Emily Coxhead, the super talented creator of The Happy News (Widdop and Co is among the licensees) has been spreading her special breed of happiness on TV and radio.
Emily was filmed on the cobbles of Coronation Street as part of the Granada Reports programme on August 23, sharing the story of The Happy News – a newspaper that Emily produces, which is filled with only real, positive and uplifting news.
As Emily explained on air, there is such a concentration of negative news about things that are going wrong with the world that it can affect your mental wellbeing. “If you are constantly bombarded with negative news, you start to think that only bad things are happening,” explained Emily, who started The Happy News from her bedroom in 2015 (it is currently circulated in 33 countries) to cover positive stories, from “massive global changes to little acts of kindness.”
Then, a few days later, (August 27), Emily was interviewed by Zoe Ball on her hugely popular BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show in the first ever Tuesday Good News Day slot. Zoe linked The Happy News to the news that had broken that day about how people that have a more optimistic attitude live longer.
“Keep doing the wondrous work with The Happy News,” endorsed Zoe, who herself had just paid for a subscription to the newspaper and encouraged others to do so, saying it makes a great gift. (www.thehappynewspaper.com)
In addition to producing The Happy News, which now has over 12,000 subscribers, the brand has a growing licensing programme (handled by licensing agency DRi).
As a brand, The Happy News is up for an award in The Licensing Awards, as is the confectionery range, produced under licence by Crème D’or, while Pigment’s Happy News cards are in the finals of The Henries 2019 greeting card awards, in the Best Licensed Range category.
As part of RetailFest at Top Drawer (8-10 September at London’s Olympia), Emily will be part of a panel discussion entitled ‘Combining passion, purpose & profit – five tips to help you design a life & brand you love’. She will be on stage between 13.30pm -14.00pm on Sunday September 8.
Visit www.topdrawer.co.uk/retailfest#/
Top: Emily Coxhead on the Coronation Street set being filmed for TV’s Granada Reports programme.
