A very un-Merry Christmas for London festive card trade

12 April 2012

It's one of the few great festive traditions invented in London — but this year Londoners are falling out of love with the Christmas card.

About 10 million fewer will be delivered to the capital's homes and businesses than last year, research shows.

It is believed to be the biggest single year's fall in the number of cards sent since London civil servant Sir Henry Cole started the practice in 1843.

The dramatic drop is being blamed on the cost of buying and posting a card during the current period of austerity — but growing concern about the environmental cost of Christmas has also played a role, say Oxfam researchers.

Sending cards has been in steady decline for five years as increasing numbers of people send emails, texts, tweets and Facebook messages instead.

But this year the drop has been much more dramatic, at about 10 per cent. It means London families and employees will receive 90 million cards this year, compared with 100 million last year.

Nationally, the figure has declined from more than one billion to below 900 million, according to Oxfam.

Dame Vera Lynn said: "I used to send hundreds of cards but now I just send them to people I don't see very often, mostly abroad.

"I don't send cards to friends I see all the time — but I do get a lot from people I don't know, who I assume are fans."

Industry sources said Christmas greetings were the only cards in decline — with all other categories, including birthday, Valentine's Day and Mother's Day cards, still showing growth.

Advertising executive Jane Stephens, 37, of Hammersmith said: "There is a pretty paltry selection of cards on my desk this year and it's not much better at home. But I've had quite a few that I've opened from an email and some messages on my phone. To be honest, for people of my generation it's difficult to see the point in sending a card.

"My mum and dad spend hours writing hundreds of cards and they receive hundreds too. A lot go to people they see every other week. Why bother?"

But chef Michel Roux Jnr said: "If anything, I've sent even more cards this Christmas. There's something special about getting something by post. Emails and texts don't have the same effect."

Londoners who do send Christmas cards now spend less money on them, separate research reveals.

About a third plan to save money by buying cheaper boxed sets, using left-overs from the previous year or making their own.

The poll, by software firm Serif, found 72 per cent still send a card. But a third now say they text, while 25 per cent use email and 21 per cent Facebook.

Managing director Gary Bates said: "With so much to spend at Christmas, cards are often the lowest priority. In this economic climate, we expect more people to make their own."

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