A trio of indies from Scotland, Herts and Yorkshire share their faves from PG Live
David Robertson, managing director of JP Pozzi, Buckie and Elgin:
Top picks: “There was so much good stuff. Here are some of my favourites, some of which would not suit our shops, but are worthy of a mention nonetheless for their inventiveness…
Alex Clark Art – for its new Coastal cards which I really like. They come in two sizes, combining gentle humour with good design and ideal if you are near the sea.
Cardshit – while I didn’t buy these as they are not for my customer, I liked them a great deal and follow them on Instagram. The range is fun and edgy.
Deadpan – again, a very different humour, which appealed to me, though wouldn’t work for my customers.
Amy Louise Design and Emily Kate – both publishers produce very pretty delicate designs in pastel shades and with good captions.
Hearts Design – its Mad Dots remains a tried and tested winner and the new Oh So Charming range is proving equally popular. I found these first at PG Live and (I think four years on) are still doing consistently well and are especially strong for significant age and wedding sends.
Hammond Gower – the new range of candles with matching cards have proven very popular already, so much so that we had to re-order very quickly.
Stormy Knight – I loved the Good as Gold collection and bought just about all the designs as they really appealed to me. I also liked the thought that had been put in the publisher’s Concertina style range – the packaging made it very simple to see what you were getting. I liked them so much I spent one of my Tickets with the company.
Tigerlily – The cards are very hipster but I loved the female/male characters which had all the right captions for me. I am not sure why I loved them, but I did!
I also loved the doggy cards on RULU, the text work on Papagrazi, the animal illustrations of Little Paperie and the board on Wendy Jones-Blackett’s new Mother-of-Pearl range. I could go on and on!”
Show business: “I really enjoyed the show and felt it had a very positive feel, despite the undoubted tough trading conditions.”
Jo Sorrell, owner of Cardies, Stevenage:
Top picks: “There was an amazing selection of companies on offer at PG Live and so much to see. I confess I am more than a little biased to any animal cards and especially any featuring dogs. A company that really caught my eye was Dotty Dog Art. Dogs are always a popular subject on cards but can sometimes be a little predictable in design. However this company had great captions as well as great artwork.
I also enjoyed seeing the new product from Wendy Jones-Blackett, with whom we spent our Retas Sunshine Ticket, as well as the new cards from Nigel Quiney. One design in particular that caught my eye from NQ was a large daughter card with a beautiful unicorn on it. I liked it so much that I asked if I could have the sample card at the end of the show so that my Mum could send it to me for my birthday the next day – “Nothing like choosing your own card,” my Mum said! (who knows very well what I love and had already chosen me a great unicorn card from Paperlink!).”
Show business: “Congratulations on 10 years of being the best greeting card show. Here’s to the next 10 years! As always, I really enjoyed my day at PG Live. I feel very lucky to be part of such a wonderful industry. Everyone is so kind and welcoming. I always enjoy seeing lots of new companies and product, as well as catching up with my existing companies and having the chance to chat with fellow ‘cardies’.”
Rachael Barnes, co-owner of Dragonfly Cards & Gifts, Knaresborough:
Top picks: “The star of the show for us was IC&G‘s new sentiment range, Eternal. Our customers love wordy cards and we’re finding it harder and harder to source them as most new designers seem to favour blank cards. These have beautiful words teamed with a fresh modern look – I’m sure they’ll fly off our shelves.
Humour is always another area we constantly look to refresh, and Cherry Orchard‘s Wot a Mug range was a pleasant surprise. The range is very different from the publisher’s usual style, but fabulous and a great price point too.
Although PG Live is really about the cards we also ordered Blue Eyed Sun’s Bamboo Cups at the show, as we’re keen to promote anything environmentally friendly and these are the strongest designs of any we’ve seen.”
Show business: “Fabulous show – we had a great time catching up with old friends and making some new ones too!”
