Stationery News

New Collections From Up With Paper
Up With Paper has unveiled its 2009 collection of greeting cards and stationery items.

For the first time, the company has introduced a St. Patrick’s Day collection, which includes eight cards total in the Treasures and Panoramics lines. Up With Paper also has new introductions for Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and Graduation.
According to George White, president of Up With Paper, the Mother’s Day line has traditionally been the company’s second best-selling collection, with Christmas being the first. Many of the cards in this year’s Mother’s Day collection feature bright, floral designs.

Another new product from Up With Paper is My Baby Book. The book is a pop-up baby memory keeper from Jumping Jack Press. The concept was introduced at the May 2008 National Stationery Show and has been tweaked to perfection and ready for ordering. The book has a suggested retail price of $34.95.
For more information about Up With Paper’s newest collections for 2009, call 800/852-7677 or visit www.upwithpaper.com.

Common Grounds: Something Different
Christa Sorauf, creative director for Connexxions, Inc., has translated her love for coffee into a successful line of greeting cards. The idea came to her while sitting at a coffee shop, which is one of her favorite pastimes.

“Our company is all about helping people make connections, and every day across the country and around the world, people make a connection over coffee,” says Christa. “The beverage has been elevated beyond a simple libation to an experience and culture onto itself. I wanted to develop a greeting card line that really taps into this trend.”

Christa and her business partners, Lesley Johnson and Stacey Massengale, brainstormed a name for the coffee-themed cards: Common Grounds. The line, which launched in fall 2008, features a modern color palette focused on coffee, and phrases and quotations on the greeting cards play off coffee culture. What makes the cards unique, though, is the enticing coffee scent on each of them.

“I knew immediately when I started designing these cards that they had to be scented,” says Stacey, another creative director at Connexxions. “Our sense of smell is so powerful; it can immediately conjure up an image and experience. When people receive one of our Common Grounds greeting cards, we want them to feel the positive experience of being in a coffee house and engaging in an interesting conversation with a favorite friend.”

Greenville, South Carolina-based Connexxions plans on expanding the line, as it has received positive feedback from retailers. “We look forward to introducing a dozen or so new cards every quarter,” says Lesley.

Cards in the Common Grounds line retail at $3.50 each. For more information, call 866/527-4258 or visit www.makeconnexxions.com.

Miquel-Rius Signs New Artist
Miquel-Rius recently partnered with Joshua Davis, an American artist, designer, and technologist known for his original method of generative art known as Dynamic Abstraction.

Joshua uses a single set of illustrated components and rules-based algorithms to assemble his illustrations into randomized compositions. His vibrant notebooks come in four designs; they range from $4.99 to $7.99 retail.

For more information, call 610/954-8893 or visit www.miquelrius.com.

Hallmark Introduces Cards With Flash Drives
In November 2008, Hallmark introduced a line of children’s greeting cards with flash drives shaped like characters from DreamWorks Animation’s “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa.”

The flash drives, which are the first licensed memory sticks by Hallmark and DreamWorks Animation, are contained within the greeting cards and hold three interactive games, music from the film, a desktop widget, screensavers, and more. Each flash drive also includes 1 GB of extra storage space for children to save their photos, school projects, and more.

“Cards with Flash Drives provide a safe way for children to play games and listen to music they love, all without having to access the Internet,” says Hallmark’s senior product manager Jennifer Weiss. “Cards with Flash Drives are convenient as well; a card and gift combined in one package.”

Cards with Flash Drives are now sold at Hallmark Gold Crown and Wal-Mart stores across the country. For more information, visit www.hallmark.com.

Spanish-Language Cards From Leanin’ Tree
Leanin’ Tree’s new Encuentros line of greeting cards is aimed at the Hispanic market. This colorful, Spanish-lanugage collection, which debuts this month, features 56 cards.

The company developed the line as a response to a lack of specialized stationery products for Spanish-speaking individuals. “The Hispanic market in the U.S. has surpassed 40 million consumers with purchasing power over $800 million,” says Patrick Wallace, marketing director with Leanin’ Tree. “We’re excited to help this dynamic audience stay in touch with family and friends with cards designed uniquely for their market.”

To identify card themes and important holidays in the Hispanic community, Leanin’ Tree worked closely with Strictly Spanish, a translation and marketing services company.

“We wanted to be accurate and relevant to Hispanics across the country, and Strictly Spanish was a valuable resource,” says Patrick.

The Encuentros line of greeting cards includes styles for for birthdays, quinceañeras, friendship, congratulations, get well, weddings, thank yous, and anniversaries.
The greetings are in Spanish with English translations on the back. The cards, which retail at $2.49 each, are printed on recycled paper using soy inks; they feature colorful photography and design elements.

