May 21, 2012

24th Annual LOUIE Awards Winners Announced

On Sunday, May 20, 2012, The Greeting Card Association (GCA) honored the 24th Annual LOUIE finalists and winners in 54 different categories at a special gala event at Espace on 42nd St. in Manhattan. The winners were chosen by an esteemed panel of retailers, industry suppliers, independent sales representatives and press and blogger judges during the official judging, which took place January 31 – February 2, 2012, in conjunction with the New York International Gift Fair, also in New York City.

For the second year in a row, Espace, located on Manhattan’s West Side near the Jacob K. Javits Center, hosted 300 attendees comprised of nominees, industry members, LOUIE Awards entrants, retailers, sales representatives and members of the press. This year’s fancy circus theme, ‘The Greatest Cards on Earth!’ was exemplified throughout the evening by ringmasters Rob Fortier and Meryl Hooker of Center Aisle Group, a signature ‘Candy Apple’ martini, and a cotton candy station. The finalists’ cards were displayed on strands of red and white ribbon and butcher’s twine supplied by Ampelco Ribbon, and a circus photo booth with a big top themed step and repeat and handheld mustaches, clown noses and bowler hats added to the fun. Gala attendees were also encouraged to tweet and Facebook from the event using the hashtag #LOUIES2012, and the Twitter handle @LOUIEAwards.

The Card of the Year in the Above $3.50 category was first-time LOUIE entrant Maginating’s bacon and egg card, the winner of the Romantic Occasions Above $3.50 category. Blue Ribbon judge and next year’s LOUIE chair, Monika Brandrup from Up With Paper, said, “The quality of the luxurious heavyweight cotton stock, beautifully letter-pressed, and topped off with smart design, captures the simple pleasures in daily life, all in one neat little card.” In the $3.50 or less category, the Card of the Year was Amy Smyth Made It’s Congratulatory/Special Occasion card exemplifying the joy and humor in welcoming a newborn baby. “This card just simply gives you a feel-good, warm and fuzzy feeling all over,” said Brandrup. This year’s LOUIEs saw an enormous rise in the Invitation Suite category; as a result, the Blue Ribbon panel decided to award three Honorable Mentions in this category in addition to the Cards of the Year. The Honorable Mention for Design Excellence Above $15 went to Sugar Paper; the Honorable Mention for Design Excellence Below $15 went to Printerette Press; and the Honorable Mention for a Non-Wedding Invitation went to Create Studio’s Bar Mitzvah invitation. The list of winners is as follows:

Children’s Card Above $3.50
American Greetings

Children’s Card $3.50 and below
Madison Park Group

General Birthday Above $3.50
Sunrise Greetings

General Birthday $3.50 and below
American Greetings

Humorous Birthday Above $3.50
Old Tom Foolery

Humorous Birthday $3.50 and below
Amy Smyth Made It

Blank Card Above $3.50
Design Design, Inc.

Blank Card $3.50 and below
O.C.D. for Calypso Cards

Non-religious Celebration Above $3.50
Love & Luck Greetings

Non-religious Celebration $3.50 and below
Sunrise Greetings

Religious Celebration Above $3.50
Oh My Word

Religious Celebration $3.50 and below
Madison Park Group

Humorous Christmas/Seasonal Above $3.50
Sugarcube Press

Humorous Christmas/Seasonal $3.50 and below
Breathless Paper Co.

General Christmas/Seasonal Above $3.50
Up With Paper, LLC

General Christmas/Seasonal $3.50 and below
William Arthur, Inc.

