gaukorg, Author at Giftware blog

June 14, 2018June 13, 2018 gaukorg GIFTWARE

NEWS FROM BLUE EYED SUN

Blue Eyed Sun, are launching a gorgeous fresh new range of Everyday cards called BISCUIT in Design Point 1 – Stand D110 at Home & Gift in Harrogate.

BISCUIT has sixty cute designs based on original hand-painted artworks by Jo Corner. They all feature decoupage elements and are hand finished with jewels in the UK. Covering a good selection of relations and loved ones, this cute range includes loads of relations and occasions captions. BISCUIT are 125mm x 125mm in size and retail for £2.75 (trade price £1.14 each).

Sold in sixes to trade buyers only, all of our cards are blank inside, barcoded and cello-wrapped with a coloured envelope. All are printed on board from sustainable sources.

Blue Eyed Sun’s cards are available to order through their easy-to-use, trade only website, their latest brochures and they also have a team of sales agents across the country that can come in to see you with samples and help you choose the right look for your shop.

Blue Eyed Sun’s BambooCup is Hot Property

BambooCup is a beautiful fast selling range of eco-friendly, reusable coffee cups which continues to sell well with retailers throughout the UK.

“As exclusive distributors of BambooCup, BambooFriends and SlideCup products in the UK and Ireland we are proud to be making a difference in the world with these products. Not only that but taking care of the planet this is a hot product trend because we all want sustainable eco solutions to the problem of single use plastics.” – Jeremy Corner, MD, Blue Eyed Sun and Chairman of the Giftware Association.

BambooCup is designed to reduce the 2.5 billion plastic lined single use cups which are wasted each year. Made predominantly from sustainable, fast growing bamboo fibre and tested to the highest standards, BambooCup feels lovely to hold and has over 50 contemporary designs in the collection. BambooCup includes a patented, lockable lid made from bamboo instead off silicone and comes with a thermal sleeve. Dishwasher safe, odour free and taste neutral, BambooCup is available with great looking point of sale solutions including a 96 pocket floor stand and a 36 pocket counter top stand.

Your readers can quote GR18 for free point of sale options (when ordering the floor stand fully stocked or 36 cups for the 12 pocket countertop stand).

With lots of exciting new products planned for the coming year, follow @BambooCupUK on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter to keep up to date with the latest news.

Email sales@blueeyedsun.co.uk or call 01273 823003 to request a price list and catalogue. Visit www.blueeyedsun.co.uk/blog/BambooCup for more details.

See all of Blue Eyed Sun’s bamboo products in Design Point One – Stand D110 at Home & Gift in Harrogate.

Watch a video of our new BambooCup here: https://www.blueeyedsun.co.uk/blog/blue-eyed-sun-bamboocup-distributors-uk-ireland/

June 13, 2018 gaukorg GIFTWARE, Uncategorized

NEW GIFTWARE BRAND LAUNCHED – BLOOM GIFTWARE

We are excited to announce the launch of a new luxury lifestyle and gift brand, Bloom Giftware. New members to The Giftware Association, but no stranger to the world of home and gift.

Bloom Giftware is an idea blossomed from one of our members, Bloom Interiors, who are associated with Better Pathways, a leading mental health charity in Birmingham.

Building up a valuable reputation in the interior and soft furnishings industry, Bloom Giftware are now entering the giftware world. This exciting new brand features exquisite design-led gift products all manufactured in the UK. Bloom Giftware will be showcasing an exclusive preview evening on Monday 18^th June in the heart of the Creative arts quarter, Birmingham at Fazeley Studios. At this preview event there will be an opportunity for you to experience the brand, hear the back story, view the products and be part of this celebratory evening.

Founders of Bloom Giftware have announced the launch of the brand to begin with three luxurious collections, Tropical Paradise, Floral Frenzy and Limited Edition by Jason Clarke. Products within these collections include washbags, scented candles, Bone China mugs and much more.

Each collection promotes individual artists and showcases the positive and creative side of mental ill health. Bloom Giftware is set to be an inspirational brand; they will provide a platform to support artistic talents within the mental health community.

To find out more about the brand please get in touch with simone.rose@ga-uk.org

June 13, 2018June 13, 2018 gaukorg GIFTWARE

INCOMING GA CHAIRMAN TO TAKE PART IN LIVE FACEBOOK SESSION WITH PETER JONES (CBE) TODAY AT 5PM

Our incoming Chairman of The Giftware Association, Jeremy Corner will be taking part in a Facebook live session, hosted by Sage, to discuss the key successes of British Business and what drives them. The session will start at 5pm today. Viewers can register for free here – https://www.facebook.com/events/1891389467837232/

Jeremy will be joining Peter Jones (CBE), Janice B Gordon, Kevin Poulter in this session which will outline issues and opportunities facing British businesses in the current climate and with Brexit approaching. Sign up now so you don’t miss this opportunity to hear about #businessambition

Sage appointed Peter Jones, Dragon’s Den star and one of the UK’s most recognisable entrepreneurs, as its new Ambition Ambassador back in April 2018. Peter is a serial entrepreneur. He maintains a portfolio of more than 40 businesses.

