Greetings card company takes first Solihull premises

A family run greeting card business has opened in Solihull after securing high street premises.

Cards Direct, a retailer of greetings cards, gift packaging and partyware since 2012, has taken a 6,827 sq ft retail unit and ancillary offices on Solihull’s High Street.

The letting, negotiated by Andrew McFarlane Holt of specialist commercial property consultants, Wells McFarlane, means Cards Direct now has more than 45 stores and forms part of a significant expansion programme, which includes 60 stores by the end of the year.

Cards Direct’s estates manager Edward Bryan said: “Having been growing at a steady pace for over a decade, we’ve been steadily targeting expansion across the Midlands and North of England. We opened stores in Redditch and Tamworth in the second half of 2022 and with both trading well, we wanted to add to these with a Solihull presence.

“The town centre has good levels of footfall throughout the year so when we discovered a unit on the High Street was available, it seemed the ideal solution. Andrew at Wells McFarlane immediately understood what we wanted to achieve and was very pragmatic with his advice and approach. He ensured a quick turnaround from the terms being agreed to completion and store opening, and we’re grateful for his expertise.

“Our new Solihull store is one of the biggest in our portfolio, meaning we’ve been able to expand our product range to best serve local shoppers. It’s also enabled the creation of full- and part-time jobs, ranging from Store Manager to weekend staff.”

He added: “It’s excellent news for town centres that businesses like Cards Direct are investing in prime retail space and helping to rejuvenate footfall and activity on our high streets. Retail suffered during the pandemic as businesses increased their online offering but moves like this confirm the appetite is returning. The West Midlands remains an area of growth for our business, so we were pleased to act for the landlord and negotiate this premises for Cards Direct. We wish the team every success with their expansion.”