Greeting card retailers recognised for skills on wider product front
A whole host of well-known indies from the greetings retail world have been recognised for their skills on the wider product front as finalists in The Greats gift retailer awards 2025, announced yesterday, 13 March.
Now in their 23rd year, the Greats Awards, were launched by Progressive Greetings’ sister publication Progressive Gifts & Home to recognise and reward the UK’s very best gift retailers from across the retail spectrum.
“Once again, the bar was set exceptionally high this year, with every one of our finalists excelling in their respective category,” said Sue Marks, editor of Progressive Gifts & Home/GiftsandHome.net.
“This year The Greats saw an unprecedented level of engagement from retailers and suppliers alike, evidenced by the wealth of nominations from the gift industry at large, as well as a huge number of gift retailers entering and putting themselves forward. The nominations and entries, from relative newbies through to more established names in gift retail, are testament to the passion and marketing mettle that will ensure UK gift retailers will not only survive but thrive in a challenging retail environment.”
The Greats Awards Finalists 2025
(All finalists are listed in alphabetical order)
Independent Gift Retailer Of The Year – London, South, South East & East Anglia
Amore and Dzodzo, Woodbridge
Ed, The Dulwich Trader and Tomlinsons, Dulwich
Little Red and Red Card, Petworth
Mercado, Hampton Court
Objectables, Folkestone
The Voewood, Blackheath Standard
Independent Gift Retailer Of The Year – Midlands & Wales
Cornucopia, Worcester
Country Clutter, Chepstow
Ebb & Flow, Tenby
Indigo and Wardrobe At Southwell, Nottingham and Southwell
KooKoo Madame, Caerphilly, Pontypridd and Talbot Green
Papermoon, Syston; Present Days, Warwick
Independent Gift Retailer Of The Year – North & Northern Ireland
Fine & Sandy, Tynemouth
Ideas Horsforth, Leeds
Lemon Tree, Beverley
Osborne & Co, Enniskillen
Squirrel, Ulverston
Strickland & Holt, Yarm
Independent Gift Retailer Of The Year – West & South West
The Bay Tree Home & Gift, Devizes and Marlborough
Blossom Barn, Fairford and Shrivenham
Highworth Emporium, Highworth
Hyde & Seek, Exeter
Kit & Caboodle Gift Shop, Romsey and Salisbury
Kondi Gifts, Bristol
Independent Gift Retailer Of The Year – Scotland
Bijou, Elgin
Contempo, Stirling
Juniper, Aberdeen
The Nancy Smillie Shop, Glasgow
The Owl At Number 2, Aberdeen
Pippin Gifts, Edinburgh
Best Newcomer Gift Retailer
33 Market Place, Mildenhall
Barley Mow, Faversham
Cards & Moor, Yelverton
Fig & Fox, Romsey
Joli Gifts, Aberdeen
Orange Blossom Home & Gift, Pollokshields
Best Specialist Multiple Retailer Of Gifts (4 stores or more)
Collectables, North East (8 stores)
House of Cards, Home Counties (7 stores)
Lark, London and the South (20 stores)
Maybugs, Sussex and Kent (4 stores)
Oliver Bonas, nationwide (80+ stores)
Paper Tiger, Edinburgh (4 stores)
Best Department Store Retailer Of Gifts
Austins, Newton Abbot
Barkers, Northallerton
Elphicks, Farnham
John Lewis & Partners
Morleys Stores
Selfridges
Best Non-Specialist Retailer Of Gifts
Blenheim Palace Gift Shop
Jeyes Of Earls Barton, Earls Barton
Loch Leven’s Larder, Kinross
Natural History Museum Gift Shop, London
Pearce’s Farm Shop & Café, Buntingford
The Savill Garden Visitor Centre Gift Shop, Egham
Best Garden Centre Retailer Of Gifts (with up to 4 centres)
Barton Grange Garden Centre, Brock
Bents Garden & Home, Glazebury
Garsons, Esher and Titchfield
The Mains Of Drum Garden Centre, Banchory
Old Railway Line Garden Centre, Three Cocks
Ruxley Manor Garden Centre, Sidcup
Best Garden Centre Retailer Of Gifts (with 5 centres or more)
Blue Diamond Garden Centres (45 centres)
British Garden Centres (70 centres)
Caulders (10 centres)
Hillier Nurseries & Garden Centres (22 centres)
Longacres (6 centres)
Squires Garden Centre (16 centres)
Best In-store Or Window Display
Attico, Westbourne, for its Christmas windows
Bill & Bert’s, Colchester, for its Jellycat windows
Freckleface, Lincoln, Stamford and York, for its Laura Ashley windows
Highworth Emporium, Highworth, for its Christmas windows and in store displays
Hugs & Kisses, Tettenhall, for its Christmas window
Mooch, Bewdley and Stourport-on-Severn, for its Gingerbread windows
Best Retailer Initiative
Bill & Bert’s, Colchester, for its Jellycat Jack promotion
Brocante, Devon and Cornwall (10 stores), for its charity Christmas Extravaganza
The Celtic Company, Welshpool, for its national Urdd Eisteddfod school competition
KooKoo Madame, Caerphilly, Pontypridd and Talbot Green. for its pop-up shop and golden ticket promotion at the Eisteddfod festival
Little Boats Gifts, Brightlingsea, for its Easter Trail Crab Crawl
Maybugs, Bexhill, Eastbourne, Hailsham and Tunbridge Wells, for its push text message geo notifications activity
Outstanding Achievement Award 2025
No finalists are revealed for this special award.
All winners, including the recipient of the prestigious Outstanding Achievement award, will be revealed at The Gift Awards on Thursday, 15 May, at London’s Royal Lancaster Hotel, in an event once again bringing together The Giftware Association’s Gift Of The Year Awards – the finalists have already been announced – and The Greats gift retailer awards, organised and owned by Max Publishing, publishers of Progressive Gifts & Home/GiftsandHome.net.
At the glittering event, both gift product excellence and retail prowess will be recognised and rewarded in a true celebration of both sides of the UK gift industry.
Hyve Group, organiser of trade shows including Spring Fair, Autumn Fair, Glee and Source Home & Gift, is the headline sponsor of The Gift Awards. Other leading names in the impressive line-up of sponsors include Allsorted, Autumn Fair, BATF, Candlelight, Cardgains, Carte Blanche Greetings, Cereria Molla, DKB Toys & Distribution, FYG, Gift Republic, Gisela Graham, Good Results, Harrogate Christmas & Gift Fair, Letterbox Love, Life Charms, London Stationery Show, Messe Frankfurt, N Smith & Co, Progressive Greetings Live, Scotland’s Trade Fair/Springboard Events, Source Home & Gift, Spring Fair, Talking Tables and Trade Counter Distribution.
Tickets and tables for the awards can be booked via the Max Publishing digital box office event at Max-Tickets.net, or by contacting event organiser Createvents: clare@createvents.co.uk or 0118 334 0085.