For more information, call 800/525-0846 or visit www.tradeleanintree.com.

NobleWorks Introduces New Collections
The new eco-friendly collection of greeting cards from NobleWorks is printed on 100-percent post-consumer paper. New lines include “From Zero to Hero,” which features quirky everyday superheroes; “Astrology,” a collection of birthday cards featuring zodiac signs designed by artist Mitch O’Connell; and “Word,” a line that contains cards featuring pop-culture words or phrases embellished with colorful graphics.

Also new from NobleWorks is a line of presidential cards featuring President Elect Barack Obama. The cards are decorated with cartoons, including one of a superhero called The Obamanator.

Eleven Norman Rockwell cards are also new; the cards pair licensed Rockwell drawings, originally published in the Saturday Evening Post, with original NobleWorks phrases.

Six cards are available in the company’s new Happy Thoughts line, which pokes fun at corporate motivational posters. Ironically motivational cards include Unemployment, Multitasking, Senility, Ecstasy, Style, and Patriotism.

Finally, NobleWorks is introducing six new humorous cartoon cards from the company’s best-selling artist, Tim Whyatt.    

For more information, call 800/346-6253 or visit www.nobleworksinc.com.

Meri Meri Creates Interactive Card Line
Meri Meri’s new Acrobat card line introduces clever paper engineering to the company’s traditional die-cut designs.

The handmade, interactive cards feature tabs that move elements of the card when they are pulled. For example, a “we’re moving” card features a goldfish jumping from its bowl to a new home in a tank. Another design that reads “Have a winning birthday!” features racecars that can be moved around a track.

A variety of designs are available, including children’s, birthday, congratulations, wedding, get well soon, everyday, thank you, and more. Each card retails for $5.95.
For more information, call 650/508-2300 or visit www.merimeri.com.

Ex-CEO Of Russ Berrie Relaunches Kate’s Paperie
The former CEO and of Russ Berrie, Angelica Berrie, is the new CEO and owner of Kate’s Paperie, a New York City stationery boutique.

Angelica relaunched the newly designed shop in December 2008 along with a new website. Kate’s Paperie will introduce exclusive collections designed by notable fashion- and design-industry professionals. The company will also launch a gift-card program.

Kate’s Paperie carries high-end stationery items, including holiday products, giftwrap, decorative paper, albums, journals, organizers, office accessories, travel accessories, books, arts and crafts items, as well as some toys and games.

The flagship store is located on Spring Street in New York City. This location began its redesign with newly designed window displays by artist Zoe Bradley; Angelica says she will regularly use artists to design the store’s windows.

The company has four other stores that will also be redesigned throughout 2009; the New York stores are located in West Village, the Upper East Side, and Midtown, and one other store is located in Greenwich, Connecticut.

For more information, call 800/809-9880 or visit www.katespaperie.com.

JewishCard Sold
Jewish greeting card company JewishCard, which was founded by artist and calligrapher Terry F. Spodick, has been sold to Donna and Joel Rigler of Aptos, California.

The company, which began in 1997, specializes in stationery products with Jewish themes. Greeting cards for specific holidays, including Passover and Hanukkah, are available, as well as cards for Bar Mitzvahs, Bat Mitzvahs, weddings, birthdays, everyday, and more.

JewishCard’s contact information will remain the same. For more information, call 831/469-8883 or visit www.jewishcard.com.

American Stationery Signs Debra Valencia
American Stationery has signed a licensing agreement with graphic artist Debra Valencia, who will be the company’s very first licensed artist. The new personalized line will be introduced in this month.

Debra will be exhibiting in Booth 2989 at the Craft & Hobby Association Winter Show, which runs January 25-28 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California. Educational programs at the show run January 24-27. For more information about the show, visit www.chashow.org.

For more information about American Stationery, call 800/822-2577 or visit www.americanstationery.com.

Green Printing Council Created
New Jersey-based printer CMYK Printing recently launched the U.S. Green Printing Council.

National printers who are part of the new committee share a common interest in improving eco-friendly printing practices. The group will advocate environmentally friendly business practices in printing locations and paper mills as well as promote the use of recycled stocks.

For more information about the new organization, contact Thomas McVey, chief environmental officer for CMYK Printing, at 201/458-1300 or tom@cmykprinting.com.  

2009 IADD-FSEA Odyssey
The 2009 IADD-FSEA Odyssey runs May 6-8 at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta. The International Association of Diecutting and Diemaking (IADD) and the Foil Stamping & Embossing Association (FSEA) will sponsor the event.

The Odyssey will feature technical educational sessions as well as workshops on improving business strategies. The show will feature more than 100 industry suppliers. Online registration is available beginning February 1.

For more information about the show, including a list of exhibitors and contact information, visit www.iadd-fseaodyssey.com.

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