Danilo has unveiled its 2021 official calendar chart – and it’s a case of Klop of the Pops this time around.
Liverpool FC scored the number one position in the publisher’s ‘Top Ten’ list by calendar sales this year, reflecting the team’s winning year after securing the English league title for the first time in 31 years.
Meanwhile, it was something of a ‘Cliff hanger’ for the second spot as Sir Cliff Richard, in the year he turned 80, moved up to number two in the chart – a sizeable jump (even for the super fit octogenarian) from number eight in 2020. This follows the Peter Pan of Pop’s five decades of number one hits and 30 years in the top ten calendar chart, with Danilo having first produced the first Cliff calendar in 1985.
The full top ten (with last year’s position in brackets) are:
- Liverpool FC (1)
- Sir Cliff Richard (8)
- Manchester United (6)
- Friends (4)
- The Mandalorian (New Entry)
- Tottenham Hotspur (New Entry)
- Stranger Things (2)
- Little Mix (10)
- RHS (New Entry)
- Kelly Brook (New Entry)
Echoing the nation’s strong football allegiance Manchester United calendar takes the number three spot and Tottenham Hotspur comes in 6th.
When it comes to entertainment brands, Friends and The Mandalorian make up the top five, while Stranger Things is at number seven (down from second spot in the prior year).
Meanwhile, Danilo’s signing of the Royal Horticultural Society licence has proved a winner, making it into the list, in 9th position, in its inaugural year with the publisher.
The unveiling of the list has piqued interest in the media, with The Sunday People (which has a readership of almost 400,000) dedicating almost the entire page 3 of last Sunday’s (December 6) newspaper to featuring the calendar news.
With such a tight timeline for buying and selling calendars this PR has come as a welcome push.
Making it a date with Calendar Club
Telling it like it is, The Sunday Times recently highlighted how the unfortunate timing of Lockdown 2 has curbed the opportunity for Calendar Club, the UK’s leading calendar retail group to trade.
David Pike, group director of Calendar Club (which sells calendars and diaries from around 180 seasonal shops and shopping centre pop-ups) told the newspaper that last year around 30% of the group’s £35.6 million sales were made during November.
David said that one of the “most difficult” aspects of Lockdown 2 restrictions were that some competitors, such as The Range, were allowed to continue to trade, and sell calendars.
While the Exeter-based Calendar Club has increased its online sales, it is hoping for a bumper Christmas run-up now.
“December is absolutely vital, and more so than ever this year,” David told the newspaper’s journalist Liam Kelly. “Footfall and people going out is the crucial thing for us. If they don’t get out there and start shopping, it is going to hurt a little more,” he added.
