How to have a national greeting card line

Here is how to have a national greeting card line (how it happened for me). Manifesting, networking, consistency made these Latina greeting cards come to life! Ok, it is different for every person, but here is full story of how I launched my line.

There has been a LOT going on behind the scenes over here at the Crafty Chica headquarters. 

NOTE: If you want to purchase wholesale for your store, please visit Madison Park Greetings on FAIRE (use search term Latinx)

Here’s how to have a national greeting card line (how it happened for me)

The intention was set in 2014, or even earlier, I even blogged about it!

And then this happened…

@craftychica Do vision boards work? I think they help a lot. Here is one of my experiences. Let me know if you are making a vision board this year! #visionboards #manifesting #dreamintoreality ♬ original sound – The Crafty Chica

Fast forward to 2017, I opened Mucho Mas Art Studio with a friend and our customers always asked for greeting cards to go with the gifts they would buy. I hadn’t acted on my earlier Latina greeting cards idea.

Taking action

 

In the moment, I had no idea how to even start – so I whipped up a few designs using PicMoney, Canva, and Vistaprint.  When they began to sell really well, I added them to my online store.

Months later, a buyer for Designer Greetings reached out to me about submitting sketches for a possible  line for Madison Park Greetings! 

He found me via LinkedIn through a publicist I’d worked with YEARS ago. This is why it is so important to always create positive win-win relationships with people.

No expectations, but just to be a hard worker who shows up, eager to help others, and always gives 100%.

That has always been my work ethic.

Well, when this representative put out a call for people who might be good for the brand, she recommended me! 

The connection was made

Thankfully by then, I had a body of illustration work to show him of my illustration. Even data showing the sales of the greeting cards I’d designed. The plan was set into motion. He saw how hard I’d worked to always create new designs, and promote/elevate my brand to new audiences.

It is the BEST feeling to be rewarded with an opportunity like this after working so hard! and I now I may even be speaking at an upcoming greeting card convention!

My note to all of you – keep pushing on your dreams and goals. Be consistent, be positive, know your end goal! Keep refining your craft. Practice makes progress. Even if you don’t have a clear vision, try to see the big picture.

For me, it has always been to see my Crafty Chica brand in major retailers all over the country!

Latina greeting cards y mas It all came together!

And guess what? That happened in 2022 when my line of items for Barne’s Noble debuted.

Planners, desk calendars, list pads, journals and more!

Stay connected in all social media platforms. Show what you are working on, even if it isn’t perfect. This opportunity came via LinkedIn, I never would have expected that! Thank goodness I’ve always stayed active there too!

The design process!

First I designed a batch of planners, one of which was picked up by a major retailer for this fall, and then it was time to design 16 cards! 

I knew I wanted it to have timeless designs and I created a color story in Procreate (a design app for the iPadPro). Then I made about three dozen sketches and asked for input from store customers, friends, and family. The problem I had was I don’t know Adobe Illustrator, and it’s really something I need to learn for future design work because it is the industry standard. I also quickly learned the colors for web do not translate in CMYK for printed designs. You really have to know your way around the colors to nail the right hues. I’m still learning about this every single day. All of the colors in my cards came out a wee bit darker than I originally designed because of this.

But I still love them! They are super vibrant and bold!

The collection of Latina greeting cards

I wanted to have at least half the cards be birthday-themed because that is the #1 selling card at Mucho Mas, and in the industry too! So I created a variety of English and Spanish versions. I wanted the collection to be a reflection of my POV as “Crafty Chica” in addition to “Latino greeting cards!” 

We are a diverse community, so I really hope my cards translate to people who love Latin culture, bright colors, positivity and living life big and bright! And I’m praying this opens the doors for more Latino greeting cards from other designers to be on store shelves as well. Let’s normalize diversity! Props to Madison Park Greetings for incorporating my cards into the general market of greeting cards (as opposed to only during Hispanic Heritage month), it shows they see them as being universal and needed all year round for everyday life!

Because illustration is a skill I’m still growing, each card literally took hours to complete. I even have a few that didn’t make it, they just weren’t strong enough. But I’m still working on them!

The finished look of these Crafty Chica greeting cards!

 

Each card has some kind of embellishment on the front – from embossed colors to metallic flourishes and even glitter! And I love how they took a portion of my design and added to the inside of each card. As far as the inside sentiments, my daughter, Maya, helped me write them. Mil gracias to my friend Eliana’s mom, she is a Spanish teacher and helped me translate my sayings into Spanish to make them sound heartful!

Takeaway tips:

Decide if you want to produce/distribute the cards yourself or work with an established greeting card company.

Start designing, don’t wait for a connection to be made.

Think of a 16-card collection, heavy on the classics: Happy Birthday, get well soon, anniversary, baby, condolences, etc.

Strive to create a signature style that is all your own.

Sell your cards! You can start small like I did and sell them in your online store, at events, wholesale to boutiques. You don’t have to wait for your “big break” – just start building your brand.

Make them look professional, include your branding.

Pay attention to trends and add your own spin.

How to buy Crafty Chica greeting cards!

If you have a retail store and want to carry them – you can order them  via Faire.com. They whole sale for $2 and retail for $3.99 and there is a $100 minimum and come in packs of six. 

But if you want to buy them to send…I just finished loading them all into my Crafty Chica store (I currently have free shipping)!

These Latina greeting cards are also sold at various indie and national retailers around the country!

Thank you so much for reading my post about to have a national greeting card line!