made bespoke products prohibitive. Star Editions has allowed us to have several bespoke ranges with a wide range of products on offer as they have low minimum orders. We do several Southwold ranges with the company, including our best selling design by Tabitha Mary.”

Sally Matson, owner of Red Card in Petworth, West Sussex: The tribal call: “In Petworth we have a brilliant monthly farmers’ market and I think this is where people appreciating ‘all things local’ has its origins. This market showcases so many local artisans who produce local cheese, bread, meat, fish, plants, cakes, chutneys etc. People want to know the provenance of what they are buying and they love it even more if the produce or item is local.” Local action: “We stock a whole load of bespoke Petworth products at Red Card. When I first opened the shop I used Bluebell 33 for our beautiful Petworth cushions but also our very popular New York, London, Petworth and Petworth GU28 coasters. I met Ilona Drew of I Drew This and I asked her if she would create a ‘Landmarks’ design for Petworth House, which she did, and the cards, postcards, tea towels, coasters and fridge magnets we have from this range are among our very biggest sellers. I met Julia Gash at Top Drawer a couple of years ago and I commissioned her to create a Petworth ‘bag for life’ design that includes the fabulous things that surround the town - we are in the middle of The South Downs National Park, which is a huge draw for the area, and we also have fabulous vineyards, miles of riding trails, and the renowned Petworth Music Festival and Petworth Literary Festival. We now sell the design on other products. My first stop for anything bespoke is always Jo at Dandelion Stationery, who designed my gorgeous business cards and also does my Red Card Christmas card. She will make anything, including super posters - one of which celebrates our Retas win that we are featuring in the window! I have mentored a number of local card makers and always advise them to put something about themselves on the back of their cards. My latest supplier Loopssussex, is a great example of this. Farm On A Card is another local success story. They are hugely popular as we have a big huntin’ shootin’ fishin’ community here in Petworth.” Above: A Red Card window display that celebrates its local Petworth products. Top right: I Drew This’ range of local products that do well in Red Card.

Marion and Mark Flaherty, Best Wishes, Garstang, Lancashire: The tribal call: “We have noticed an increase in customers from surrounding areas who want to ‘shop local’ instead of going into the larger towns. Also we have more visitors from further afield who want the individuality of independent shops and personal customer service.” Local action: “We stock a selection of postcards with local scenes of our market town of Garstang and the Lancaster canal printed by The National Park Card Company, as these are always a good way to get customers into the shop! In addition, local artist Geoff Rollinson supplies us with cards of his fabulous paintings of Lancashire, including the Ribble Valley and the Fylde. From a humour point of view, Dialectable Cards always raise a smile with its Lancashire 'twang' dialect range covering not only birthdays but a good range of occasions too. We are pleased to stock Vista Cards of local photographic images taken by Peter Laurence, covering many images of Lancashire, both scenic and buildings, such as the Lytham windmill and the iconic Ashton Memorial at Lancaster. We recently received our first delivery from Star Editions’ 'Love Your Location' range, which includes cards, tea towels, tote bags, mugs, magnets, keyrings, and postcards. Our range is based on an exclusive image in the railway poster art style created by Dave Thompson at Star Editions from a photograph by local amateur photographer Mike Coleran. These have been well received and sales are good.” Favourite flavours: “Some of the best things about Lancashire are black pudding, Lancashire cheese, Blackpool rock, its areas of outstanding natural beauty and the ‘Reet Good Welcome’ you receive from the ‘Gradely Folk’ that live here.” Left: The new Garstang products that Best Wishes ordered from Star Editions. Above: Some of the designs from Dialectable that do well in Best Wishes.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

54-55.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 16:42 Page 54

Manchester Focus

Youthful, energetic and bursting with character, Manchester is known throughout the world as the birthplace of the industrial revolution. And adding to its proud history in music, science, politics, arts and sport, the city has become something of a greeting card publishing powerhouse too. Heatwave notwithstanding, PG received a warm welcome from a gaggle of Manchester-based greeting card publishers who were keen to champion the merits of the city as a base for their respective businesses. Jam-packed with galleries, museums, centres of learning, markets, restaurants, bars, a beating music scene, strong community and sporting allegiances, not to mention a surrounding patchwork of natural beauty and good transport links, Manchester has so much going for it on a business and social front - something that has not gone unnoticed by greeting card publishers. Home to Belly Button Designs, Paper Salad, Stop the Clock Design, Stripey Cats Cards, Davora, Always Sparkle, Greenhouse and Bella Jacobs, among others, Manchester

ranks right up there as a key centre of greeting card publishing excellence. At a recent GCA gathering of the Mancunian greeting card fraternity, the attending publishers were keen to share the myriad of reasons as to why the city is a greeting card creative hub. “The whole region, not only the obvious Media City and The Northern Quarter, is full of creative businesses and organisations, all

energising and inspiring each other, bringing and training talent. It is no wonder, for me, that it is such a fertile ground for greeting card publishers,” says Simon Wadsworth, cofounder of card and homewares company, Wraptious. He also cites Manchester’s market scene as being second to none. “I moved to Manchester six years ago in order to do an intense, fantastic three month Graphic Design course with Shillington College. I then set up Wraptious here because Manchester's markets were taking off. We booked over 250 market stalls in our first two years of Top: Manchester played a key part in the Industrial Revolution. Above: Wraptious is based in Welkin Mill, an early 20th Century Cotton Mill. Above left: Davora was ready for the demand for Rakhi cards. Left: The Northern Powerhouse gathering. (Left-right) Alexa Stratton (Always Sparkle), Kimberley Williams (Belly Button), Lucy Bailey (Belly Button), Jakki Brown (PG), Tamar Klaus (Bella Jacobs), Raj Arora (Davora), Claire Williams (Paper Salad), Rachel Hare (Belly Button), Karen Wilson (Paper Salad), Chris Houfe (Santoro), Tracy Mills (Greenhouse), Wendy Jones-Blackett (Wendy Jones-Blackett), Danielle McCarthy (Stripey Cats), Amanda Fergusson (GCA), Jack Wilson (Paper Salad), Jonathan Crosby (Stripey Cats), Simon Wadsworth (Wraptious) and Warren

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

54-55.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 16:42 Page 55

Manchester Focus

Wraptious. The Manchester Market scene really allowed Wraptious to learn, adapt, make mistakes, have fun and eventually flourish.” Raj Arora, owner of Davora, feels the positive spirit which emanates throughout Greater Manchester, “exemplified by its coming together in times of trouble such as after the Manchester Arena bombing two years ago, gives a real ‘can do’ attitude which knocks on into business.” And as he adds, “plus the cost of living is cheaper here, but with a great quality of life. The transport links are good both within the city and out of it. You can be in London in a few hours yet out into the country in 20 minutes.” From the Hacienda to The Smiths, The Stone Roses to Oasis as well as their classical music counterparts, Manchester has always had a strong music score. “It was music that initially brought me to Manchester as I played in a band for 10 years. But the ease of

Top: There is a buzz about Manchester which has the bee as its emblem. Above: Stripey Cats is all eyes for Manchester. Left: A Bella Jacobs design. Below right: National Trust’s Dunham Massey is a fave of both Greenhouse’s Tracy Mills and Bella Jacobs’ Tamar Klaus.

getting out to green space, which is what inspires me, has made it the ideal place to base Stripey Cats,” said Jonathan Crosby, founder of the Stripey Cats card company that he runs with his partner, Danielle McCarthy. “The bee is the emblem of the city and we’re all happy to be worker bees here!”

