The UK Greeting Card Association

We are now down to a limited number of tickets for the GCA Conference and AGM taking place on Thursday 19th September in Bristol. To guarantee your place, please book your tickets by Tuesday 10th September. We have a great line up of speakers including James Taylor from Cardzone, David Gold director at Royal Mail, and Kantar will sharing their latest consumer insights plus we will also be sharing some information from the GCA’s latest market report. Please see full details here - https://lnkd.in/eVfdgDVU I hope you can make it!

Come and hear the story of Ohh Deer | Playful Paper Goods | B Corp™ at this year's AGM and conference in Bristol (along with lots of other great speakers!) Tickets are on sale now and you can grab yours here: https://lnkd.in/eVfdgDVU #AGM #conference #greetingcards #ohhdeer #GCA

Good to meet with GCA vice president Karen Wilson at Paper Salad head office - and great to have a sneak preview of Paper Salad’s gorgeous new designs, ready for launch at Autumn Fair!

* Are you a designer or art student interested in joining the UK greeting card industry. We are a vibrant exciting creative industry, leading the world in greeting card design and innovation – to find out more about working in our industry see here https://lnkd.in/dkvAu97f * Are you a GCA member considering recruiting new creative talent for the first time, visit the GCA website for top tips on working with graduates and recruiting new creative talent . https://lnkd.in/drqM6iJc

We are delighted to announce that David Gold, Royal Mail’s Director External Affairs & Policy, will be speaking at the GCA’s Bristol Conference. David is keen to hear members concerns as well as to share Royal Mail’s plans for the future, including Christmas 2024. “We look forward to welcoming David to our Conference, and appreciate his willingness to hear directly from members and share Royal Mails plans especially ahead of the crucial run up to Christmas” says Amanda Fergusson, GCA’s CEO The 2024 annual GCA Conference and AGM will be held in Bristol on Thursday 19th September 2024 at the Bristol Harbour Hotel. Tickets are selling fast! Book yours now! - https://lnkd.in/eVfdgDVU

Exciting news from Faire who have recently joined the GCA community. In celebration of Independent Retailer Month this July, Faire has launched an ‘Open with Faire’ contest - offering £5,000 prizes in Faire credit for recently opened or soon-to-open retailers to stock their shelves with unique products. Whether you’re dreaming of opening your very own shop this year, considering expanding into a new location, or want to try out new products in your recently opened shop, this is an incredible opportunity for anyone looking to make their mark in the retail industry. The competition runs for 6 weeks, with a panel of industry experts selecting the winners. Don't miss out! Submit your entry today and take the first step towards making your dream a reality. Simply complete the short application by August 14 for the chance to win: https://lnkd.in/dJVwzebc #OpenWithFaire #IndependentRetailerMonth #SupportSmallBusiness #Faire *Entries close on August 14 (5pm GMT), 2024. Entry requirements and full terms and conditions detailed on the competition landing page. https://lnkd.in/dxsJURah

On Saturday, 75 people from across the Greeting Card industry marched at Pride in London and handed out 25,000 cards to the crowds - encouraging people to spread the message of Pride beyond the day. As you'll see in the photos we had an INCREDIBLE time and it was a huge honour to march so close to the front (3rd position, safely behind Durex). A huge thanks to our industry sponsors who helped getting the The UK Greeting Card Association there for a second year in a row. Ohh Deer | Playful Paper Goods, UK Greetings, Top Drawer London, Home & Gift Buyers' Festival , Hallmark UK & Ireland, Dean Morris, Cath Tate Cards and Paper Rose Ltd and a massive thanks to The Imaging Centre for printing the cards, Fedrigoni Group for supplying the board and Enveco Ltd for supplying the envelopes. We must also give a huge thanks to 📓 Mark Callaby from Ohh Deer | Playful Paper Goods for organising this again for a second year. It's a privilege to march for such an important event and we're so lucky that we get to work in such a diverse and inclusive industry. Thanks to all our marchers from Ricicle Cards, Austin & Co, Nick Dale, Card Factory, Cardology, Cath Tate Cards, Top Drawer London, Dean Morris, Dinosaurs Doing Stuff, EARLYBIRD DESIGNS LIMITED, Progressive Greetings Live, Moonpig, Ohh Deer | Playful Paper Goods, Paper Rose Ltd, thortful, UK Greetings, The Queer Store, Pink and Mint Designs, Running with Scissors, Jessie Maeve Studio. Fancy joining us for Manchester Pride? Drop us a message to find out more information! #pride #prideinlondon #sendacardwithpride #sendacard #greetingcards 🌈

The GCA is hosting a lunch and learn on “How to drive the most benefit from a B2B trade website” Whether you are considering launching a trade web site for the first time or trying to figure out how to derive more value from your existing site - this session is for you. Small publisher or well-established organisation? Aspin will share insights based on the experience of developing trade web sites for companies in the greetings card sector for over 20 years. Aspin can draw on this expertise to explore some of the key factors that make the difference between delivering a superb eCommerce project  - or simply a mediocre one. Host: Lizzi Benger Date: 12.00 pm, 16 July 2024 Click here to find out more or book your place - https://lnkd.in/dzkSkk4z

GCA Agents Webinar: If you are currently working with agents, or looking to recruit and build mutually beneficial relationships with agents, this webinar is for you! Experienced sales manager James Mace leads this webinar sharing his top tips for working successfully with sales agents. Also on our expert panel are agents Rose Trow and Richard Pass who will be sharing insights and experience into the role of the agent. Date: 10 am on Tuesday 9th July 2024 Cost: £20 (GCA Members)/ £75 (non-GCA Members) Here is the link to book your place - https://lnkd.in/dyuXBPwK