Gift and card retailer MOOCH, which has a shop on St Giles Street in Northampton, as well as newly opened stores in Olney and Towester, and a concession in Bell, triumphed at The Retas greeting card retailer awards on Wednesday (July 10), hot on the heels of having won The Greats Best Newcomer Midlands, North and Northern Ireland category in May.
Reacting to the news that the shop had won The Retas Best Non-Specialist Independent Retailer of Greeting Cards South category, co-owner Rachel Roberts told GiftsandHome.net: “I couldn’t be more thrilled! We really weren’t expecting this!”
Other winners on the day included John Lewis, (winner of the Best Department Store Retailer of Greeting cards category)and Blue Diamond Group (winner of the Best Garden Centre Retailer of Greeting Cards category) which was crowned Greeting Card Retailer of the Year.
The sell out event, which this year took on a ‘Frida Fiesta’ theme after the Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, was attended by over 400 greeting card retailers, publishers and suppliers.
Welcoming guests, Progressive Greetings’ co-owner Warren Lomax said: “As with so many of the talented retailers that we celebrate today, Frida’s skills were totally self-taught. Not only that, but she overcame adversity to produce brilliant end results of astonishing beauty. And much the same can be said of the inventive entrepreneurial retailers here who have fought the tough retail landscape using their own passion and tenacity to craft an inspiring retail environment to delight customers.”
Now in its 15th year, The Retas, organised by Max Publishing, owners of Progressive Greetings magazine, the sister magazine to Progressive Gifts & Home, are the only dedicated awards for greeting card retailers.
The Awards were hosted by comedian Pippa Evans, whose impromptu ditty about greeting card retailing had everyone chuckling!
In keeping with the fact that The Retas had moved to the Grosvenor House Hotel from The Dorchester, in protest of the hotel’s owner, the Sultan of Brunei, passing barbaric anti-human rights laws, the £4,000+ proceeds of the charity raffle were divided between Amnesty International and The Light Fund.
Top: A delighted Rachel and Paul Roberts, co-owners of MOOCH, triumphed at The Retas Awards on Wednesday (July 10).