From Sydney To Romiley Dubbed ‘Cottonopolis’, Manchester was once the international centre of the world’s cotton industry, the legacy of which has resulted in innovation in design and printing in other areas. Many of these mills also had their own design studios so a raft of talent was employed. Karen Wilson, who co-owns card publisher Paper Salad with Claire Williams, likes to think that the talent was passed down through the generations. From the industrial revolution until the 20th century, Stockport was a major centre of textile manufacture with the town dominated by large rectangular brick-built factories, many of which still remain today. Paper Salad’s HQ in the Manchester suburb of Romiley, is housed in one of these old re-used cotton mills. Coincidently, Karen’s grandfather worked in the very same room in which the card publisher’s office is now based. “We came across an old photograph of my grandfather, Sydney, as he worked away in the dye house of the mill just before it closed in the early sixties. What is lovely is that his greatgrandson, my son Jack, now works in the very same spot some 60 years later!” reveals Karen. Above and left: What a coincidence. Paper Salad’s co-owner Karen Wilson’s grandfather used to work in the mill when the publisher is now based. Karen’s son Jack pictured the exact same spot where his great grandfather used to work.

quips Danielle, revealing that Stripey Cats is about to welcome its very own beehive soon. It is the combination of being a cultural hub, green space and proximity to manufacturing expertise, that makes Manchester an ideal home for Bella Jacobs, a contemporary card and gift company that is aimed at the Jewish market. “Some 70% of my customer base is in London, but having grown up in Manchester I love the opportunities the city offers. And being so close to so many skilled manufacturers, including the linen mills in nearby Lancashire adds to its appeal,” says Tamar Klaus, owner of the business. Paper Salad’s Claire Williams and Tracy Mills of Greenhouse both make the point that the outstanding creative courses in art and surface pattern offered at Manchester University and Stockport Art College have resulted in a rich seam of talented designers. For Belly Button’s Kimberley Williams what really gives the city its character is “the people. They are friendly, with a good sense of humour and resilient. Just what you need in your working and social life!”

The last word should go to Alexa Stretton, founder of Always Sparkle as she is living proof of greeting card genetics in Manchester. “I grew up living above the greeting card shop that my parents owned and ran for 21 years in Marple,” explains Alexa. “They ignited the love of cards in me and of the area. Quite simply, it is a great place to live and work and the fact that I am playing a part in continuing the greeting card legacy makes me feel really happy!” PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

56-57.qxp_Grid 31/07/2019 12:48 Page 56

Retailer Face To Face

Fertile Ground The Blue Diamond Group has several reasons to blow a trumpet of celebration. Coinciding with winning two awards at The Retas - Best Garden Centre Retailer of Greeting Cards and the top accolade of Greeting Card Retailer of the Year - the garden centre retail group announced that it has acquired another six centres, taking it up to 36 locations. PG ventured to East Bridgford to dig deeper with Angie Goosen, who heads up the card, gift and book buying for the group. Blue Diamond is certainly finding fertile ground for growth - both on greeting card sales as well as expansion of the garden centre group itself. “What a crazy, fantastic week it’s been!” exclaimed Blue Diamond’s category manager Angie Goosen last month, (whose buying remit spans greeting cards, giftwrap, gifts and books). “Having never been to The Retas before, I went home at the end of an amazing day with two trophies - and that was on top of the news that the deal had been signed on another six centres being brought into the group.” With the entrepreneurial dynamo of Alan Roper at the helm as managing director, the garden centre group already had the bit between its teeth to expand, so when Wyevale found itself in difficulty, Blue Diamond was not backwards in coming forward to snaffle some of the key sites and is preparing to work its magic on them. Blue

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Above: Blue Diamond’s Angie Goosen with the garden centre group’s two Retas trophies. Left: While horticulture is the bedrock of the business, as Blue Diamond’s East Bridgford centre demonstrates, the nonplant departments and restaurants are also seen as key draws for customers. Below: The fresh and airy greeting card department in Blue Diamond’s East Bridgford centre.

Diamond Group, already the third largest garden centre operator in the UK, is now trading from 36 centres, and you get the distinct feeling that there is more to come. However it is the company’s inspiring approach to its retailing emporiums that has seen it win plaudits, from customers and the trade alike. And this anewed embrace of opportunities, as evidenced by its two recent Retas wins, has extended into greeting cards.

Angie has enjoyed something of an exciting ride since she joined as category manager at start of this year. Having only moved to the UK from her native South Africa four years ago, while she had some retail experience (with Mr Price, a South African equivalent of Next), by her own admission, she was by no means a greeting card expert. “South Africa’s unreliable postal system has severely hampered the card sending in

56-57.qxp_Grid 31/07/2019 12:48 Page 57

Retailer Face To Face

the country. It really took me by surprise how many cards people send in the UK, the first Christmas I was here was a revelation!” Angie confesses. Her joining the Blue Diamond buying team came at a time of change in the group’s whole approach to its greeting card selection. Having operated a brokerage system (in conjunction with GBCC) for years, as part of a companywide thrust ‘to look different’, a trial was already underway in one of its centres, involving wild buying from a wide array of publishers whose designs were displayed on bespoke fixturing to collectively create a curated feel to the department. “I walked through the card hall at Spring Fair with Alan (Roper, md) and he said to me “our mission is to create a look that is different to that of any other garden centre”. Each card department needs to be a beautiful space that

is unique, which customers really enjoy being in, which is what the last six months has been all about,” Angie said. By the middle of this month, the ‘new look’ and approach will have expanded to 27 stores, with GBCC continuing to supply the remainder via brokerage. The only exception is the Bridgemere site, which has a WHSmith concession. “I am most definitely a greeting card convert,” says Angie enthusiastically. “The wealth of talent from publishers at PG Live amazed me. I am now buying from 45 publishers, but it could easily be double that, such is the talent out there!” While each centre has its own character, Angie says her card customers broadly fall into one of two camps. “We have one group of customers who are older, have a good sense of humour, but err towards more traditional design styles. They spend a lot of time in our centres, meeting friends for coffee or lunch and then enjoy

Above: Angie holding a Lesser Spotted Images card that chimes with the humorous tastes of Blue Diamond customers. Below left: Framed enlargements of greeting cards act as point of sale for the card sections. Below right: ‘Tray’ display fixtures are used for artistspecific or themed card collections. Bottom: The elegant fragranced gifts department.

spending time browsing, be that for plants, cards or other products,” says Angie. Angie sums up Blue Diamond’s other ‘tribe’ as “Yummy Mummies”. Elucidating, Angie says: “They tend to be younger, may come with children in tow, but are on the lookout for more contemporary designs, often with a humorous bent.” While the everyday card selection caters for both sets of customers in distinct collections, displayed largely full facing, or in curated ‘tray bays’, the occasions cards (a growing area for Blue Diamond) cover a broad church. Although she admits it was pretty daunting at the outset, Angie has built the planogram for each store “one card at a time”. As to the publisher selection, Angie pays tribute to the UK’s card publishing prowess: “Pigment, Paperlink, The Art File, Belly Button, Wrendale Designs and Hammond Gower are among the publishers who have helped to anchor the look, but smaller

publishers, such as Crumble and Co, Alternative Images, Really Wild Cards, Lesser Spotted and Middlemouse are also contributing to us differentiating our offer.” As to be expected, while its free car parks are invariably pretty full throughout the year, nature’s calendar plays a part in the customer footfall once they pass through the doors. “The ‘feet’ tend to gravitate outside to the plant selections in the warmer months while the colder times of the year ‘the feet’ are inside more,” confirms Angie. To reflect the direction on the thermometer, in the second half of the year the areas Blue Diamond dedicates to outdoor furniture are transformed into Christmas extravaganzas. “This means that while we have an extensive area we give over to Christmas products, unlike many other retailers, our everyday and relations/occasions displays do not have to contract in space,” explains Angie. While nine of the centres are to continue to be supplied by GBCC under brokerage, Angie is now full steam ahead on overhauling the card displays in the other locations,

tweaking the selection for each store. While there is some degree of standardisation on the selection, it is important that each store has its own feel and look, believes Angie. While horticulture will remain the key driver for the Blue Diamond business, in common with its other ‘non-green’ product sectors, be that comestibles (in its cafes or food areas), gifts, homewares, fragranced, clothing or toys, greeting cards are adding to the retailing ‘garden’. “While I know that a customer’s sole intention when they come to a Blue Diamond centre is unlikely to be in order to buy a card, that said, many leave having bought five or six cards at any one time - and long may that continue!” says a worthy Retas award winner and greeting card convert! PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

ART SOURCE

TO APPEAR REGULARLY IN THE

ARTSOURCE SECTION OF PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS CONTACT TRACEY ARNAUD ON 01234 740 051

58_PG_August 2019.indd 58

31/07/2019 09:24

59.qxp_49/51 29/07/2019 16:05 Page 59

Art Source PG helps to paint a pretty picture of freelance artists, designers, verse writers and photographers’ worlds in order to promote their talents to publishers and, conversely, make it easier for publishers seeking artists.

