International perspectives from Germany and The Netherlands
With international travel now fully opened up, PG has grabbed its passport for a spot of globetrotting, checking in with some of the leading greetings distributors and publishers in various parts of the globe to find out how the card trade has been in their respective corners of the world.
In this second edition from the international perspective, today we hear from Dorothé and Ton Hollander in The Netherlands, and Germany’s Stefan Hermann…
The Netherlands: A sustained Covid card lift
Dorothé and Ton Hollander, co-owners of Artige
What has trade been like in the last year?
“In The Netherlands the sale of greeting cards increased during Covid and, luckily, this wasn’t something temporary as 2022 was another great year.”
What have been some of the ups and downs?
“A lack of staff has been the biggest challenge for us. However, on the positive front people have appreciated that a greeting card remains such an important way to show that you care about someone. To post a card, a smile through the mailbox is a small effort but so impactful.”
Any company news?
“It was Artige’s 25th anniversary in 2022 and we achieved our highest-yet turnover.”
What are your hopes and dreams for trade this year?
“We work with a team of amazing people on a product that delivers a smile through mailboxes every day, everywhere. Every time we launch a new collection, we’re so excited to see how it is received, both by the shop owners and consumers. What a great challenge to try to surprise them time after time! We hope to continue doing this, not only in 2023, but for the next 25 years!”
Germany: Stable, but supply chain issues
Stefan Hermann, managing director of Taurus-Kunstkarten
What has trade been like in the last year?
“We were happy with 2022 as sales were stable and not as bad as expected.”
What have been some of the ups and downs?
“As for everybody the situation with the supply chains, high energy prices, unreliable business processes were challenging. However, as for the positives, that would have to be our staff, who for the last two and half years have remained engaged and very flexible in their working patterns.”
Have you tracked any changes in card buying habits in Germany?
“We’ve seen buying habits for certain occasions shifting. Weddings, for example, were spread over the whole year with the card buying reflecting this.”
Any company news?
“We started distributing two more publishers from the UK – Paper Salad and Say It With Songs.”
What are your hopes and dreams for this year?
“In common with others, I’d like to see an end to the conflicts everywhere, especially in Ukraine.”
These international views also appeared in the February edition of Progressive Greetings magazine which can be read online here, or you can subscribe here to receive the magazine by post each month.
