Licensees are all set for next week’s physical trade exhibition at London’s Business Design Centre.
With just over a week to go until Progressive Greetings Live 2021 (27-28 July, Business Design Centre, London), licensees Danilo, Hallmark, Woodmansterne Publications, UK Greetings, Hype, Penny Kennedy, Ling Design, Glick, BB Designs, Cardology, Ohh Deer and Deva Designs are among the stellar line-up of exhibitors who are putting the final touches to their plans for the show.
“Nothing virtually can replace actual face to face meetings, and product showcasing,” commented Daniel Prince, managing director of Danilo. Echoing the view of PG Live exhibitors, he added: “We are so looking forward to seeing our industry friends and retailers. It’s been too long!”
Among its new launches, Danilo will be showing its ranges of Animal Crossing, CoComelon, Xbox, Warhammer, Elmer, Van Gogh Museum, Barbie, Brightside and Paramount, as well as collections to tie in with the movie releases of Spirit, My Little Pony and PAW Patrol.
Danilo’s launches join a strong showing of new licensed products being launched at PG Live.
Other key licensing launches include UK Greetings’ debut its collaboration with Kendra Dandy; Woodmansterne will be unveiling its Brilliant World of Tom Gates range; Ohh Deer will be showing its new Bob Ross, Cath Kidston and Chris (Simpsons artist) collections; Hallmark will be launching four new licensed collections (Crayola, Kate Smith Company, Disney Princess and Winnie the Pooh), while the Ling/Penny Kennedy/GBCC stand will be graced with an expanded selection of Morris & Co wrappings and stationery.
The show will also mark the UK launch of Pop Up Greetings, a sibling to BB Designs. Offering an alternative to traditional greeting cards, the company will be launching its range of ‘greetings balloons’ which self-inflate to a height of 24 inches via various power sources (USBs, smart phones, tablets, computers and wall sockets).
As one of the very first physical trade shows for a year and a half, the excitement and anticipation is building for next week’s PG Live. While the majority of exhibitors are greeting card and giftwrappings companies, there are also some partyware and gift exhibitors, as well as trade suppliers including art licensing agencies, Bright and Creative Sparrow.
PG Live organiser, Max Exhibitions has worked closely with the Business Design Centre team to firm up on its guidelines to give assurance as to the safety of exhibitors and visitors.
“We have all waited a long time for the greeting card community to get back together which is why we are doing our utmost to make the show as enjoyable and successful as possible, which includes the safety of our exhibitors and visitors,” stated Simon Boyd, operations director and co-show director. “In light of the Government announcement last Monday evening [12 July] we have been in close discussions with the management team at the Business Design Centre to finalise our Covid policy for the show.
“Our mission is to run a show in which everyone exhibiting as well as everyone visiting feels safe, reassured and confident.”
The Business Design Centre is a very airy, well ventilated building which has been functioning as an NHS vaccination centre for the last few months and so has been operating under strict Covid-safe regulations for some time.
Added to this, Max Bull, executive director of the BDC is also chairman of the Association of Event Venues (AEV) and has been in talks at top level on the issue of providing Covid safety in line with Government guidelines.
As it currently stands, from today (19 July) mask wearing will not be mandatory in England. However, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has announced that mask wearing will be compulsory for those travelling on London Transport (tube, buses, trams and overground).
The PG Live 2021 policy is that exhibitors, visitors and stand contractors will not be asked to wear a face covering if:
- You are able to show proof of a double vaccination (either by showing a vaccination card or the QR code from the NHS App) on arrival. With the lead time for verification from the NHS App (which is different from the track and trace one) taking longer than previously, all exhibitors and visitors are being urged you to do this sooner rather than later.
- You are able to show proof of a negative lateral flow test (taken within 48 hours prior to arriving at the show).
- You have a valid health condition that means you are not able to wear a face covering.
However, those not meeting any of the above criteria will be asked to wear a face covering at the show.
Out of personal preference, many of those who are exempt are likely to continue to wear a face covering at the show in certain situations.
As retailer David Robertson, managing director of JP Pozzi, who is travelling down from the Scottish Highlands to attend the show, commented: “Like so many others, I am so looking forward to PG Live. We all need trade shows; to see real product and interact face to face with those behind the brands. I am intending to wear a face covering at the show when I deem it appropriate and I am sure others will do the same.”
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