It was with huge excitement that Progressive Gifts & Home announced the finalists of The Greats Gift Retailer Awards 2020 in March, with the event scheduled to take place yesterday (May 13) at the Honourable Artillery Club (HAC) in London’s Shoreditch.
However, due to the lockdown, the Awards have been moved to September 30.
Finalists were fast off the mark to let their customers know how much they were missing not being able to attend the Awards ceremony.
“Today we should have been putting on our fancy threads and heading to London to celebrate The Greats Gift Retailer Awards with lots of our friends and fellow gift shop owners,” tweeted Rachel and Paul Roberts, owners of MOOCH gift shops in Northamptonshire and Milton Keynes. “This year we are finalists in two categories and we certainly would have made quite a day of it.”
Also tweeting about not being able to be at the event was The Hollies in Little Budworth.“Sharing a couple of throwback photos from previous years because some of our team would have been off to The Greats Retailing Awards in London today . . . The Awards have been postponed currently so we will have to keep our fingers crossed a bit longer before finding out the results.”
Further North, Janet Hartree, owner of Ewe and Me in Grantown on Spey, a finalist in the Independent Gift Retailer of the Year – Scotland category emailed: “We were delighted to have received news of being shortlisted for the Greats Awards and happy to share such good news with our customers and community. Unfortunately, of course, coronavirus and lockdown came along and took the shine away from it all. It also took the life of a close family member.”
Janet continued: “We now feel that we should celebrate as best and as much as we can, and look forward to brighter, happier days. With ‘non essential’ shops being able to open in the next few weeks that has cheered us up, and we are thinking of ways to make the re-opening gentle but special. The centre piece of that will be showcasing that we are a Greats finalist.”
Meanwhile, down in Cornwall, David Lorimer and Keiron Cockley, owners of four Brocante shops, added: “how sad we are not to be in London at the Greats Awards today but look forward to seeing you soon.”
Also disappointed not to be heading down to London were the team from Joe Davies, finalists in the Best Supplier Marketing Award and Best Service to the Independent Gift Retailer categories, with the company also sponsoring the Independent Gift Retailer of the Year – North & Northern Ireland category. “Bit sad today because we should be at The Greats,” commented managing director Steve Davies. “Last year`s celebrations feel like a different world away. Who would have thought it? September will come around soon enough and hopefully this will be all behind us so looking forward to then!”
Tickets to the event are available from event organiser Clare Hollick at Keystone Communications: email: clare@keystonecomms.co.uk or tel: 01733 294534, or direct from Max-Tickets.net
A fabulous line-up of Greats Awards 2020 sponsors include (in alphabetical order): Candlelight; Gift Republic; GiftsandHome.net; Gisela Graham; Good Housekeeping; Harrogate Christmas & Gift; Joe Davies; Progressive Gifts & Home; Premier Decorations; Progressive Greetings Live; Spring Fair and Autumn Fair; Wrendale Designs and The Giftware Association.
The Greats Awards, launched in 2003, are owned by Max Publishing and Progressive Gifts & Home magazine.
