UKG’s pared-back collection reignites brand with 12 ranges in Signature
PG Live saw UK Greetings go back to the roots of its Camden Graphics brand with the significant launch of the new Camden Signature brand just a hop, skip and a jump away from where it all began.
Literally over the road from Camden Passage, where the brand started way back in the 1970s, the show at Islington’s Business Design Centre saw the release of 63 designs across 12 collections under the new heading, and they went down a storm with show visitors this week.
“We realised there was a gap in the market and our portfolio for something really contemporary, pared back, really beautiful quality, stylish designs in beautiful finishes,” explained UKG head of brand Louise James.
“Hence we came up with this brand. And we thought because Camden is associated with quality it made sense that we still use the name Camden, but with Signature for its exclusivity in a premium finish.”
The bulk of the brand is in standalone on code 75, rrp £2.65, with The Edit, Astrid, Hello Lovely, Blueberry Blossom, Wild Valley, Lille, White Lotus, The Good Life, The Wanderer, and Bordeaux having four designs apiece, then at code 90, rrp £3.20, in female captions there’s also Summer Haze with three, plus five from The Edit, three for Hello Lovely, and one in Blueberry Blossom, while male captions are covered by three from Bordeaux and The Good Life with two, and The Little Things is the 12th collection with three occasions cards, along with another trio from The Edit.
Project insight manager Lois Holcroft added: “The reaction has been absolutely fantastic. They’re loving the simplicity, the beautiful quality of the board, and the branded paper-clasp that gives it that aesthetic. It’s the attention to detail, and the designs are just exquisite. And the finishes include foils, holographic foils, deep embossing, all on lovely paper stock paired with a high-quality envelope.”
She said UKG had come up with the concept 12 months ago, with six or seven artists working to get it ready for launch, with the team cherry picking to best designs to create a cohesive range across the small collections it contains.
Louise said: “You’ve got to try to make sure that they’re all doing slightly different jobs. Sometimes you can have three ranges that are great, but they’re just almost a bit too similar. You’re trying to distinguish them so each of the little ranges does its own job, and appeals to its own consumer.
“The artists they would have looked at what’s trending at the moment. What’s out there in the market place, colours, and knowing what works well within a portfolio.”
Referencing UK Greetings long history as well as that of the Camden brand, Lois added: “It’s also building on our product knowledge – it’s not that we want to keep looking over our shoulder at what we’ve done before, but sometimes it’s about knowing that a pared-back white design will work.”
