I'm following the footsteps of dryrobe and opting out of this Black Friday Cyber Monday mayhem for a number of reasons.
Firstly, as an Irish person living in Ireland, I do not personally celebrate Thanksgiving and feel no reason to import an external holiday into my own business. Not one of my freelance clients is closed for the next four days nor is the college that I attend on Thursdays.
Secondly, as you may have gathered from the general gist of my cards, I am not a proponent of meaningless consumerism. This is exemplified in my birthday presence card in which I urge people to spend time rather than money on their friends and family. This race to spend spend spend on products we simply must have but didn't know about last month and won't use next month, well it's just madness.
Thirdly, I am a one-woman-show and neither have the power nor desire to squeeze my suppliers on price so I can pass that on to my customers. Having worked in marketing most of my career, I can vouch that there will be large chains cursing and blinding suppliers and threatening to pull their stock from their global networks if they do not sell to them at a seriously reduced rate for "our" BFCM benefit.
Lastly, but by no means least, I handpick my suppliers and partners not for their prices but for the quality of their work and the decisions they make. The paper that is used is 100% chlorine free pulp from a sustainable and well-managed source. The envelopes and packaging envelopes are made from recycled paper and recycled maps respectively while the sleeves are a plastic alternative and are 100% biodegradable. These were not the cheapest products on the market but my choices will literally not cost the earth for future generations. Then there's Mary, the graphic designer behind our lovely designs. We've been friends since we were teenagers and initially, she tried to bill me half the market rate which I refused. I told her the hourly rate I charge for my own work and what I've paid in the past for other designers and that I wouldn't accept anything less. So I don't have a huge margin to play around with and take a hit because I've made different decisions. You know, it's really not always about the bottom line and destination but doing what feels right and the journey we take.
It's like those people that constantly pass you out on the motorway all tense and stressed out, sitting forward in their cars not even taking in the beautiful surroundings, you know they only get there about 2 minutes before the rest of us.
So that is why you won't be seeing any BFCM deals on my site but you can always avail of the generous discounts in my multipacks and the 20% discount on single cards when you buy 5 or more. Simply enter 20PERCENTOFF at the checkout and the discount will be applied.
Happy Feckin Holidays!