Greetings industry’s merry men and women enjoy GCA’s conference and AGM
Steal from the rich to give to the poor was the ethos of Robin Hood, Nottingham’s legendary hero – and all 180-plus members of the greeting card community who attended the recent GCA Conference & AGM went home a lot richer in inspiration and insights, and fuelled by a super-charged spirit of camaraderie.
Chris Bryan, joint general manager of Second Nature and current GCA president, welcomed the many merry men and women from the industry to Nottingham Trent University for the best-attended annual gathering yet, which took place on Thursday, 29 September.
The packed audience of publishers, retailers, trade suppliers and agents were treated to a punchy agenda, covering the benchmarking from the GCA UK Greeting Card Market Report on the year just gone – which will be fully featured in the next PG Buzz – the overarching economic climate and its challenges for the sector, as well as important issues of consumer spending, sustainability, and how to ensure the industry’s future by attracting new designers and welcoming new publishers.
Added to this big picture stuff and providing a somewhat local flavour were speakers Richard Bacon, md of The Sherwood Group; Jon May, co-owner of indie Mooch Gifts & Home; and Ged Mace, managing director of The Art File, who each shared their insights into life as a printer, independent card and gift retailer, and publisher respectively – more coverage to follow on PG Buzz and in PG magazine.
And Nottingham Trent University chancellor Sir John Peace – something of a superstar of the business world having been Burberry chairman, GUS ceo, Experian co-founder, and Standard Charter chairman – expressed his appreciation of the UK greeting card industry and the important role he recognised it plays in British society, He acknowledged the £1.6billion industry is not small and added: “Very few industries touch as many people, bringing happiness to the nation. It is a very important creative industry that is also very important to the economy as well as to our wellbeing.”
There was also a palpable feeling, almost a craving, for everyone to feel part of something bigger; a belonging which offered some protection from the hardships staring everyone in the face.
There were smiles as industry friends caught up, with a great turnout from retailers including WHSmith, Card Factory, Sainsbury’s, Scribbler, Cardzone, House of Cards, and Stationery Supplies joining specialist suppliers, many of whom showed their support as official sponsors.
While incredibly active throughout the year, the conference was also a great opportunity for the GCA to summarise its achievements, with ceo Amanda Fergusson, and marketing and membership co-ordinator Adriana Lovesy leaving no one in any doubt as to the value of being an association member, including its links to government, Chamber Of Commerce, DIT and Royal Mail through to the wide reach of the Thinking Of You Week initiative, the innovative Dragons Speed-dating event, progress on D&I as well as the growing number of helpful blog posts and toolkits on the website.
Drawing on a recent personal experience, Amanda relayed how, when standing in a queue in the bakers, she heard a man ask: “Does anyone know where I can buy a greeting card near here?”
It was music to her ears, Amanda said: “I quickly reeled off a list of five retailers all within a few hundred yards, from independent card and gift shops to Tesco and WHSmith, it really struck me of the diversity of retail stockists and card publishers which together give the consumer so much choice and mean that they have remained so engaged with the category.”
And she highlighted the huge take-up by consumers of the Thinking Of You Week promotion in Woman magazine as well as the unprecedented level of support from retailers for the special card-sending event, made all the more poignant as it fell in the week of Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral.
“We are making our voice heard, and at Royal Mail, pressing hard to safeguard six day a week postal delivery,” assured Amanda, aware the ongoing postal strikes are a concern for all in the industry, making it all the more important to get behind Festive Friday – which falls on 2 December – to kickstart Christmas card-sending this year.
With such bumps in the road ahead, Chris said in his introduction: “There will be challenges for us all but, in the dark times, we as an industry deliver that love and sentiment that everyone needs.”
And at the end of the day, Chris concluded: “We all have a responsibility to nurture and protect our industry. Greeting cards have always been resilient to economic downturns. I believe it can still grow. There will be over a million birthdays celebrated next week and another million the week after.
“Let’s not dwell on the past but, instead, look to the future of what is possible. So, to all envelope companies out there, the great paper companies, brilliant creatives, innovative printers, wonderful publishers, talented marketeers and visionary retailers, thank you all for playing your part. Like you, I am passionate about this industry. Together let’s take it to that £2bn mark.”
Top: Amanda Fergusson and Chris Bryant with The Art File’s special livery for the event
