Harrogate Christmas & Gift will be marking the show’s 75th anniversary this weekend when the doors open at the Harrogate Convention Centre on Sunday January 12.
To celebrate the all-important milestone, the directors will be holding an after-show party for exhibitors and visitors at the end of the first day, taking place from 6-9pm in Harrogate’s Royal Hall on Ripon Road.
Demand for exhibition space has continued to grow year-on-year, with the show extending to eight halls, with Widdop & Co among the exhibitors in the new hall G (stand G13), where the company will be unveiling nine ranges for 2025 – Bellini, Country Christmas, Frosted Haven, Whimsical, Santas & Friends, Nordic Nights, Regal Tidings, The Toy Shop and Turtle Dove – to include two brand new, exclusive collections curated by the company’s in-house design and production team.
“Once again, we’re delighted to be exhibiting at Harrogate Christmas & Gift, especially as it’s the show’s 75 year milestone edition,” enthuses Widdop’s ceo Stephen Illingworth. “Our Christmas 2025 ranges are our largest, most exciting collections to date – whimsical woodland meet cosy country charm – featuring timeless elegance reimagined with a contemporary twist.”
On the Gisela Graham stand, (Hall M, stand 14-16), the main focus will feature the company’s Christmas 2025 offering. Key collections for the show will include The Gruffalo & Friends Collection. “We’ve wanted to recreate the magic of The Gruffalo at Christmas for some time now, and are delighted to be launching the new range at the show,” states Mark Jones, Gisela Graham’s commercial director.“There will be upwards of 30 individual items in the collection, including resin figures, glass baubles, wooden decorations and garlands,” he highlights.
Also being showcased by the company will be Nostalgia, which follows on from the success of 2024’s Nostalgia collection, with the new range seeing the introduction of a mix & match selection of tableware, including plates, a cup and saucer set, shaped dishes, mugs, bowls and jugs, plus coasters, place mats, glassware and storage tins.
“The new Nostalgia tableware range is our largest to date,” confirms Mark. “The trend for nostalgia remains strong, and alongside the new tableware, we will also be showing new glassware and a new selection of tree decorations.”
More newness from the company comes from The Holly & The Ivy collectionwhich has taken a new look at all things rustic, and includes new crackers, wooden decorations, new candles and baubles. Plus, a hint of gingerbread, and a red and white colour palette feature in the company’s A Nordic Christmas collection where old favourites have been reimagined. New additions include Scandi patterned mugs, plates and bowls alongside shaped resin tree decorations and new glass baubles.
A further stalwart at the show is Lesser & Pavey which will be unveiling new additions to the company’s tabletop Christmas range for 2025 featuring many of the traditional festive scenes (Hall A, stand A4). Featuring the new designs from MacNeil they cover festive scenes ranging from Santa delivering presents under the Christmas tree to robins in a festive setting, as well as three snowmen at play. All are new for 2025 and appear on fine china mugs, a jug, tea for one, matching coasters, placemats and trays. Plus, Lesser & Pavey’s exclusive illustrator, Jennifer Rose, features robins and Highland Cows for Christmas 2025. The illustrations also appear on fine china mugs, jugs, tea for one with matching coasters, placemats and trays.
Harrogate Christmas & Gift also sees Joe Davies returning to the show (Hall M, stand M25). “To be back for the 75th anniversary makes it all the more special,” says Joe Davies’ managing director Paul Hooker. “The timing is perfect, as Christmas is still fresh in the minds of most retailers and, to mark our return, we have taken a bigger stand and have expanded our Christmas collection, with more new seasonal products than ever making their debut. We’ll also have plenty of new additions to existing best selling ranges, including Village Pottery, Equilibrium Christmas and Christmas themed Nuzzles. In addition, we will also be taking a selection of great seasonal sellers such as Sock Society, Snoozies and a Christmas range of Madd Capp puzzles.”
While many exhibitors will be returning to the show, among the companies exhibiting at Harrogate Christmas & Gift for the first time will be Aromatize, (Hall C, stand C14), with the company showcasing product alongside the Straits stand. For the 2025 festive season, the company is adding to its silhouette collection with new LED wax melters, as well as character tealight melters and tealight holders. Aromatize will also be launching a brand new fragrance range for Spring/Summer 2025 which includes festive scents, 990g 5-wick candle bowls, tumbler candles, apothecary candles, wax melts, tealights and reed diffuser liquid.
On the Straits Trading stand, buyers will find a new range of products, alongside sparkling trees, glitter water spinners and light-up ornaments. “We’ve always done well with light-up houses, and this year we have a range of wooden houses that have more detail and will capture the imagination,” says sales director Steve Webb, who also highlights the company’s new infinity ornaments. “They are a smaller, more practical size, with coloured edging, looking festive when switched off, and magical when lit.”
He adds that Halloween too, is going to be a key event for Straits in ’25. The collection has been expanded to include spooky decorations, water spinners filled with swirling bats and smoke, plus, light-up lustre decorations. (Hall C, stand C4: Christmas; Hall C, stand C14: Halloween).
Other gift companies showcasing products at the show include Global Journey; dcuk; The English Soap Company and Heaven Sends.
For a full list of exhibitors and to register, visit www.harrogatefair.com.
To read the article in full in the January 2025 issue of Progressive Gfits & Home, click through to pages 40-41.
Above: Buyers browsing the stands at last year’s Harrogate Christmas & Gift show.
