Full proof as to how ‘on trend’ Rachel Church, founder of Rachel Ellen Designs is, she was actually in the middle of painting a rainbow when she heard the news that her company had been heralded as a leading example of one of the exponents of ‘the emblem of the year’ – a rainbow.
In the John Lewis & Partners’ report ‘How we shop live and look 18’, the retailer highlights what we have loved in 2018, highlighting rainbows, yellow, the leopard print dress and sustainable water bottles, thongs, vegan beauty products, the robotic lawnmower and the white trainer as being up there.
Pronouncing the rainbow as emblem of the year, the report says ‘Whether it was celebrating diversity or making a fashion statement, the rainbow was a popular trend this year and an instant mood booster.’
It details that sales of the Rachel Ellen Designs’ rainbow range were up by 38%.
Sharing her views on the current rainbow trend, Rachel, whose grandma’s maiden name was rainbow, said: “Rainbows symbolise many things including hope, luck, promise, and fresh new beginnings and then of course there’s that pot of gold at the end of them all! They are so beautifully colourful and seemingly magical in their appearance, inspiring a feeling of awe and wonder whenever we catch sight of them, transporting us to another world. This is particularly apt right now in this era of uncertainty and negative news – we all need to escape a little I think!”
As to their appropriateness for greeting cards, she says of rainbows
“Being positive, colourful, simple and iconic makes them a perfect subject matter for greeting cards, for both the young and the young at heart, and for all sorts of occasions.”
· Talking of findings a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow, in what must be one of the most romantic happenings in the greeting card industry of late, Rachel Ellen Designs’ production manager Bryn Staley recently took his girlfriend Rachel on a short break to New York. He chartered a private yacht that was timed to sail past the statue of Liberty at sunset, and had even organised a photographer to capture the moment when he proposed to her. “It was all a complete surprise that took military planning, Rachel was overwhelmed but did say yes!!” confirmed the company’s commercial director, Paul Roberts.
Top: Some of the rainbow filled designs from Rachel Ellen Designs.
