The festive frenzy has kicked-off; the mince pies are ready to be warmed and the mistletoe is about to be hung in expectation, so the December edition of Progressive Greetings shares the industry’s news, views, and new greeting card ranges to end the year on a high.
Never under-estimate the Isle Of Man, not least as the its Post Office team is a big fan of greeting cards and is doing much to promote Christmas sending, going all out on its festive stamp collection involving the GCA and several greeting card publishers. (click to pages 28-29).
As the industry adjusts to the evolving demands, expectations and options to counteract the drive to minimise single-use plastics so the issue of ‘front of card branding’ has raised its head. Leading indie retailers share their views in December PG’s Viewpoints (click pages 25-27)
The changing retail landscape is throwing up opportunities for the agile – and Irish publisher Garlanna is delighted by the opportunity to prove its worth to Leekes, the West Country and Wales-based department store group. Read all about the Garlanna and Second Nature retail execution (click pages 31-33).
As consumers make their final selections as to what calendars and diaries will track their happenings in 2020, so The Calies calendar and diary award winners recognise and reward the publishers at the top of the dating game. The Calies 2019 awards event, hosted by comedian Stuart Goldsmith took place recently at Stationers’ Hall in the City of London.
The winners’ roll call of the third Calies awards included Abrams & Chronicle Books, Allan & Bertram, BrownTrout Publishers, Carousel Calendars, Danilo, English Graphics, Rose Calendars, Seedlings Cards & Gifts, teNeues Calendars and Wrendale Designs.
Discover the full list of winners of this year’s calendar awards, scrutinised and chosen by the Judging Panel of retailers and industry experts from 40 different publishers that were entered (click to page 18).
And, of course, December’s PG also includes new product pages Innovations (click to pages 35-41); wise words from regular columnists, card publisher Blue Eyed-Sun’s Jeremy Corner, who reflects on the past year (click to pages 47-48), and David Robertson of Scottish retailer JP Pozzi, who explains retailers’ battle-cry on the high street (click to pages 20-21).
Plus, what’s currently the hottest card product for retailers (click to pages 44-45), Cardsharp (click to pages 22-23) and the industry’s latest news (click to pages 9-19).
What’s more, in the Focus On Kids’ Cards supplement, which is distributed alongside the December edition, you can discover the news and views on the children’s card market (Click here to read Focus On Kids’ Cards).
Wouldn’t you love to have a PG magazine to hold in your hand, read at work, on the loo, in bed or in the bath. Go on, you know you want to…to receive your very own copy in your fabulous hands click here to make that happen, all for a few quid a month.
In the interim, click here to read the whole PG December 2019 edition online.
