Leading greeting card publisher Card Connection recenly gave away a unicycle as a prize at a Blakemore Trade Show held at the NEC in Birmingham.

Mr VAT, manager of the Spar in Lewes Road, Brighton, won the ‘fun’ prize for estimating how much he would have to pay for stock on the Card Connection fixture if the company charged on delivery, rather than charging retailers for the stock sold.

“Some retailers do not appreciate the amount of funds they have tied up on their greeting card fixtures,” explains Stuart West, national sales manager at Card Connection. “Card Connection supply stock free and retailers only pay for the stock they sell – it’s better than sale or return!”

“We regularly attend trade exhibitions like the Blakemore Trade Show to showcase our range and tell retailers about the fantastic service and solution we have on offer,” continues West. “The unicycle certainly turned heads at the show and we were able to attract and engage with more retailers as a result.” 

Card Connection is one of the UK’s largest card publishers and is the market leader in the franchised distribution of greeting cards. The business’s unique model of consignment sales has resulted in a strong brand and established reputation which has been proven over many years and this year Card Connection celebrates its 21st year in operation as a franchisor. Through its franchisees Card Connection supplies about 12,000 retailers throughout the UK, including many Blakemore Spar outlets. 

Card Connection is part of UK Greetings (which is a subsidiary of American Greetings Inc., one of the largest greeting card publishers in the world) and has limited vacancies for franchisees who are keen to run an expanding business. 

Since the franchise network in the UK is complete, the available opportunities now consist of acquiring an already-established territory from an existing franchisee. These vary in price according to their level of development, but start at £7k + Stock + Card Connection fee with earnings potential in excess of £50k per annum.

In the photo: Stuart West, national sales manager, Card Connection (left) pictured with Mr VAT, manager of the Spar in Lewes Road, Brighton.