The Greeting Card Association (GCA) has teamed up with Sainsbury’s in a significant initiative which will see a dedicated display of greeting cards which represent and celebrate diversity going on sale in 107 of the supermarket’s stores during Black History Month this October.
“This initiative is very much part of the GCA’s on-going commitment to drive diversity and inclusion within the industry,” commented Amanda Fergusson, ceo of the GCA. “It is fantastic opportunity for Black publishers and designers to have their designs within one of the UK’s leading supermarkets.”
Mark Callaby, managing director of Ohh Deer and head of the GCA Diversity and Inclusion subcommittee has been instrumental in developing this progressive project with the Sainsbury’s team.
“We’re looking for a range of designs from everyday occasions (think Birthday, New Home, New Baby, New Job, Thank You, Sympathy etc) as well as cards that celebrate Black History Month. The final range should be an eclectic mix of cards that celebrate Black History Month and the Black community,” says Mark.
All designers and publishers (irrespective of whether they are a GCA member or not) are being invited to submit designs via Instagram by August 3. From these, 26 designs will be selected and printed onto greeting cards, with the designers/publishers receiving a royalty of 15p for every card sold, with any additional profits made going to kickstart a new GCA Diversity and Inclusion Fund that will be used to drive future initiatives within the industry. Greeting card printer Windles is subsidising the printing costs of the cards in order to maximise the profits for the initiative.
It is anticipated that Sainsbury’s will be buying a minimum of 1,000 of each design.
While the Sainsbury’s buying team will be selecting the final 26 designs, a diverse shortlisting team will also be assisting which includes GCA Council members’ Adriana Lovesy from Mrs Lovesy, Tineka Smith from HueTribe and a member from Sainsbury’s Internal Diversity team.
Every selected design will be given a special licensing agreement with the GCA as well as an assurance that each design does not feature in any other supermarket in the UK until the end February 2022.
Full details on how to get involved, including guidance on design type, how to submit as well as see a copy of the licensing agreement are featured on a dedicated blog post on the GCA website.
Top: As part of its support for Black History Month this October, Sainsbury’s is committing to a dedicated shipper of 26 greeting cards in 107 stores which celebrate diversity.