ARTIST IN FOCUS

Julia Broughton I’m a lettering artist and calligrapher from just outside of London. I started lettering in 2013 with only a brush pen but it’s gotten a bit out of hand since then and I now work in all sorts of styles. Life’s too short to only work in one way! I started in the creative industry in 2007 with a degree in product and furniture design but it really wasn’t for me. During uni I ran a market stall with a friend selling my handmade greeting cards, which I loved so I decided to pursue a career in card design. This led me to work briefly for Hallmark and then for Moonpig. There I started as an artworker, working my way up to senior designer and managed to design several best-selling ranges. It was during my time at Moonpig that I discovered hand-lettering and completely fell in love with it. Pretty soon it was taking over my workload and everything I produced was

lettering based. As soon as I got home in the evening I would break out my calligraphy equipment and letter some more. I was obsessed! This led me to teaching calligraphy at Quill London in 2016 on the side of my day job. I was a very busy lady and soon I was able to leave the nine to five world and start my own lettering studio in January 2017. Now I spend my days covered in ink and drawing pretty words for a living! My clients include Walker Books, Ginger Ray and Buzzfeed UK. I’m constantly inspired by the silly little things that happen in life and a slightly odd turn of phrase, but mostly I just like to be bold and to make words really jump out at you. l Portfolio: www.lettersbyjulia.com l Social: @lettersbyjulia l Email: hello@lettersbyjulia.com

WANT TO BE FEATURED?

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

60-61.qxp_46-47 29/07/2019 16:09 Page 60

PG asked a selection of card retailers for their ‘hot’ card sellers. Chris Morris and Katherine Elliott, owners of Thistledown, Castle Douglas, Kirkcudbrightshire, and The Lime Bothy, Newton Stewart, Wigtownshire Two small shops in rural market towns with a locals and tourist customer base. Category

Name of Publisher

Product/Name Range

Comments

Humour

Hallmark

Mad As Cheese

Photographic

The Heart Of The Garden

Celtic Language

Art

Emma Ball

Tweedies

Traditional Handmade/ Hand-Finished Ancillary

Pink Pig Jonny Javelin Wee Wishes (Embroidered Originals) Hallmark

Hootenanny Velvet Jings

A great range of cards with fun designs. Customers love to read through the cards for a giggle. This is a fantastic range of cards with photographs of Scotland and an explanation of the picture on the rear of the card. It is loved by both regular local customers and tourists. A fabulous range of whimsical cards designed on the textile works of Abigail Mill. A wide range of Scottish-themed cards which bring a smile! A beautiful range of quality cards with lovely verses inside. A fun Scottish range of cards that makes everyone smile.

Half Moon Bay

Harry Potter travel mugs, keyrings, coasters

Right: A gorgeous Scottish terrier on a Wee Wishes (formerly known as Embroidered Originals) card.

Itty Bittys

A wide range of plush including Disney. A great pick up gift for both children and adults. A large range of Harry Potter giftware which is popular with all ages.

Sophie Munro, owner of Pack A Punch, Bridgwater, Somerset A contemporary shop in a large historic market town, with a locals and destination shoppers customer base. Category

Name of Publisher

Product/Name Range

Comments

Cute

You’ve Got Pen On Your Face

Across The Board

Humour

Bold & Bright

Jeffrey and Janice

Quite Good Cards

General

Pack a Punch Designs

Blunt as a Spoon

Objectables

Across The Board

Native 21

General

Cute illustrations with witty captions suitable for so many occasions. Laugh-out-loud captions, great for older customers too who have a cheeky sense of humour. They’re flying off the shelves! Customers love the hilarious and brutal honesty of them. These cards are my own designs and always get gasps or raucous laughs from customers. The humour of Objectables’ cards is so dry and people are quick to read them out, followed by lots of laughing. Mostly centred on pop culture, from Donald Trump to The Office US, with fantastic illustrations to go alongside.

Contemporary

Above: A Pack a Punch Designs’ Blunt As A Spoon design. Right: Witty and contemporary designs from You’ve Got Pen On Your Face.

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

60-61.qxp_46-47 29/07/2019 16:09 Page 61

Pamela Gale, owner of Memories The Card & Gift Shop, Martlesham Heath, Ipswich A medium shop in a village with a locals and destination shoppers customer base. Category

Name of Publisher

Product/Name Range

Comments

Handmade/ HandFinished

Noel Tatt

General

Second Nature

Champagne

The designs continue to be popular and another publisher who manages to deliver within 24/48 hours from placing the order. Its Decoupage range ‘stands out’ (forgive the pun) and a handmade card, which is priced at £1.99 retail, has to be a winner. There’s a beautiful collection of handmade designs in this range. A little higher price point, but beautiful designs. Without doubt Jonny Javelin cards are my top sellers. Beautiful designs at an amazing price. I have a number of customers who only ever buy them and are not interested in the many other publishers I stock. IC&G come in at a close second. Incredible value for money and its, often simple, contemporary designs are a winner too. I can place an order with my rep and the cards are delivered the next day - fabulous service! By far my best selling humour ranges are from this publisher, featuring mainly cartoons, with non-offensive jokes. Customers can be heard chuckling in the ‘humour corner’ and they regularly like to ‘re-arrange’ the cards away from their envelopes. Quiney makes some stunningly pretty cards, a little higher in price, and very glittery. My main gift supplier has to be Joe Davies. I can place a ‘little and often order’ as its minimum order is only £100. Its selection of Equilibrium jewellery is fairly priced and beautifully boxed.

Right: Noel Tatt’s designs are popular at Memories The Card & Gift Shop.

Everyday

Jonny Javelin

IC&G

Across The Board

Humour

Paperlink

General

Contemporary

Nigel Quiney

Pizazz

Ancillary

Joe Davies

Equilibrium

Anne Barber, owner of In Heaven at Home, Market Harborough, Leicestershire A lifestyle home and gift shop in a market town with a loyal locals and tourist customer base. Category

Name of Publisher

Product/Name Range

Comments

Everyday

The Great British Card Company

Fit For A King by Miki Rose

Cute

The Great British Card Company Penny Lindop Designs

Opia by Jessica Johnson Across The Board

Humour

Objectables

You Are My Favourite

Woodmansterne

World Of Moose

Photography

Bold And Bright

Jeffrey and Janice

Contemporary

The Proper Mail Company

Notelets by Lale Guralp

Children’s

Objectables

Poo Cards

Sooshichacha

Tom + Lolo

Laura Sherratt

Pots Of Love

Featuring male hobbies and interests, these are the ‘go to’ cards for men. Intricate laser-cut designs with a beautiful metallic background - so pretty! Handmade cards featuring adorable little animals in field scenes and decorated with real sheep’s wool Just so uniquely brave and funny. The publisher’s Tim and Annie’s humour is unreal!! Our customers’ favourite ‘laugh out loud’ range. Funny and quite rude dolls house characters that say outrageous things! Black and white animals decorated with gold foil and gems - simple and stylish. Why do children think anything about poo is funny?? Happy and bright drawn age cards for little ones. Embellished with little wooden plant pots and gems, these handmade cards are very special.

