Business

The future for greeting cards in the UK remains positive, albeit with some changes in the industry. Greeting cards have long been a popular way of expressing sentiments, celebrating occasions, and maintaining personal connections. And there is still a demand for tangible, heartfelt greetings. However, with the increasing digitalization and changing communication patterns, the industry is experiencing shifts. The rise of social media, instant messaging, and electronic greetings has impacted the traditional greeting card market. … Read more

Are trade shows worth it? For B2B (business to business) e-commerce businesses, what other ways are there of coming in contact with potential customers? By they way, this doesn’t concern Flying Twigs, which is business to consumer. It concerns our sister enterprise at Half Moon Cards. Half Moon Cards is a B2B (business to business) e-commerce store selling greeting cards to independent shops. So for a B2B business, it’s particularly important to consider what are … Read more

Is paper a renewable resource? We live in a world conscious of the damage we can do with careless treatment of the environment. So of course we interested in the answer. When we have products made, we have to consider whether the resources are renewable. The issue is relevant to us as greeting card publishers. We want to be sure we can answer the question: Is paper a renewable resource? Here’s the answer. On the … Read more

Let’s talk about services that are ‘must haves’. Here’s the introductory paragraphs to an article from the Guardian of Mon 27 Mar 2023: Royal Mail bosses threaten insolvency Long-running talks between Royal Mail and the Communication Workers Union are on the brink of collapse, with the company’s board thought to have threatened to put the loss-making postal service – the regulated UK entity that delivers to every address in the country – into a form of … Read more

Stamp prices will rise on 3rd April. A first class stamp will cost £1.10 and a second class stamp will cost 75p. That’s an increase from 95p to £1.10 for a first class stamp and an increase from 68p to 75p for a second class stamp. I have more to say on the price rises in this article on Royal Mail’s actions. Because of the proposed increases, I wondered what the relative cost was in … Read more

Royal Mail is undermining the postal service, and this is how it is doing it. International Distribution Services PLC, the parent company of Royal Mail, published its half year results on 17 November 2022. As several news outlets commented, the section that deals with Royal Mail contains an unwelcome proposal. It is that “Government has been approached to seek an early move to five day letter delivery, whilst we continue to improve parcel services” Royal … Read more