2022 Winners - Two For Joy Illustrations

Company Name: Two For Joy Illustration

Name: Louise Richardson

Winning Product (s): Merry and Bright DIY Crafty Advent Calendar

Can you tell me a bit about your business and the inspiration behind your products?

I am an illustrator and indie greeting card publisher. I enjoy seeing my drawings come to life on paper and felt the next step was a crafty project made also from recyclable materials.

I find it's my bright and playful cards which always sell best, so when it came to Christmas I had to think outside the box. I created this little Village scene with cute little houses, The Merry and Bright village includes lots of the lovely places you’d expect to find in such a Christmassy town - from a Rainbow Bakery to a Gingerbread Man Adoption Centre – a candy cane factory and even an ice skate hire shop

In what ways has winning Gift of the Year affected your business?

It's been a great talking point when speaking with buyers; they are automatically interested and want to know more about the product - which really helps me because I do often find it hard to talk about my own work!
Instead, the trophy starts the conversation, and we go from there.

Would you recommend a business to enter the GOTY awards and why?

I would recommend it. I think mainly the best bit is the networking; Giftware Association put on events throughout (especially pre-pandemic) which is a great networking opportunity. Also if you can shout about your achievement and share the badge at each stage; Nominated, Shortlisted, Finalist, Winner and Highly Commended.

Would you be able to provide us with a brief testimonial about the awards and why it's important for businesses to enter?

Do it for the logo alone!

To find out more about Two for Joy visit the website here - https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/UKTwoForJoy