Store staff won’t be getting their cards

Dec 6 2008 by Henryk Zientek, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

THE greetings card company headed by Huddersfield Town chairman-elect Dean Hoyle has pledged to continue trading at all 80 stores acquired from its recession-hit rival – including one in Huddersfield.

Card Factory, based in Wakefield, bought the stores of failed rival retailer Celebrations Group, which owns the Card Warehouse and Card Fair brands, from the administrators .

The acquisitions include a Card Warehouse store at the Piazza in Huddersfield. Card Factory already has a store at the nearby Pack Horse Centre.

But Card Factory managing director Richard Hayes said: “We have been quite selective in the stores we have acquired. They will continue to trade under their existing names and, in time, will be converted to Card Factory outlets.

“The company has grown significantly in recent years. Even in the current climate, we are growing and rolling out our expansion plan. We will have opened more than 50 stores this year.”

Mr Hayes said the acquisition provided “an opportunity for us to take some stores on board which complement our existing store portfolio and give us a presence in the high street where we currently do not have stores.”