Article by Jakki Brown of Progressive Greetings
From creating special thank you cards for nurses and doctors, to developing posters that enable the public to show their support, donating thousands of cards to wards, to launching products to raise money for hospital trusts, the UK greeting card industry has come out in force for the NHS.
As a poignant reminder of the very important role greeting cards play in our lives, providing tangible proof of relationships and love, Nottingham-based greeting card and gift company Emma Ball & Co made an important delivery of thousands of its products on Easter Monday to Ward F22, a palliative care Covid-19 ward of the city’s QMC’s hospital.
The staff of Ward F22, a palliative care Covid-19 ward have said they were “so grateful” to receive 2,000 greeting cards, 1,000 postcards, 200 notebooks, a host of thank you notelets that have been donated by Nottingham-based card publisher.
Meanwhile down in Leigh-on-Sea in Essex, compelled to do something to support “the amazing work that the NHS are doing”, co-owners of card publisher Brainbox Candy, Mark Williams and Ben Hickman have designed seven different posters which are free to download from the company’s website. https://www.brainboxcandy.com/free-posters/
Included in the selection are two outlined designs which can be printed out for children to colour in.
Echoing the huge participation in the ‘clap for the NHS’ one poster features hands applauding in thanks, another is based round the message ‘Not all superheroes wear capes’ while another is a colourful rainbow with an overarching message of ‘Thank you’.
“We have posted about the posters on social media and have had some amazing supportive and appreciative feedback both from the public and retailers,” said Mark.
Mooch Cards & Gifts, which has shops in Bewdley and Stourport, was among those to immediately get behind using the posters, affixing a whole array of them in its shop windows.
As Mark points out: “Shops may be closed currently, however, their windows are still on display to hundreds of passers-by each day, so what a great platform to show support for the NHS up and down the country!”
Dandelion Stationery is another greeting card company that has been keen to show its support of the NHS. Jo Wilson, founder of the Derbyshire-based company has created a special edition card to honour all the NHS and healthcare staff working so hard for us all during these difficult and uncertain times.
“This card is the perfect way to say thank you and show appreciation to the doctors, nurses, paramedics or any healthcare member of staff on the working on the frontline for us,” says Jo. The card is available online from Dandelion’s sister company, The Stationery Studio (www.stationerystudio.co.uk).
Fellow publisher, Gabrielle Izen, founder of Sevenoaks-based Gabrielle Izen Design said this time of self-isolation has made her “think about the business, what I do can for the community and what I can give back. Keeping in touch with people is crucial for our mental health and well-being. It’s also just as important to acknowledge all the special occasions we celebrate during the year. As I design cards and gifts, it makes perfect sense to offer a personalisation and send direct service.”
Gabrielle has not only developed a new personalised card collection, called Post Your Love, but is also donating 50% of the profits to the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust (https://www.gabrielleizen.co.uk/collections/post-your-love).
As she added: “Like most people, I have been amazed and humbled by what our doctors, nurses, support staff and care workers are doing to look after patients, the vulnerable and elderly so wanted to give something back.”
As its gesture to help thank the wonderful UK health workers, Manchester-based Stripey Cat Cards is offering to give away its fun wobbley-eyed cards for people to send. The cards are being given away for free (www.stripeycats.co.uk), all anyone has to pay for is the postage. And the company is even offering to handwrite the card for you so it can be sent direct.
Some of the NHS staff of QMC’s Ward F22, a palliative care Covid-19 ward with some of the donated Emma Ball cards 
The Brainbox Candy NHS posters are equally suitable to be used in homes or retailers’ windows 
The Brainbox ‘poster boys’, Mark Williams (right) and Ben Hickman 
An Instagram post by Mooch Cards and Gifts’ with a photo showing the posters on display in its Bewdley shop 
The special edition card that Dandelion Stationery has created for people to send to say thanks to NHS staff and healthcare workers