Right: Penny Lindop’s cards are decorated with a little tuft of sheep’s wool.

Handmade/ Hand-Finished

Above: Woodmansterne’s World Of Moose designs triggers giggles that can be heard in the aisles of

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

. . . A w o Gr h

TRADE WEBSITE www.boxerwholesale.com

Frenc Bulldog!

Grows

in size! ! n r o Unic T E ET K K C C O O P P Y E EY N N O O M M

Pug! Sales Telephone: +44 (0)1133 955 595

62_PG_August 2019.indd 1

Llama!

! h t o Sl Email: sales@boxergifts.com

31/07/2019 10:34

63-64.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 16:15 Page 63

JEREMY’S JOURNAL Business blogging by publisher Jeremy Corner of Blue Eyed Sun.

Landmark Jeremy Corner, owner of greeting card publisher Blue Eyed Sun and distributor of BambooCup, experiences a transformation.

Occasionally, after giving talks on stage, people have asked me if I’ve ever done The Landmark Forum. I had not. My dear friend, Lucy Heavens from Juicy Lucy, had previously recommended the seminar to me, as had a couple of other friends. I’d made a load of excuses to avoid taking the plunge: I didn’t need to do it because people were kind of already telling me I’d done it. I was above it all. I didn’t have the time. I didn’t want to open stuff up and disrupt my life. It seemed like it might be some kind of cult. They must want something from me. It could be a pyramid scheme. They take advantage of you in some way. I could be damaged by the experience. The list goes on.

Above: Jeremy unfurls as transformed after attending The Forum seminar. Below left: Transformational is part of The Landmark Forum’s experience - Beautiful British Butterflies from Sarah Frances Art. Below: ‘Transformation is an award-winning film on the life of Werner Erhard, who developed The Forum as it is now known.

possibilities and it’s not new, different or better information. It’s an experience and it’s not the same for everybody who does it. Nobody who recommends The Forum are paid to recommend it, it’s not a cult nor is it a religion. There is no scam and it’s not a pyramid scheme. You don’t have to change anything about yourself. You don’t even have to stand up and talk. In fact, you don’t ‘need’ to do it at all. It isn’t going to ‘tell you’ anything. Put simply, it’s a three and a half day seminar that is essentially an authentic ontological discussion about the nature of being. Of particular interest to me is that of participants surveyed 94% report that The Landmark Forum made a profound and lasting difference on their lives.

A brief history Landmark Worldwide grew out of the Erhard Seminars Training (EST) developed by Werner Erhard in 1971. Rooted in the

Human Potential Movement and the work of philosopher Heidegger, Erhard was also influenced by his studies on Zen Buddhism with Alan Watts. The original seminars were said to be physically and emotionally challenging and lasted 60 hours over two weekends. EST gave way to a gentler, shorter, more accessible course now known as The Forum.

The Forum They say the Forum starts the moment you sign up for it. After I paid my £580, I decided I wanted to start offering business coaching services and, without saying anything to anyone, someone messaged me asking if I could consult for them. The magic had begun. The seminars are held near Euston Station in London and our particular training was conducted by a fiery, passionate American woman named Kathy Bosco. I took a deep breath after hearing her accent, decided not to let my preconceptions dictate

What is The Forum? If you have any loss of power in a relationship, or any aspect of your life, or you feel like things aren’t working then it can be transformational (and yet it won’t change you). It can open up new PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

63-64.qxp_Grid 29/07/2019 16:15 Page 64

JEREMY’S JOURNAL Left: Your future is coloured by the sunglasses of your past - we are viewing a perspective tinted by our past rather than the reality. Below left: We all have stories. Below: The voice in our head can prevent us from being in the present.

my experience and set myself the intention to have fun for the three days. Boy did I. I laughed, I cried, it was challenging, exhilarating and eye-opening. There are a good number of distinctions that I learned doing it. Here are some of them:

Stories We all have stories about everyone and everything in our lives. We do this because we are meaning making machines. ‘He or she did such and such to me and ruined my life’ is an example of a story. Stories are not the problem, living like they are the truth is the problem. The distinction is that there are things that actually happened and then there are the stories that we make up about what happened. I realised that I had lots of stories about different people in my life and even about myself. These stories resulted in me pretending with people, when in fact I really felt a different way. The stories were inauthentic and had an impact on the way I behaved in those relationships. They meant that I missed out on seeing people as they really are.

During the workshop you are set tasks to call people and write letters dealing with these stories. It’s quite profound how quickly I dropped stories I’d been carrying for years and then created new possibilities going forward. I had some of the most authentic conversations I’ve had in my life. The result is that my relationships with everyone have been radically transformed and exciting things have been happening ever since.

Changes We spend a lot of our lives trying to change by doing more of the thing we want to change, less of it or something different to it. The trouble with this is when you say you are not going to be X, you are still X because you are living a ‘not X' life. The two are tied to one another. I’m not going to smoke anymore means I am still a smoker because I am living a non-smoking life. 64

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

In other words, your future is always being coloured by the sunglasses of your past. This means you never really escape it and you can end up trapped in your stories, even though you may be aware of them and the fact that they are unwanted. The more you try to change the harder it is to change. Most of us aren’t aware that we are wearing these sunglasses. We think that what we are seeing is reality rather than a perspective. The Forum gives you the opportunity to remove the glasses, to reset completely and open up a new possibility.

Rackets The things that are unwanted in our lives that persist are distinguished as ‘rackets’ in The Forum. We all have them, but most of us don’t notice them for what they are. Mine are to do with being right or wrong, not being good enough and feeling judged by others. They clouded my conversations with people, as I unwittingly looked for these rackets all the time. In effect, I wasn’t really listening to anyone as I was always seeking out evidence to support my rackets. We often don’t listen to one another properly, we judge and assess what others say, and the voice in our heads dominates and prevents us from being truly present with each another.

reminds you to honour the promises and agreements that you make. To honour your word, not your reasons. To honour what you say, not what you think. The power of this integrity is incredible and as the weekend evolves you find yourself creating a new level of being in the world.

Life after After doing The Forum I found myself taking full responsibility for my life and no longer blaming anyone else. I began to really listen to others without adding anything and accepting that things are just they way they are and just the way they aren’t. Within Blue Eyed Sun, my experience of our team has been transforming and I’ve had very real, authentic and powerful conversations with them that have created exciting new possibilities. In The Forum I created a possibility for myself of ‘love and creative abundance.’ This has created a completely new space for everything I now do. As a result, I’ve developed exciting new ranges of Spring Seasons designs with two different new artists that we launched at Harrogate Home & Gift. I’m working on a new range of my own cards called Poet’s Corner. My #PlasticFreeJuly project on social media was fun and carefree, as I no longer

Creating reality Many of us are living in a world of constant assessment rather than actual experience. In effect we are missing out on our lives because they are governed by our reasons and considerations instead of what we really want. Your word, and your relationship with your word, creates your reality. Declaration is the form of language that creates. It’s the foundation of your integrity. Who I am is my word. Both to myself and to others around me. The seminar shows you how to get authentic with yourself and with others. It

pandered to my rackets of not being good enough or getting it right or wrong. I’m also enrolling customers into my bigger vision of reducing single-use coffee cup waste from 2.5 billion cups a year to 1 billion over the next two years, instead of just focusing on my own interests of boosting BambooCup sales. I feel transformed. I’d recommend The Landmark Forum to anyone. Read more on Jeremy’s blog at www.blueeyedsun.co.uk/blog

65-73_Product Directory_2019.qxp 30/07/2019 11:21 Page 65

PRODUCT DIRECTORY

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY

To appear in the Product Directories contact

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY

č,č -+1

Warren Lomax

020 7700 6740 or email warren@max-publishing.co.uk or contact

Tracey Arnaud

07957 212 062

or email traceya@max-publishing.co.uk

()7-+2 0)( +6))8-2+ '%6(7

+-*87 83 79-8 %00 3''%7-327 =)%6 3* &-68, +6))8-2+ '%6(7 )0)+%28 '328)1436%6= %2( 6)863 +-*8;%6) %'')7736-)7

