The daffodils are out, kids go back to school on Monday, the vaccination roll out is going great guns, the Budget was pretty reasonable…and the 30th anniversary edition of Progressive Greetings is out now! Happy Friday everybody.
And what’s more, PG is accompanied by a Progressive Calendars special publication that is crammed full of loads of new titles for 2022 – a year when we will be able plan events, meet-ups and holidays knowing they will stick.
This edition is published slightly later than usual, to tie in with retailers returning to their shops to prepare for the grand re-opening next month.
And what an opening up it is going to be! See News (click to page 8-9) and find out how some indies are preparing for it. (click to page 52-53).
There are no prizes for guessing what independent greeting card retailers cited as having been the biggest bane to their business over the last year. However, while Covid-19 was the major reason that 65% of indies reported a drop in revenues, the effects of the pandemic paradoxically also contributed to what was the biggest boost to their business – the shop local trend. These are just two of the findings of this year’s PG Retail Barometer, the only annual survey into the health and wealth of the independent greeting card retailer. (Click to pages 34-35)
Without glossing over the business and psychological hardships that the pandemic has caused in our sector as well as the world at large, the responses also serve up some uplifting morsels, not least that over three quarters of indies believe that the consumer’s appreciation of greeting cards has shifted upwards over the last year.
With this being such a historic edition of Progressive Greetings (click to 42-43), greeting card industry leaders (from the publishing, retailing and production sides) share their respective perspectives on the major changes they have tracked, as well as their predications for the future. (click to pages 26-27).
Publishers have definitely been focused on the future, having gone into overdrive with the new launches are now all set to pep up retailers’ racks. (click to pages 58-59).
Among the newness from Woodmansterne is a stunning collection based on a licensing collaboration with Sanderson, the first time the wallpaper/fabric brand has seen its designs gracing greeting cards in its 160-year history. (Click to pages 56-57).
Meanwhile, having come a long way since her industry debut in 2015, Louise Mulgrew of Louise Mulgrew Designs has set her sights on further expansion – and take her closer to her goal of planting a million trees. (Click to pages 48-49)
Independent sales agents have been ‘digging deep’ over the last year. PG finds out what approach they have taken to their ‘garden maintenance’ to keep ‘weeds’ at bay in their ‘patch’ of the UK, as well as what has been their personal ‘fertiliser’ that has kept them well-rooted and their leaves shiny. (click to pages 74-75).
From shiny leaves to waggy tails. Pet ownership has soared during the pandemic, as the public (including those in the card trade) made the most of their extended time at home to welcome four legged ‘babies’ into the family – and so too have card publishers found they are barking up the right tree with their new doggie and moggie ranges. (click to pages 70-71).
PG columnist and retailer, David Robertson highlights the importance of communication on every level (click to pages 22-23). Meanwhile, Cardsharp donned some tough workboots this month in his column, making comparisons with Paperchase and Dr Martens. (click to pages 24-25).
While some leading retailers share what products are selling on their card racks in What’s New (click to pages 86-87), a handful of artists agents and picture library execs reveal what they feel will be driving are aesthetic tastes in the coming year that are likely to be reflected on greeting card ranges. (click to pages 82-83)
All this and more in the pages of a lovely glossy magazine and supplement. Wouldn’t you like to hold it in your hands so you can flick through and read it wherever it takes your fancy?
To SUBSCRIBE NOW go to www.max-subscriptions.net
However, if you can’t wait, to read the whole PG February 2021 edition, you can click here.
And Progressive Calendars can be read online too, by clicking here.
