CORNISH SEASIDE RESORT LAUNCHES HOLIDAY FRIENDLY GIFT CARD With a handful of accolades including best seaside resort in Britain, best beach in the UK and the happiest place to live, St Ives is ready to showcase its charms with a new gift card. Led by St Ives BID, the St Ives Gift Card is available to buy online as either a physical or digital card, and can be spent like a debit card on everything from accommodation and eating out to shopping and leisure activities, making it ideal for UK holidays and locals looking to explore where they live. One of the places that accepts the new St Ives Gift Card is restaurant Hub Box, located on St Ives harbour, and home of the live harbour webcam. Richard Boon is CEO of Hub Box and said: “Hub Box is a harbourside burger joint with craft beers, cocktails, and DJs and live music on weekends. I think it’s great that St Ives is leading the way in Cornwall with its own gift card, especially the fact that you can get a physical or digital version of the card. Almost everyone pays using their card or phone now, so being able to load that St Ives Gift Card into your digital wallet and pay using your phone is really convenient. “Giving the St Ives Gift Card offers the consumer lots of choice of where to spend, so it’s a gift that won’t be wasted. We are really excited to be accepting the St Ives Gift Card - you can gift a good burger or a beer to one of your mates if they’re heading to St Ives, how good is that!” Working through the Mastercard system, once purchased, physical St Ives Gift Cards are sent by post and digital gift cards are sent as a text or email. The recipient can then add the balance of a digital St Ives Gift Card to their digital wallet and make their purchases in-store, using their phone or their physical gift card. Tate St Ives is also part of the new St Ives Gift Card. Katharine Walker is Head of Strategy & Business Planning at Tate St Ives, commenting: “What could be better than giving someone a gift of the St Ives experience, a place that has for centuries welcomed and inspired artists from around the globe? As one of the key visitor attractions in the town, Tate St Ives is delighted to be part of the new gift card helping to support the local economy. “Give someone the gift of experiencing great art with admission to our galleries or Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden or enable them to buy something from our shop to take home. Alternatively, why not treat them to lunch in our café, or coffee on our terrace which boasts some of the best sea views in St Ives? The options are endless and offer something for everyone’s circumstances, and that’s the beauty of this card.” www.townandcitygiftcards.com/product/st-ives-gift-card/ DARTINGTON CRYSTAL JOINS BHETA Leading UK glass manufacturer Dartington Crystal has joined BHETA. Dartington Glass as it was known until the 1980s, was born in 1967 as one of the Dartington Hall Trust’s social enterprises in North Devon. It became the most recognised manufacturer of simple yet functional glassware in the UK. Dartington’s vision was built on a clean and simple design style, handmade using age-old techniques of Scandinavian roots. It remains the only remaining factory scale producer in the country. Today Dartington Crystal is not only the leading UK glass manufacturer but also an award-winning visitor attraction in Devon. It supplies retail stores throughout the UK and export markets as well as providing leading businesses and luxury brands with bespoke and exclusive products. Seema Grantham, BHETA’s sector manager for housewares said, “Dartington is an historic brand with iconic status. It is ever expanding its beautiful range and I’m delighted that the company is joining BHETA.” For more information about BHETA and the retailer networking, market data, lobbying and business support opportunities it offers, contact Seema Grantham on +44 (0)7985 732 557 or view the website at www.bheta.co.uk PAPER PLANE DESIGNS CELEBRATES SECURING 500TH STOCKIST Rutland-based gift brand Paper Plane is celebrating securing its 500th independent stockist. Having started out with a £50 investment in some Christmas cards in 2014, founders Laura Harvey and Jack Thorpe have continually reinvested into the company, adding new lines and ranges to the point where, today, they have 500 indie stockists, over 125,000 online sales and a string of High Street successes. Jack says: “We’re still pinching ourselves that what started as a few boxes of cards and envelopes in our dining room has turned into our full-time jobs. To have secured our 500th stockist is a real landmark for us - we’ve had to learn a lot of new things along the way, but the support from other small creative business owners has been great - we’re constantly surprised at how supportive this community is.” Some of Paper Plane’s hero products include Bath Noodles - natural vegan soap in the shape of noodles, The How To Cook Everything series of prints and the Emergency Dad Jokes range of cards and gifts. Laura says: “From our first trade show at Top Drawer in 2016 to our most recent at Spring Fair this year, and through our online wholesale marketplaces, we’ve met some amazing customers and made so many friends who understand the ups and downs of running a small business.” Trade customers can buy online at paperplanewholesale. co.uk where they will also find links to Paper Plane’s Faire and Ankorstore shopfronts. www.paperplanewholesale.co.uk INDUSTRY NEWS 11
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