[[[ VIXVSGS GSQ GEXEPSKYI MRJS$%VEFIWUYI*'+ GSQ )<'097-:) (-786-&9836

To appear in the Product Directories contact

Warren Lomax

020 7700 6740 Abacus Cards Limited t: 01638 569050 e: info@abacuscards.co.uk w: www.abacuscards.co.uk

or email warren@max-publishing.co.uk or contact

Tracey Arnaud

07957 212 062

or email traceya@max-publishing.co.uk

01565 830 546 | bexyboo.co.uk @BexyBooLtd

BexyBooLtd

@BexyBooLtd

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

65-73_Product Directory_2019.qxp 30/07/2019 11:22 Page 66

PRODUCT DIRECTORY

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY

To appear in the Product Directories contact

Warren Lomax 020 7700 6740 or email

warren@max-publishing.co.uk or contact

One of the UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading suppliers of Greeting Cards since 19995

Tracey Arnaud 07957 212 062 or email

traceya@max-publishing.co.uk

Products: High quality greetin ng cards with superb finishes. All maajjor and minor titles, covering traditio onaall to the latest in innovative design, n both Everydaayy and Seasonal. Providing an all NEW selection of Muggs and Notebooks. k

Publishers of quality blank greeting cards

Brands Include: Down Memory Lane, W Wo ot A Mug and T Tw wist & Shout

Tel: 0115 929 4776 enquiries@bugart.co.uk

Methods of Sale: Direct to retail

Order Online

Desiggners welcome contact beverley@cherryorchardpublishing.co.uk

www.bugart.co.uk

Unit 10 Duddage Business Park Brockeridge Rd Twyning Tewkesbury GL20 6BY 01684 295500 info@cherryorchardpublishing.co.uk www.cherryorchardpublishing.co.uk

To appear in the Product Directories contact

Warren Lomax 020 7700 6740 or email

warren@max-publishing.co.uk or contact

Tracey Arnaud 07957 212 062 or email

traceya@max-publishing.co.uk

;1b-Ñ²bv|v |_mb1 u;;à¢¼m] -u7v "r S end i n g YO Y OU OU

WISHES

A w o n d e rf u l Eid!

www.cathtatecards.com

Ch C hin nese ese

Caspari Ltd

HE IS

THE

Linden House, John Dane Player Court

Unit 1, 45 Morrish Road London SW2 4EE Tel: 0208 671 2166 Fax: 0208 678 1119 info@cathtatecards.com

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Products: Everyday cards - birthday, blank & occasions, charity Christmas cards, gifftt wrap, bags, tissue, ribbon, hankies, napkins, paper plate, candles, placemats, crackers,invitations, placecards, notecards,diaries, address books, journals, advent calendars and bridge gifftts.

Method of Sale: Direct to Retail

WAY

THE AND TRUTH THE

made with great imagination

LIFE

Witty, gritty, switched on humour. Cards and gifts with a real difference.

East Street, Safffrron W Waalden Essex, CB10 1LR Teel: 01799 513010 T Faax: 01799 513101 F Email: inffoo@caspari.co.uk ww ww w.CaspariOnline.com

@thecuriousinksmith

01892 838 574

sales@thecuriousinksmith.co.uk Polissh Po h

Te T el: 0161 16 64 41 06 0655 Email: m sales@da sales@d avora.co.uk av 135 Hea 13 135 eaton Moorr Rd | Stockp ock kpo port ort SK4 4H 4 4HY HY

65-73_Product Directory_2019.qxp 30/07/2019 11:22 Page 67

PRODUCT DIRECTORY

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY THE GREATEST COLLECTION OF GREETING CARDS IN THE WORLD

Welsh and English cards

www.progressivegreetingslive.com

High Quality Greeting Cards, Gift Bags, Gift Wrap & Ta Tags for every occasion.

*GCF 1HƂEG +353 (0)404 20528 Email info@garlanna.com www.garlanna.com

www.draenog.com

07815 153 582

agents wanted

• UK Market leaders with humour, art, photographic, contemporary and traditional occasions & relations cards, plus seasonal. • 2΍HULQJ D IXOO SODQQLQJ VHUYLFH with merchandising and retail development opportunities.

THE GREATEST COLLECTION OF GREETING CARDS IN THE WORLD

• Specialists in garden centres and the independent trade.

Innovative high quality gift wrap, gift bags, tissue paper and accesssories galore for all seasons and occasions.

www.progressivegreetingslive.com

GRASS ROOTS

INTERNATIONAL

G RASS R OOTS INTERNATIONAL A U.K owned Greeting Cards Publisher. Our everyday ranges for all occasions and relations include traditional, contemporary, cute, humour and photographic designs. We also have a full range of Christmas and Spring Seasons. All products are designed and printed in the U.K on the finest quality board.

BRANDS

0127 74 4 655980 sales@glick.co.uk www.glick.co.uk Glick, Unit 1 Allenby House, European Ind. Park, Knowles Lane, Bradford BD4 9AB

@glickgiftwrap SUPPLIER

“Write from the Heart” brand includes; Corsage, Sentiments, Champagne, Celebrations and Jelly Beans.

M ETHOD OF SALE

Find The Great British Card Company on:

THE GREATEST COLLECTION OF GREETING CARDS IN THE WORLD

Direct to Retail

G RASS R OOTS INTERNATIONAL

www.greatbritishcards.co.uk Waterwells Drive, Gloucester GL2 2PH Tel: 01452 888970

Units 4 - 4A Valentines Buildin g Ra cec our se Bus in ess Par k Aintr ee, Liver poo l, L9 5 AL Tel: 0151 52 3 9600 Fax : 015 1 523 494 9 e-m ail: s ales@ writefr om th ehear t.co.uk

from the

To appear in the Product Directories email

Warren Lomax

warren@max-publishing.co.uk or

Tracey Arnaud

tarnaud@btinternet.com www.progressivegreetingslive.com

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

65-73_Product Directory_2019.qxp 30/07/2019 11:25 Page 68

PRODUCT DIRECTORY

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY

)

60 years

CHARITY GREETING CARDS

Your Number One Supplier of Numerals, Name, Relation & Age Labels for Greetings Cards.

One of the UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading publishers of Charity Greeting Cards. Impress offers a wide collection of images, including fine art, graphic, photographic and cute. We also offer a bespoke design service for bulk orders and/or mail order fulfilment.

Huge selection with immediate deliveryy.. Buy direct or from your wholesalerr.. Listan Labels 3 Isis Court, Wyndyke Furlong, Abingdon Business Park, Abingdon, Oxfordshire OX1 5JN

Impress Publishing Appledown House Barton Business Park New Dover Road Canterbury, Kent CT1 3TE Tel: 01227 811 611 Fax: 01227 811 618 email: info@impresspublishing.co.uk

Te T el 01235 465489 Fax 01235 532118 www.listanpublications.co.uk sales@listanpublications.co.uk

New Cardiff designs at

www.idrewthis.co.uk

LOTTIE COLE .6-5*3"$*"- and -(#5 (3&&5*/( $"3%4

Beautiful, Soulful Cards Hue tribe

www.huetribe.com t: +44(0) 7943416562 e: info@huetribe.com facebook: www.facebook.com/huetribedesign

CPNF TFF PVS OFX JMMVTUSBUJPOT PO 45"/% 41 BU 1( -*7& % OFF ALL SHOW ORDERS

www.lottiecole.com info@lottiecole.com lottiecoledesigns

AGENTS WANTED

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

65-73_Product Directory_2019.qxp 30/07/2019 11:25 Page 69

PRODUCT DIRECTORY

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY

WIDE RANGE OF PRODUCTS

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY

Marina B Designs from me to you with love

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Art that tells a storyâ&#x20AC;Śâ&#x20AC;?