Boxed/catalog Christmas/Seasonal Above $2.50
Checkerboard

Boxed/catalog Christmas/Seasonal $2.50 and below
Masterpiece Studios

Congratulatory/Special Occasion Above $3.50
Sugarcube Press

Congratulatory/Special Occasion $3.50 and below
Ecka & Pecka

Custom Invitation/Announcement Above $2.50
Two Paperdolls

Custom Invitation/Announcement $2.50 and below
Minted

Everyday Boxed Note Above $2.50
Rifle Paper Company

Everyday Boxed Note $2.50 and below
Paula Skene Designs

Family Celebrations Above $3.50
Oh My Word

Family Celebrations $3.50 and below
Designer Greetings

General Friendship/Encouragement Above $3.50
Maginating

General Friendship/Encouragement $3.50 and below
Sunrise Greetings

Humorous Friendship/Encouragement Above $3.50
Old Tom Foolery

Humorous Friendship/Encouragement $3.50 and below
Sunrise Greetings

Get Well/Feel Better Above $3.50
Bold Face Type

Get Well/Feel Better $3.50 and below
Sellers Publishing, Inc.

Invitation Suite Above $7.00
Mr. Boddington’s Studio

Invitation Suite $7.00 and below
Minted

Mother’s Day Above $3.50
Wild Ink Press

Mother’s Day $3.50 and below M
adison Park Group

Packaged/Imprintable Invitation/Announcement Above $2.50
Anna Griffin, Inc.

Packaged/Imprintable Invitation/Announcement $2.50 and below
Anna Griffin, Inc.

Personalized Photo Card Above $2.50
Wiley Valentine

Personalized Photo Card $2.50 and below
Minted

Production Innovations Above $5.00
Twig & Fig

Production Innovations $5.00 and below
Exclusive Bordering Company

Rising Star Above $3.50
Rifle Paper Company

Rising Star $3.50 and below
Breathless Paper Co.

Romantic Occasions Above $3.50
Maginating

Romantic Occasions $3.50 and below
Madison Park Group

Sympathy Above $3.50
Klugworld

Sympathy $3.50 and below
Fresh Frances

Thank You Above $3.50
Rifle Paper Company

Thank You $3.50 and below
Ecka & Pecka

Valentine’s Day Above $3.50
Smock

Valentine’s Day $3.50 and below
Madison Park Group

Most Humorous
Old Tom Foolery

Superbly Stated
American Greetings

This year’s Awards saw upwards of 950 entries from 170 companies worldwide. Entrants included companies from Canada, India and England, and roughly 1/3 of the entries were from first-time entrant companies. All entries were marketed and sold in the United States during the 2011 calendar year; each entry was judged based on the following criteria: Originality, Impact, Design Excellence, Sendability and Value. This year’s LOUIEs also saw over 40 entries in the Invitation Suite and Personalized Photo Card categories, both rapidly growing and increasingly popular categories within the social stationery industry. All entrants responded to a Call for Entries sent out in the Fall.

Katy Greenspan, this year’s LOUIE Chair and Creative Director of Cardstore.com, said, “This year’s ‘fancy circus’ theme and exciting changes to the program and format of the event, along with the stunning display at the Javits Center truly made the 24th Annual LOUIEs an event to remember.” Some of these changes included the addition of company information into the LOUIE Awards script, a fun and interactive Call for Entries, the encouragement of smaller independent companies to enter the competition, and increased distribution of the LOUIE program throughout the NSS. This year’s LOUIEs also saw the implementation of a Facebook Consumer’s Choice contest, launched on the LOUIE Awards Facebook page at midnight after the Awards.

In addition to a personalized award, the nominees and winners are showcased in a special LOUIE Awards display designed by Universal Presentation Concepts (UPC), the winner of last year’s first-time competition between leading fixturing companies. UPC has created a one-of-a-kind display incorporating this year’s circus theme for the nominees and winners, which will occupy the Crystal Palace at the Jacob K. Javits Center during the NSS.

The LOUIE Awards would not be possible without the generous support of this year’s sponsors: The United States Postal Service, GLM and the National Stationery Show®, American Greetings, Glory Moon, Hallmark Cards, Inc., JAST Company Limited, Bobst Group North America, FREEMAN, and Infinity Foils, Inc. and Universal Engraving, Inc. – UEI Group Companies. Through their financial support, these companies, along with many others, ensure the success of the LOUIEs. To learn more about the LOUIE Awards, and to see a full list of finalists, please visit www.greetingcard.org.