June 12, 2018 gaukorg GIFTWARE

LAUNCHPAD MANCHESTER COMPETITION OPEN

The competition to alert individuals and companies to opportunities in the dynamic UK stationery industry is back for its fourth edition at the 2018 Stationery Show Manchester.

The ‘LaunchPad Manchester’ search is now on for up to six individuals or companies with new ideas for products or services for the stationery industry to enter a competition to win a free exhibitor stand at the 2018 Stationery Show Manchester. The closing date for entries is 31 July 2018.

The bi-annual trade show, which runs in London in April and Manchester on 9 & 10 October, attracts the UK’s biggest retailers, influential buyers and brands in the stationery sector. As part of its Manchester offering of fantastic writing and paper products, six stands are reserved for the LaunchPad competition winners to showcase their ideas and products to visitors and fellow exhibitors.

Run for the first time by the Stationery Show in London in April 2017, and again by the Manchester Show in October, the LaunchPad initiative has so far showcased 30 new hopefuls.

“Finding and alerting designers and those who love working with paper or writing instruments to consider the stationery industry as a great market for their work is important – it’s good for all of us to see and work with new ideas. There are plenty of opportunities for those with innovative ideas and enthusiasm in our sector,” says the stationery shows event manager, Hazel Fieldwick.

“The two trade shows are currently the only dates in the stationery industry calendar where so many key suppliers and retailers come together, so they are the perfect platform for this type of initiative. We’re looking forward to seeing all the entries.”

The show team was delighted when no fewer than three LaunchPad winners picked up prestigious Stationery Awards at the April 2018 London show – Paper Mirchi (Manchester 2017 winner) won the Gift Packaging & Wrap category, Octagon Design won Diaries, Organisers & Calendars and Back Pocket Notebooks (both London 2018 winners) won the Good Design category.

“This sort of recognition by the industry for new products and suppliers is fantastic and will help each of these companies on their way to develop and grow their sales and ideas,” said Hazel.

The closing date for entries is Tuesday, 31 July 2018. The entry form can be found on the Stationery Show Manchester website home page – www.stationeryshowmanchester.co.uk.

The LaunchPad competition is open to any company which, or individual who:

● Has not exhibited at either the London or Manchester Stationery Shows previously

Has the rights to sell the featured product/range/service

● Does not currently sell the featured product/range/service through any UK national retail accounts or distributors in the stationery retail sector

Each winner will receive a free exhibition stand at the Manchester show, coverage on the show website and inclusion in all the show’s marketing materials. In addition, they will get great exposure to all the UK’s leading retailers and suppliers visiting the show and will receive PR and marketing support from the Stationery Show team.

June 11, 2018 gaukorg GIFTWARE

YOUR AGM AND MEMBERS DAY

The Giftware Association AGM and members day is just around the corner featuring a day of education, networking, and fun. The event will be held on the 20th June at the Mockingbird Cinema, in the heart of the creative quarter of Digbeth, Birmingham, a fitting area for our industry. Timings for the day will start from 10.30am and approx finish at 3.30pm

The theme surrounding this year’s members’ day will focus on preparing your business to be fit for the future, whether that means keeping up to date with the latest compliance and regulations or your journey to introducing your product range to market. We will have the experts, competition winners and member companies talking about their experiences in the home and giftware world. We will also be appointing our new Chairperson.

Breakfast and lunch will be provided, networking with your industry peers as well as a wealth of knowledge shared with you, and we are even offering you a treat and a chance to sit back and relax at the end of the day with a discounted screening of a new film,Studio 54: the Documentary. Please note this will be charged separately on the day, for only £3.

Tickets to the event will be £25 only for members and £50 for non-members.

The schedule for the day is as follows:

· Gather between 10am and 11am, with pastries and hot drinks provided;

· At 11am, the formal AGM will begin, including the election of a new chair of the National Committee, and a report from the current chair;

· From around 11.20 until noon, our headline speaker Michael Wheedon will be speaking about retail performance;

· Lunch will be served between noon and 1pm;

· In the afternoon, three panel debates set to end not long after 3pm:

o Compliance (CDPR, cybersecurity, CE marking);

o The Value of Industry Awards;

o Routes to Market: Futureproofing your Business

· After a networking break, the film will be shown at 4pm.

As ever, this is your members’ day, and we would like to make sure we have tailored our content to suit your needs. Feel free to let us know if there are any specific questions or topics within the panel debates that you think are particularly important.

The rest of the day will feature panels allowing you to ask experts and fellow members your questions on topics such as GDPR, Marketing and PR, entry to Amazon and the importance of entering industry awards. Make sure to book your place now.

For more information about the day simone.rose@ga-uk.org or chris.workman@ga-uk.org