There’s less than three weeks to go until The Retas, greeting card retailer awards at The Dorchester Hotel in London. Will you be there?
Have you got your tickets yet for The Retas awards? These are only awards that celebrate greeting card retailing in the UK, recognising not only the top independent and multiple greeting card retailers regionally and nationally, but also the new generation of retailers as well as employees of outstanding excellence. The winners are unveiled at a sumptuous lunch at The Dorchester Hotel in London on Wednesday 12 July, and will be attended by people from all walks of the greeting card trade – including a myriad of retailers and suppliers.
Warren Lomax, co-owner of Progressive Greetings magazine, which organises The Retas Awards said: “This is the 13th year of The Retas awards and the event goes from strength to strength. There are some absolutely amazing retailers up for awards this year, from boutique card shops to large multiples. The greeting card industry is booming in the UK and we see this coming through in the very high standard of nominees and finalists in The Retas.”
The Retas Awards are a must-attend event for publishers and retailers alike. As Beverley Heyworth, owner of Blue Rose Gifts and Balloons (finalist in the North and Northern Ireland category) in Greater Manchester explains: “The Retas are the ultimate accolade that a retailer can be awarded. To even be nominated is a fantastic achievement and to win would be amazing and help highlight us even more as a business. We look forward to attending and socialising with other retailers across the country. It is at this type of event that we can share our knowledge and experience with each other and enjoy the event.”
Every year the Awards do has a different theme, this year being ‘Enchanted Tails’. The theme is carried through from the invitations, to the decorations at the event and the goodie bags to take home.
The invitations themselves (pictured at top) are a work of art, designed by the team at Paper Rose. Designer Kamila Gawlowska commented: “After an intensive creative thinking session at the Paper Rose studio, we all decided that we wanted to create something slightly gothic and mysterious to reflect the enchanted theme. We were definitely imagining something closer to Grimm’s fairy tales than Disney! We loved the black linework that was used in the initial invitation email, so we incorporated similar vintage-looking illustrations of tropical plants into our design. And of course we had to hide some enchanted critters in there! To continue with the theme of mystery we worked with printers Loxleys to create a mechanism in which the recipients have to reveal the hidden message themselves.”
The event will kick off with a cocktail reception, followed by a three course lunch and The Retas awards ceremony led by comedian Charlie Baker. Every year over 400 people attend from all parts of the industry, so it is a great place for networking as well. And even if you don’t win an award, you won’t go home empty handed, as everyone will get a goodie bag sponsored by Deva Designs with all sorts of lovely gifts including: a note book from Carte Blanche, tissue tin from Soul, napkins from Nigel Quiney, wrapping paper from 2WL and much more. Make sure you also look on the back of your chair for a ‘tail to tell’ from Ravensden!
Tickets for The Retas on 12 July at the Dorchester Hotel, London are selling fast. Make sure you don’t miss out on this chance to mingle with the crème de la crème of the greeting card world. Book your tickets now!
Pictured at top: Winners on stage after the 2016 Retas Awards
