Catch up on all the latest news and views in the April issue of Progressive Greetings, which is out now, both in physical form and digitally online.
Want to know what products have caught the eye of some of the UK’s top retail buyers? In the April issue of PG, we catch up with some of the retail ‘dragons’ who took part in the recent GCA speed-dating with Dragons event. They reveal what they learnt from the experience; their ideas for working with publishers to grow the industry; as well as what ranges they saw that got them all ‘fired’ up (see pages 25-27).
A major research project by Clintons has been delving into the nation’s emotional psyche, reflected in the card buying patterns in its stores of the general public over the last year. Read our interview with Tim Fairs, vp marketing and eCommerce at Clintons, to hear more about this innovative ‘emotional state of the nation’ address, in what Clintons aims will become an ongoing Emotional Index, tracking the sales of its occasions greeting cards by sentiment (see pages 38-39).
It was good news for mums and retailers alike with sales of greeting cards up across all retailers we spoke to. Given the later date of this year’s Mother’s Day compared to last year, the longer lead-up helped boost sales of greeting cards. Discover more about how card retailers fared in April’s issue (see page 9).
Cathy Frost, owner of gift and card shop, Loveone in Ipswich, reveals how adding cards, stationery and giftwrap to her offering has opened up new opportunities to her business, and shares her insight as to how a humble greeting card can be an important vehicle to tempt customers into her store and build on that relationship (see pages 20-21).
With beautiful time-pieces, tattoos, vinyl records and, of course, the odd glass of a full-bodied red wine, we check out a strapping line-up of newly launched male card in this month’s issue (see pages 40-43).
Mark and Leona Janson-Smith, partners of London-based card retailer Postmark, opened their fourth store in Greenwich last month, and it’s a wonderland of giant rulers used as shelf spacers, pens displayed on a candy floss cart, while central is an enormous tree festooned with plush creatures. And, in an ingenious light bulb moment by Mark and Leona, it’s a place where your card can be stamped with an exclusive Greenwich Mean Time postmark and posted instore. PG caught up with Mark and Leona to find out more about their new imaginative emporium (see pages 46-47).
Next month, the May issue of Progressive Greetings gets its ‘laughing gear’ around news, views and new card ranges from the funnyside of the market in Focus On Humour Cards.