Love Country by Sarah Reilly

LING DESIGN

Tel: 07735 918118

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not a Birthday without bubbles

Great brands, Great service Bespoke planning

www.marinab.co.uk marina@marinab.co.uk Agents wanted

We can help with all your bespoke planning requirements. From smaller displays to redeveloping complete card departments

sarah@lovecountryuk.co.uk www.lovecountryuk.co.uk

www.lingdesign.co.uk

Silk Screened Retro, Pop & Classic Cards

01892 838 574 information@lingdesign.co.uk

Inspired by Music and 1960â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s American Advertising.For all Vinyl & Rock nâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Roll lovers

L E T U S TA K E YOU BAC K

@NoelTattGroup 01227 811 600 sales@noeltatt.co.uk www.noeltatt.co.uk

For further details please get in touch.

info@vincentmcevoy.com

+44 (0)7779 578340

AG E N T S WA N T E D :

LING DESIGN

ĆŤ ĆŤÄ&#x2018;ĆŤ ĆŤ ĆŤÄ&#x2018;ĆŤ ĆŤ ĆŤÄ&#x2018;ĆŤ ĆŤÄ&#x2018;ĆŤ

The UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading privately owned publisher of Greetings Cards and Stationery. ...The home for and

THE GREATEST COLLECTION OF GREETING CARDS IN THE WORLD

An exciting and innovative range of quality Birthday, Relations, Special Occasions, Handmade, Art and Humorous greeting cards. Full range of Christmas and Spring Seasons merchandise.

Products: Greetings cards for all occasions, Christmas and Spring Seasons cards, gift wrap and bags, charity cards, social stationery. Bespoke service for charities and other fundraisers. Ling Design Ltd 14-20 Eldon Way, Paddock Wood, Kent TN12 6BE Tel: 01892 838574 enquiries@lingdesign.co.uk www.lingdesign.co.uk

B rand N ames a Pizazz, Pizazz Gallery, G Pizazz Limited Edition, E Pizazz for Men, Doodle, D A of Nature, Whatt a Picture, Art Designers Corner

TRADE WEBSITE: Ä&#x2039; ÄŽ Ä&#x2039; 01780 763 368

Cloudesley House, Shire Hill, Saffron Walden,, CB11 3FB

www.progressivegreetingslive.com

T: 01799 520200 F: F: 01799 520100 www.nigelquiney.c w ww ww.nigelquiney.com om

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

65-73_Product Directory_2019.qxp 30/07/2019 11:25 Page 70

PRODUCT DIRECTORY

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY THE GREATEST COLLECTION OF GREETING CARDS IN THE WORLD

Design-led Stationery, Gifts, Calendars, Diaries and Cards

originalposter.com

Brands Laura Ashley, Roald Dahl, Lily & Val, Vintage Ladybird, Caroline Gardner, Monsoon, Born to Shop, Flash Gordon, Boofle and many more.

All our cards are supplied on consignment, so you only pay for what you sell.

www.progressivegreetingslive.com

Our In-house design studio and established supply chain enables us to offer bespoke services.

We also supply card fixtures and spinners free-on-loan.

tel: +44 (0) 1225 329494 email: sales@porticodesigns.com website: www.porticodesigns.com

We replace slow sellers and damaged stock free of charge. We merchandise regularly, so you don’t have to. THAT’S WHY WE’RE ORIGINAL!

01932 267 300

Exquisite Design, Beautiful Cardss Key brands include Marzipan, Portobello, Mosaic, Daisy Patch, Aquarupella and Designers Guild, plus many more. Tel: +44 (0)115 986 0115 Email: info@paperrose.co.uk www.paperrose.co.uk www.artgroupcards.co.uk PaperRoseCards TheArtGroupCards The_Art_Group

Greeting cards & gifts designed with awesomeness in mind

p p paperlink... the home of fabulous cards!

LUXURY GIFT PACKAGING

To appear in the Product Directories contact

Warren Lomax

020 7700 6740 356 Kennington Rd London SE11 4LD T 020 7582 8244 info@paperlink.co.uk k www.paperlink.co.uk Paperlinkcards

@ @paperlinkcards

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

or email warren@max-publishing.co.uk or contact

Tracey Arnaud

ICONIC LICENCED BRANDS

01892 838 574 www.pennykennedy.co.uk

07957 212 062

or email traceya@max-publishing.co.uk

purpletreedesigns.co.uk info@purpletreedesigns.co.uk

65-73_Product Directory_2019.qxp 30/07/2019 11:25 Page 71

PRODUCT DIRECTORY

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY

Uk publisher of Greetings Cards with an extensive range of quality Birthday, Relations, Occasions and Seasonal product... available from

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY

6 Heron Trading Estate Alliance Road, Park Royal, London W3 0RA T: 0208 385 4474 F: 0208 385 4471 E: info@Xpressyourselfcards.co.uk

LING DESIGN

WWW.XXPRESSYOURSELFCARDS.CO.UK

PRODUCTS: World’s leading publisher of high quality plastic greeting cards. Also an extensive range of quality greeting cards covering Everyday, Occasions, Christmas and Spring seasons. BRANDS: Cherished Thoughts, Sweet Sentiments, Buddies Always, Symphony, Thinking of You, Style, Special Wishes, Special Times, Young Editions, Groove Sensations, Forever Blessed, Grey Skies, Classics.

Our Brands: Laughter with Animals, Sporting Fun The Funny Side of Life.

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

Method of sale: Direct to Retail 14-20 Eldon Way, Paddock Wood, Kent TN12 6BE Tel: 01892 838574 enquiries@lingdesign.co.uk www.lingdesign.co.uk

To appear in the Product Directories contact

Warren Lomax

020 7700 6740 t. 07779 654 694 e. info@ruby-tuesday.co.uk www.ruby-tuesday.co.uk

or email warren@max-publishing.co.uk or contact

Tracey Arnaud

07957 212 062

raspber r yblossom.com

or email traceya@max-publishing.co.uk

hello@raspberryblossom.com 020 3723 5405

Products: Greetings Cards, Gift Wrap, Gift Bags, Social Stationery, Mugs and Glasses, Partyware

Brands: Card Essentials Designer Collection Greetings Impressions Inspirations In Touch ,VDEHO·V *DUGHQ Planet Happy With You In Mind

AGENTS WANTED

PG LIVE STAND 146

Method of sale: Wholesale Distributors

Simon Elvin Limited greeting cards & contempoRary gifts www.redbackcards.com e: info@redbackcards.com t: 01752 830482

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

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

65-73_Product Directory_2019.qxp 30/07/2019 11:27 Page 72

PRODUCT DIRECTORY

l PRODUCT DIRECTORY

7RPFDW &DUGV To appear in the Product Directories contact

Warren Lomax 020 7700 6740 or email

warren@max-publishing.co.uk or contact

Tracey Arnaud 07957 212 062 or email

traceya@max-publishing.co.uk

The UK’s leading publisher of highest quality handmade Greetings Cards.

www.tomcat.cards info@tomcat.cards

Products: Greetings cards for all occasions, Christmas and Spring Seasons. Spinners and other retail displays available. Talking Pictures Cards Ltd 14-20 Eldon Way, Paddock Wood, Kent, TN12 6BE

DIRECT TO RETAIL & EXPORT

Tel: 01892 838574 enquiries@talkingpics.co.uk www.talking-pictures.co.uk

2@= 29KL= M<K Just food and their friends....

view by rufus designed in thames ditton

how’s your weekend bean?

