Forget the dreary weather of late, the sun is most definitely about to get its hat on – and the latest edition of Progressive Greetings is similarly a blast of uplifting colour and content. And, what’s more, it comes with our annual Focus on Humour supplement, which is bound to raise a smile or two!
Breaking new ground for PG, the front cover and first two pages are printed using a special seven colour print process, enabling the zingy neons of Paper Salad’s designs (both from the publisher as well as its collaborative ranges with Emotional Rescue) to really hit the high notes.
The news section (click to 8-9) is filled with everything from the tasty (Ohh Deer’s diversification into real cookie dough, for starters) to the human (Bill Greeno joining Carte Blanche as a consultant as Martin Horner cycles off, Emma Clooney joins Waterwells while Ling’s Viv Barlow and Simon Elvin’s David Orr retire) as well as latest from the worlds of retail and publishing.
Cardsharp discusses what he feels is something of the ‘hangover blues’ (click to 22-23) with the much-anticipated sustained bounce back just not quite kicking in as everyone had hoped, with people needing to stop ‘nesting’ and start shopping! Hangover aside, he also highlights how the wholesale sector has received something of a shot in the arm as a result of the pandemic with the public frequenting their corner shops and subpost offices like never before.
Having endured a hefty four month lockdown, card retailers in Scotland were at long last able to reopen their doors to their customers, enjoying that first flush of a card buying frenzy. ‘Back. For, Good’, exclaimed Michael Apter, owner of Edinburgh’s Paper Tiger stores on social media, before adding a serious message to the public ‘Every independent business on the High Street is gasping for custom. As sectors reopen, please get out and about this week, this month, this year and support them.”
Fellow Scottish retailer, David Robertson of JP Pozzi and Bijou, draws on the lyrics of the famous Queen/David Bowie anthem ‘Under Pressure’ to acknowledge that while being able to trade obviously is a big pressure release there are new pressures that we all need to deal with and honesty, he feels is always the best policy. (Click to pages 20-21)
For card retailers located in or around the UK holiday hotspots, with staycationing very much the name of the game this year for the vast majority, they are all gearing up to make the most of the daytrippers and holidaymakers. Enjoy Part One of a UK tour of indies from Cornwall to Yorkshire (with more to follow in next month’s edition). (Click to pages 24-25)
Picking up on another trend, the increase in book reading, PG talks to card publishers about the interrelationship between books and cards and the two-way traffic between the two sectors.
And you can even find out some good read recommendations to add to your book list! (Click to pages 28-29)
What started as a hobby and to help with her mental wellbeing has seen Flora Blathwayt become something of a card publishing sensation with her Washed Up Cards. Find out more about the eco-entrepreneur whose creative solution to plastic pollution is changing the world, one card at a time. (Click to pages 42-43)
The industry is certainly ‘awash’ with loads of great new ranges and designs as evidenced in the Innovations pages. (Click to pages 34-35)
Meanwhile a quad of card retailers reveal what ranges are going down well with their customers in this month’s What’s Hot? section. (Click to pages 46-47)
Sarah Campbell has been a perennially popular designer for many, many years. At a time when Museums & Galleries is going great guns with its range based on her colourful artwork, PG finds out more about this leading lady of pattern. (Click to pages 44-45).
Focus on Humour Supplement
It is no surprise that after the last 15 months that we have all had, that humour has been the best medicine. PG’s annual delve into the humorous greeting card sector is bound to raise a laugh.
From what have been the topical titters to our thirst for drinking-related funnies as well as what boundaries should never be crossed, even in jest, it’s all there!
All this and more in the pages of a lovely glossy magazine and wonderful Focus on Humour supplement. Wouldn’t you like to hold it in your hands so you can flick through and read it wherever it takes your fancy?
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