Postmark, Heaven at Home and Cats Whiskers/Expressions share their PG Live top picks.
Mark Janson-Smith, managing director of Postmark, five shops in London:
What products caught your eye at last month’s Progressive Greetings Live show?: “Among this year’s gems were the amazing new Jamboree range of age and relation cards from Paper Salad, the finish just has to be seen!
We loved the new humour range from The Art File, Lion, which won’t be everyone’s cup of tea but the designs make you think, which we love to see on a humour card. We also loved the Felty Alphas from Little Paperie, as well as the new designs from Tache and Earlybird too.”
What did you think of the show?: “PG Live was as fantastic as ever!
I have been to every PG Live show and do genuinely think they get better each year. There was so much to see and so many people to catch up with that I visited both days for the first time. It is such a great show for new talent and also a real focus for the industry giants to make sure they have new lines to release for the show – it really can’t be missed.
We are very much looking forward to the next 10 years of PG Live – it really is one of the must go to shows of the year for us.”
Anne Barber, owner of In Heaven at Home, Market Harborough
What products caught your eye at last month’s Progressive Greetings Live show?: “I found some great new cards suppliers and it was lovely to be able to spend my voucher with Lucy Alice Designs. I love the simplicity, our customers will love the colours and the animals are SO cute. She also incorporates a little bird incorporated into a few designs, which reminds me of the birdy in my logo and is very special.
I love Sarah Kelleher’s designs – again so pretty, colourful with cheerful florals and pompoms. The new range of animal cards, which I ordered at PG Live, are adorable. Sarah has introduced ‘A little hug’ bear card design into her range for me as I suggested at PG Live to go with her ‘a big hug’ bear card. How’s that for customer service and speed!!
I also love The Proper Mail Company and the fact that it works with a selection of designers to create a lovely embellished range of square cards – I ordered all its new cards at the show.”
What did you think of the show?: “What a lovely atmosphere there was throughout the whole of the show – it was really friendly and inviting, plus easy to navigate. PG Live has created something quite special and different from some of the other shows I attend.
PG Live has a unique feel – it’s like a lovely daytime party to meet like-minded card people – what could be nicer?!”
Chris and Tracey Bryant, co-owners of Expressions in Swindon and The Cats Whiskers in Bishops Cleeve:
What products caught your eye at last month’s Progressive Greetings Live show?: “Our two shops are quite different – Expressions is a specialist card shop offering a wide choice in both design and price points, while The Cats Whiskers is primarily a gift and home shop with a sizeable card department selling high end cards and wrap.
On the UKG stand (our main supplier at Expressions), we loved the new Kindred range and will feature this in both shops.
We were lucky enough to have a Retas Silver and Sunshine ticket to spend this year. Our Silver ticket was spent with Five Dollar Shake, taking the chance to top up from new designs available. Our Sunshine ticket was spent with Blue Eyed Sun, not on cards but on the eagerly awaited release of its new BambooCup reusable cups. We love the breadth of designs, coupled with the attractive display stand available.
We placed large orders with Dandelion Stationery – our customers love the sentiments conveyed, often with a touch of humour. We also loved the new children’s age range Jamboree from Paper Salad.
Rosanna Rossi is always received well at The Cats Whiskers, so we look forward to adding its new Kirra range in the near future.
From Springboard we really liked the designs on offer from Jemma Banks Design. Jemma’s whimsical characters and use of a soft colour palette will sit comfortably at Cats Whiskers.”
What did you think of the show?: “This year was our sixth visit to PG Live since purchasing Expressions in Swindon. We always enjoy attending as we love the atmosphere, meeting friends from all sectors of our industry, suppliers, agents, fellow retailers giving us the chance to exchange views. Plus, let’s not forget the wonderful lunch, and freely available coffee and tea.
This year we felt the show had a real buzz, numbers attending seemed noticeably up on last year contributing to a very positive vibe throughout the show.”