THE GREATEST COLLECTION OF GREETING CARDS IN THE WORLD

TEL: 01480 435562 FAX: 01480 450599

5= N= ?GF= ?J==F All greeting cards printed with vegetable inks on recycled boards/envelopes, including biodegradable packaging...

www.tracksltd.com

topdog@view by rufus.com 020 8972 9706

UNIT 2, 12 BLACKSTONE RD,

viewbyrufus.com

STUKELEY MEADOWS IND EST, HUNTINGDON, CAMBS, PE29 6EF

www.the-taste-buds.co.uk info@the-taste-buds.co.uk 07906 367 663

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

excellent thanks basil

www.progressivegreetingslive.com

65-73_Product Directory_2019.qxp 30/07/2019 11:27 Page 73

PRODUCT DIRECTORY

EUROPEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S LEADING GREETINGS CARDS, PARTY PRODUCTS, GIFTS, CANDLES, TOYS, STATIONERY AND FLORIST SUNDRIES DISTRIBUTION CENTRE 75000 SQ FT

& entimen

an extensive range of superior quality,

design-led Greeting Cards for all occasions, Spring Seasons & Christmas.

Method of Sale: Direct to Retail Orders can be placed on our trader site

www.cbgtrader.co.uk or call our customer services team on

Art Cards eA Botanical Fine

Market Leaders in

Verse

DIRECTORY OF WHOLESALE

Vibrant and nd elegant gree greeting cards A freshly fr modern perspective on nature

BESCOT CRESCENT, WALSALL, WEST MIDLANDS. WS1 4NG 01922-646666 www.greetingshouse.co.uk info@greetingshouse.co.uk MON,WED,FRI 8.00am-4.45pm TUES,THURS 8.00am-7.45pm SAT,SUN 8.00am-1.45pm

Call Now 075 7700 1145 www.zaquarella.co.uk info@ zaquarella.com

+44(0)1243 792600

To appear in the Product Directories simply contact

Warren Lomax: 020 7700 6740 warren@max-publishing.co.uk or contact

Tracey Arnaud: 07957 212 062 tarnaud@btinternet.com PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

74-78_Classified 2019.qxp_Layout 1 30/07/2019 11:39 Page 74

CLASSIFIED

BAGS

CLASSIFIED

BAGS

Polypropylene & biodegradable bag specialists

GREETING CARD

Over 40 years quality service to the trade Hotfoiling also available

T 01206 396209 E sales@badgerconverters.co.uk www.badgerconverters.co.uk

GIVE E YOUR

BAGS

Manuffacturers of high quality fllexible packaging 30 YEARS EXPERIENCE - QUA UALITTY Y SERVICE EXTENSIVE STOCK RANGE - QUICK DE ELIVERY ASSURED

- HEADER BAGS - WA WALLET BAGS - ZIPPER BAGS - FLEXOGRAPHIC, HOTFOIL & THEERMAL PRINTING www.transrappackagin ng.co.uk sales@transrap.co o.uk

V VIP

CALL US TODA AY

TREA AT A TMENT

01773 5378 810

HIGH CLARITY L TY Y BA AGS FOR R GREETING G ET T NG CARD DS, CALEND EN N ARS ARS AND AND D ARTW TWORK WORK

ENVELOPES

ŏ ŏđŏ ŏ FOIL L BL B OCKING NG G EXTE XTENSIVE NSIV VE RA V R RANG ANGE OF S ST TOCK SIZES SIZ ZES AND BES AND BES E PO OKE KE MANUF KE MANU UF FACTU TUR TURE T U E AT TED D WRAPPING SERVICE NEW AUTOMA

FOR ALL YOUR ENVELOPE NEEDS! Largest range of in-stock colours Over 400 Bespoke Envelope Sizes

CALL CA CAL C LL US ST TO ODAY OD

0122 1228 228 2 28 8 56 5605 60 052 26 6 www.fful ulcrumﬁlms. ulcrrum mﬁllm ms s co.uk uk

8 Sizes Permanently in Stock RECYCLED

100% Recycled Paper Av Available Stock & Bespoke Cello Bags Peel & Stick Envelopes p Bespoke Service on Request

ORDER ON LINE AT: www.regentenvelopes.com 01274 583000 sales@regentenvelopes.com

We’ve been producing p bags of high clarity and high quality q for over 30 years. 01274 220 220 www w.wrapid.co.uk sales@wrapid.co.uk

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

PAPER A

74-78_Classified 2019.qxp_Layout 1 30/07/2019 11:39 Page 75

CLASSIFIED

ENVELOPES

FLITTERING FOR ALL YOUR FLITTER REQUIREMENTS

ABL Foil Ltd Unit 1, Industrial Estate East Hanningfield Chelmsford Essex, CM3 8AB

Contact DAVID JIGGINS Tel: 01245 400104 Email: david@abl-ltd.co.uk

PRINTERS

CLASSIFIED

PRINTERS

SPECIALISTS IN SHORT RUN MULTI IMAGE PRINT s Foiling Services without the need for dies s Wiro bound notebooks, no minimum quantity s In House Fulfilmment Services

T 01274 305832 E info@hellocards.co.uk www.hellocards.co.uk

AND NOW FO OR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT... .

Our innovative greeting gs card finishes include: Thermography Foil Intense Glitter Snowraise Liquid q M Metal Blended Glitter Embossing Textured Foil Laser Cutting

The simplest way to order your greetings cards

ask about our ‘Mrr Abbot’ sample pack

To discuss your nextt greetings card range call us on 01797 223355 www.abbotprint.co.uk bb i k sales@abbotprint.co.uk l bb i k 75

Unit 8, Archers Park, Branbridges Road, East Peckham, Kent TN12 5HP www.theimagingcentre.co.uk Email: info@theimagingcentre.co.uk Tel: 01622 871449

we print

we ﬁnish

we pack

we deliver

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

74-78_Classified 2019.qxp_Layout 1 30/07/2019 11:39 Page 76

CLASSIFIED

PRINTERS

Your saf ep ai

cturing ufa an m

ds for Far E as han f t ro

Outstanding, cost effective and efficient production of Greeting cards, Packaging and Social stationery, ideal for intricate and hand finished products. • Over 15 years experience providing high-quality printed products direct from the Far East • Trusted and financially stable, UK owned by The Sherwood Group • Socially responsible manufacturing: SMETA, ISO9001, ISO14001, FSC certification • Full product prototyping in the UK for competitive speed to market requirements

To find out how we can benefit your business, contact Derek Lam +00 (852) 3527 3471 / derek@sherwood-press.com or The Sherwood Group Head Office Hong Kong Office: 13/F, Kam Chung Commercial Building, 19-21 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong

www w..sherwoodgroupuk.com

000510

PJ PRINT LONDON The Capitals Only Specialist Greeting Card Printer All Industry Finishes Available In-House Including Laser Cutting

Social Sta tationerry Printer of the Year

Award winning U UK & Global specialist manufacturer ffor the greeting card industry fo or over 40 years The Print Works Colville Road, Acton, London, W3 8BL E-mail: sales@pj-print.co.uk Tel: 020 8993 5160 www.pj-print.co.uk 76

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

To discuss how we can worrk together, contact Richard Bacon: Tel 0115 928 7766 Email ric chard.bacon@sherwoodgroupuk.com

www.sherwoodgroupuk.com Hadden Court, Glaisdale e Parkway, Glaisdale Drive West, Nottin ngham NG8 4GP

74-78_Classified 2019.qxp_Layout 1 30/07/2019 11:39 Page 77

CLASSIFIED

PRINTERS

YOUR MANUFACTURING PARTNER FOR VALUE ADDED PRODUCTS English speaking production team, prices quoted in sterling... and only 3 days delivery to THE UK...

Really... and there s no VAT to pay or customs procedures either...that's a great deal!

