Greeting Cards Market Is on the Upswing as Card Shoppers Turn to Specialty Retailers for More Specialized Product Offerings

Market Wire, November, 2007

In 2006 the market for greeting cards made a big comeback after four years of steadily declining sales, rising over 11 percent from 2004 to 2006. In 2006 the market for greeting cards climbed to over $10 billion. This according to the latest report on the stationery market from Unity Marketing.

"From 2000 to 2004 the sales of greeting cards were in steady decline," reports Pam Danziger, president of Unity Marketing and author of "Shopping: Why We Love It and How Retailers Can Create the Ultimate Customer Experience." "But in 2005 the tide started to turn as a result of a shift in consumers' shopping preferences away from mass retailers and discounters, like dollar stores, toward more specialty retailers that offered better designs, higher quality and more specialized card choices. In 2006 specialty card and gift shops regained 6 market share points. As a result, the mass merchants are holding on to the market share leader position by a thread," Danziger announces.

This revival of specialty retail for greeting cards comes after years of a steady drop in the number of specialty retailers in the card and gift segments. The number of gift shops dropped 21 percent from 75,0102 stores in 2002 to 59,032 shops today. Specialty card shops declined even more -- 33 percent from 8,135 in 2002 to 5,391 currently.

Danziger explains, "A few years back the mass merchants, such as Wal-Mart, were the biggest, baddest competitors in the greeting card business driving prices down and capturing the largest share of business. This resulted in a winnowing out of the weaker specialty retailers that couldn't survive the mass retailers' onslaught. But this study shows that tide is turning. The specialty retailers that remain are robust competitors able to attract more affluent shoppers who will pay more for the better designs and higher quality greeting cards available through these stores."

About the Greeting Card, Stationery, Gift Wrap & Party Goods, and Paper Crafting Report, 2007: The Ultimate Guide to the Stationery Market

This report examines the $37.4 billion stationery industry. It provides the latest statistics on the growth and sales in the stationery market, including details by channel of distribution and product category, specifically:

--  Greeting cards, both those sold individually and in boxed sets;

--  Paper crafts and crafting, including scrapbooking and make-your-own
    cards;

--  Social stationery, notably specialty paper for writing, computer
    printing;

--  Gifting and Party Goods, such as gift wrap and bags and other gifting
    supplies, paper party goods;

--  Other stationery, including calendars, date books, blank books, desk
    accessories, albums; and

--  Custom-printed card and stationery for personal use.
    

Based upon both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, the study reports findings from the latest in-depth survey of 1,205 recent stationery buyers (65 percent female/35 percent male; average age 41.9 years; average household income $63,600) and compares it with the results of a similar survey conducted in 2005.

With a focus on consumers, their buying behavior, needs, desires and preferences, this research study includes research data and statistics about:

--  Stationery Goods Market Size and Growth:  What is the size of the
    overall stationery goods market, as well as the six key product segments
    (e.g. greeting cards, social stationery, custom-printed cards and
    stationery, gift wrap and party goods, paper crafting products and other
    stationery products) and how rapidly is it growing?   How is the stationery
    goods market segmented by type of product?

--  Demographics of the Stationery Goods Market:  What are the demographic
    characteristics of people who buy stationery goods products? How is
    stationery goods buying behavior influenced by demographic segments (e.g.,
    gender, age, household income (HHI), size, composition, ethnicity/race,
    education, etc.)?

--  Stationery Goods Buying Behavior:  What are the primary
    characteristics of the consumers' buying behavior related to stationery
    goods in general and the four product segments (e.g. greeting cards, social
    stationery, custom printed stationary and cards, gift wrap and party goods,
    paper crafting products and other stationery products) in particular?  Why
    do they buy these goods and how do consumers' motivations differ by product
    category segment?  Where do they shop for the different types of stationery
    products; what factors influence their decision making; how much do they
    spend buying each of the stationery goods product segments and across the
    entire stationery goods category; what is the role of brand in stationery
    goods product selections and shopping choices?  How do different
    demographic segments differ in their shopping and buying behavior?

--  Psychographic Profile and Segmentation of the Greeting Card Markets:
    A psychographic profile of the greeting card buyers is developed in this
    report.  The profiles identify four different types or personalities of
    consumers of greeting card.  These profiles identify different drives and
    motivations found among consumers in purchasing greeting cards; what
    factors are more or less important in driving greeting card purchasing
    decisions; and how can greeting card marketers and retailers better
    understand the hearts and minds of their consumers.  In essence, we
    discover 'why people buy greeting cards.'