More Personal Than a Text: Holiday Cards See Increase as the Pandemic Continues into the Holidays
NY Times | December 2, 2020
In a year marked by distance, loss and virtual events, physical greeting cards are a proving to be a meaningful alternative. Megan Sim, who owns an online greeting card shop called Saucy Avocado, reported her coronavirus-themed greetings — featuring hazmat suits, Zoom references and wishful lines about vaccines — have been selling in bulk.
A survey by Enksy, an online crafts marketplace, found that 46 percent of respondents planned to send physical cards this season, with the number jumping to 62 percent for respondents who are avoiding in-person gatherings.
For the greeting card industry, which has been declining for decades, it’s a significant turnaround. When all we want for Christmas is to be together, sending a cheeky card is the next best thing. Card makers, like Hallmark and Paper Source, are reaping the benefits and reporting rising sales.
Many card makers began producing pandemic-themed cards in March. “Humor is a big element for us,” Ms. Park said. “With Covid it’s been like the stages of grief. The humor feels appropriate because people have been in this for so long.”
So for the holidays, she put masks on many of her standard designs. Packs of 24 cards are her best sellers this year, she said. “More people are taking the time to send cards and tell people, ‘I care about you.’”
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