• Hand made and hand finished greeting cards • Boxed sets and acetate packs of cards / envelopes • Giftwrap and tag packs • Individually open and closed wrapped cards • 'Pop up' and cardboard engineered products • Notelets and social stationery • Specialised printing on plastics & lenticular

THE SPECIALIST GREE ETINGS CARD PRINTE ER Litho Print

Die-cutting

Digital Print

Flittering

Foiling

Packing

Embossing

Distribution

Tel:0127 e 4 4531828 Email: info@herbertw o alkers.co.uk

www.herbertwalkers.co.u uk

For production enquiries, estimates etc., please contact our UK Agent:

Rob Pearson 07710 132 232 rob@solutions-polska.com FSC accredited (BV-COC-002485). Audited member of SMETA. Printing to ISO12674-2 standard.

THE RIGH HT PARTNER

FOR ALL YOUR MANUFACTURING REQUIREMENTS

Glitt i Glittering

** ** ** **

Offset ff t PPrinting i ti

Sh Show Room R

Facto ory Outlook

Established in 1997, headquarters in Hong Kong 600,000 Sq.fftt of modern production facility ouse production Ensure complete co ontrol from start to finish with our full in-ho ng in people, equipment, technology and the Continually investin t planet

TERRY JOHNSO ON PO Box 1600 Hemel Hempstead, HP1 9SR Mobile: 07773 389784 Email: terryjohnson@ve eb.com.hk Website: www.veb.com m.hk PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

74-78_Classified 2019.qxp_Layout 1 30/07/2019 11:39 Page 78

CLASSIFIED

WAREHOUSING & DISTRIBUTION

CLASSIFIED

DISPLAY AND SPINNERS Tel: 01929 550085 Email: sales@westminsterwire.com Web: www.westminsterwire.com

Home of the Wire Spinner Stand

The Wire Spinner is proven to be the most cost effective method to display and enhance products. We also offer sheet metal, wood, acrylic and cardboard solutions or a combination of materials. To appear in the Classified pages simply contact

Warren Lomax 020 7700 6740 or email on warren@max-publishing.co.uk

Same day order turna around Accurate fulfilment Value added only as you sell the product Exclusively Greeting Cards

Greeting Cards Displa ay y Solutions

࠮ FSDU U ࠮ CDU ࠮ POS

Dedicated Account Managers With an excellent reputation we work as an integral part of yourr team bringing QYGL QSVI XLER JYPǻPQIRX 4YV GSWXMRK WXVYGXYVI MW WMQTPI ERH XVERWTEVIRX ;I ; I GEVV] SYX EPP EWTIGXW SJ LERH ǻRMWLMRK ERH EWWIQFP] ERH TVSZMHI [LEXIZIV EHHMXMSREP WIVZMGIW ]SY RIIH 4YV WIPIGX XIEQ SJ SYX[SVOIVW GEVIJYPP] LERH [VET ER] WM^I SV JSVQEX SJ GEVHW YVKIRXP] 4ZIVRMKLX

We also d do: ࠮ Cartons s ࠮ Boxes ࠮ Diecuts s

;I GEVI EFSYX ]SYV TVSHYGX EW QYGL EW ]SY HS &XXIRXMSR XS HIXEMP 6( .WWYIW ;I ERH .8 WYTTSVXIH F] E GSQTVILIRWMZI TETIV T XVEMP JS JSV EPP WXSGO QSZIQIRXW EVI SYV LEPPQEVOW 4YV GER HS ETTVSEGL QIERWW [I EVI LETT] XS WSPZI ]SYV TVSFPIQW 4YXWSYVGMRK ]SYV [EVILSYWMRK STIVEXMSR VIPIEWIW ]SYV XMQI XS CREA AT TE/MARKET/SELL/ MANAGE/ /GROW THE BUSINESS =SYV FYWMRIWW MW SYV FYWMRIWW T =S TPIEWI ZMWMX Z SYV [IF WMXI ERH WII [LEX SYV GYWXSQIVW WE] XLIR XS ǻRH SYX S QSVI GEPP Ly Lynda Raymond ERH TIVLETW [I GER EVVERKI XS QIIX ERH HMWGYWW ]SYV RIIHW . EQ WYVI XLEX [I GER G LIPT

LB Warehousing 9RMXW Ȧ ȶ ȴ ;E]WMHI ;EVILSYWIW 8 8S SWIPERH 3IEV X 3ISXW (EQFVMHKIWLMVI 5*Ȧȟ Ȱ7< Tel ȉȦȏȁȉ ȁȁȉȁȉȉ Fax ȉȦȏȁȉ ȁȁȉȟȉȉ Mobile ȉȮȁȁȟ ȴȟȟȴȏȦ P]RHE%PF [EVILSYWMRK GS YO

PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

Call: 0121 557 7 1891 email: sales@nsmithb box.co.uk

web. www.nsmithbo ox.co.uk n.smith, Haing ge Road, Tividale, Oldbury, West Midlands s B69 2NZ OVER 115 YEARS OF MANUF FA ACT TURING IN THE UK

IBC_Appointments_2019.qxp_Layout 1 30/07/2019 12:42 Page 79

CONVERT Y EXCESS ST OUR OCKS TO CASH TODA Y!

Card works

EXCESS GREETING CARD STOCKS?

on to Su lin the bs c e at new rib PG s e Bu flas zz h .n et

CLEARANCE SPECIALISTS

WE OFFER A PROFESSIONAL CLEARANCE SERVICE FOR EXCESS & REDUNDANT STOCKS OF GREETING CARDS, WRAPPING PAPER, GIFTS & ALLIED PRODUCTS O GUARANTEED OFFER WITHIN 24 HOURS O WE COLLECT O PROMPT PAYMENT O UNFINISHED PRODUCTION CONSIDERED O MOST TRANSACTIONS COMPLETED WITHIN 7 DAYS O FULLY CONFIDENTIAL O 40 YEARS EXPERIENCE

SEND SAM PLES AND STOC K QUANTITIE S TODAY!

CARDWORKS CLEARANCE SERVICES 92 Station Road, Willingham, Cambridge CB24 5HG

Email: cardworkstrading@btconnect.com Tel: 01954 260728

APPOINTMENTS

From the team behind Progressive Greetings Worldwide, PG Live, The Retas and The Henries, PGBuzz.net has launched as the new online central resource for the greeting card sector online... l Twice weekly newsflash delivered to over 9000 inboxes l Regularly updated jobs-board l The very latest news, views, articles and analysis l Digital issues of Progressive Greetings Worldwide l Resource pages for The Ladder Club, GCA,

PG Live, The Retas and The Henries.

D I G I TA L C R E AT I V E DESIGNER/ARTWORKER For one of the UK’s leading and fastest growing card companies based in Wigan Lancashire. The successful applicant must possess the following: •Recognised knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite especially Photoshop, Illustrator & Indesign •Excellent illustration skills & a passion for design •Responsiblity for developing concepts and artwork and creating finished print ready files •Experience in creating marketing material to promote product, brochures, advertisements and POS •Must be able to meet deadlines and multitask

•Friendly workplace •Competitive salary

News, Editorial and Content Opportunities:

Advertising, Recruitment and Sponsorship Opportunities:

Jakki Brown Joint md & editorial director jakkib@max-publishing.co.uk

Warren Lomax warren@max-publishing.co.uk

Michelle Board News editor michelleb@max-publishing.co.uk

Tracey Arnaud traceya@max-publishing.co.uk

News • PG Worldwide • Interviews • PG Live • Newsflash Events Gallery • Jobs • Ladder Club • GCA

To appear in the Product Directories simply contact

Warren Lomax 020 7700 6740

Email: tony@words-n-wishes.co.uk Web: www.words-n-wishes.co.uk

or email on warren@max-publishing.co.uk

Tel: 01942 233201

Tracey Arnaud 07957 212 062

or contact or email on traceya@max-publishing.co.uk PROGRESSIVE GREETINGS WORLDWIDE

PG SNL advert Jul 2019 A4 (Flymetothemoon) 1 00_PG_August 2019.indd 1

24/07/2019 16:53 25/07/2019 10:13