June 02, 2014
Since my last announcement, I'm excited to share two new retailers now carrying Happy Cactus Designs cards and other paper goods.
Rugg Road Paper Company is a wonderful stationery shop in the heart of Boston on Charles Street.
Parts & Labour is a shop right here in Austin on the always bustling South Congress Avenue. They have an awesome selection of goods from many local designers, and Happy Cactus is so excited to have our cards on their shelves!
We encourage you to shop our products locally! You can find a list of all of Happy Cactus' retailers here.
January 22, 2014
The minute I shared a glimpse of my new I'm Bananas for You card on social media, I could tell it was going to be a card people liked and responded well too. I sent out samples to different retailers, and Emily from Clementine in Middlebury, Vermont, gave me some great feedback: that this would be perfect as a mini Valentine that kids could give to their classmates and buddies. I shared some brainstorming ideas for other card designs I had with her and embarked on developing a set of little cards.
I rounded out the collection with You're My Main Squeeze, You're The Apple of My Eye, and We Make a Great Pear featuring simple and modern hand-drawn fruit patterns.
I love this little set and think they are perfect for kids and adults alike - whether you are giving them to your classmates with a box of Sweethearts (my favorite!) or to your coworkers.
Each card measures 2.5" x 3.5" and is printed on 100% cotton tree-free paper. The backs are blank, leaving you space to write your own little love note. They are paired with tiny white envelopes, too. Find them in the shop here.
January 08, 2014
One of the projects I tackled over the holidays was to edit and revamp my wholesale catalog. (For more background on creating a wholesale stationery catalog, visit this post.)
For the National Stationery Show this past May, I used my existing catalog and created a flyer with new products that could slip inside. This worked well at the time, but as I released more new products in August and early December, I could no longer justify having multiple inserts and knew it was time to revamp my catalog.
I didn't do this sooner for two reasons. First, I knew I'd be releasing a bunch of new cards at the very beginning of 2014 and wanted to wait so these could be included in the new catalog. Second, catalogs are quite expensive to print and I wanted to hold off as long as possible!
Here were my guidelines when revising my catalog:
- Maintain the catalog's existing format. My first catalog was very clear and easy to navigate. I received many compliments on it, remained happy with the existing layout, and knew I didn't need to reinvent the wheel.
- Eliminate slow sellers or tired designs. After two years in business, it's become quite obvious to me what designs sell well and what don't. There were a handful of older designs I really didn't like and I was very ready to remove them from the catalog!
- Make minor revisions to terms and ordering details.
- Add new products.
It was a tedious process, but not nearly as onerous as I thought it would be since I was building off of the skeleton of the existing catalog.
Since this is a relatively quiet time of year, I was able to quickly get these printed from my trusty local printer and ready to send off to retailers! If you are a retailer interested in receiving a catalog, please contact me at hello{at}happycactusdesigns.com to have one sent your way. You can also view the catalog digitally here.
September 12, 2013
The last of our orders from the National Stationery Show went out last week and we could not be more excited about all of the retail shops where you can now find Happy Cactus Designs' products. You can now shop for Happy Cactus cards, notepads, and other products from coast to coast! Check out an entire list of our retailers here. We are very fortunate to work with so many wonderful shop owners and appreciate their support of our business.
If you are a retailer interested in learning more about carrying our products, please visit our wholesale page for more details.
February 25, 2013
A few weeks ago I made a quick trip up to Dallas and was able to visit The St. Michael's Woman's Exchange, a gift shop in the Highland Park Village that carries Happy Cactus Designs card. Here's a photo of Happy Cactus Designs boxed notes on display in the shop!
Seeing my cards on display in shops can feel surreal at times, but also a reminder of all of the hard work and passion that goes into growing my company and sharing my work. I've been so fortunate to work with The St. Michael's Woman's Exchange. While many in Dallas know that it is the perfect shop to visit when you need a baby, wedding, or hostess gift, many may not know that is almost exclusively staffed by volunteers and that their profits are given back to the community through grants - over $4 million since their founding! Thank you to The Exchange for supporting Happy Cactus!
August 28, 2012
We're thrilled to be featured in the September issue of Modern Luxury Dallas magazine!
I love reading Modern Luxury Dallas to know where to shop/play/dine when I am visiting family and friends in the city where I grew up. The write-up also mentions our two fabulous Dallas retailers, The Write Selection and The St. Michael's Woman's Exchange. You can read the entire magazine online here or pick one up in the Big D!