This year marks my 10th anniversary here at The Gallery Collection. TEN YEARS! As the wonderfully-emotive actor Keanu Reeves might say: “Whoa.” I almost can’t believe it. Where did the time go? I was completely unfamiliar with the world of corporate greeting cards when I first started working at this company. Maybe I occasionally saw them at my dad’s office or displayed at restaurants or other businesses during the holidays, when companies often extend seasonal greetings to one another. But c’mon, how complicated could greeting cards be? You pick out a nice design, sign your name, address the envelope, and throw it in the mail, right? Oh, little did I know.
So my transition from the comfy bubble of college into “the real world” started with learning the ins and outs of greeting cards for business. To follow the path of greeting cards is to experience a veritable potpourri of artistry, skill, and action. Artists are commissioned to create original greeting card designs and a team of vendors helps manufacture the cards; catalogs are printed and our products are marketed to potential customers; orders are processed, printed, and shipped. Of course, there are many pieces throughout that must come together to make this operation successful. Each stop on the way is full of details to consider, challenges to tackle, and decisions to be made.
Corporate greeting cards have complexities not only behind-the-scenes, but also on the “public” side when assisting customers. Many customization options are available when ordering cards. Customers are able to choose from a wide variety of greeting cards for all occasions and personalize them in different ways by choosing the printing color, writing their own greetings, or even having their company logos printed or signatures reproduced inside of the cards. The possibilities are endless.
I could likely spend my entire career in the greeting card industry and still not know everything. This has been my only job since graduating from college and quite a learning experience so far. And let me again express disbelief that my company anniversary also means that I graduated from college ten years ago! “Whoa.”