I think it’s something I am reasonably qualified to do, certainly more so than tiling (tried that once, never again) or football. I also believe it’s a part of the greeting card industry that some people within don’t like to acknowledge and yet rightly or wrongly it’s the one aspect of the industry that often generates the most media attention. This was very much in evidence towards the end of January when a less than kind post on Mumsnet about some of my ruder Valentine’s cards made it to a selection of national tabloids.
I’m very proud of my place in the industry but I’ll always feel like the naughty young offspring despite my eighteen years or so within it. There will never be a trade show where I don’t have to explain that “the old dears” actually do have a better sense of humour than the retailer may think. Or that over half of my collection is perfectly clean but one bit of profanity means it must be on every card. And then there’s the “I love these but I couldn’t possibly stock them”. I’ll always provide humour at the edgier end of the spectrum and I’ve always accepted some of the restrictions because of this. But – and in a moment of epic trumpet blowing – I’d like to stress the very important place rude cards have in the marketplace.