ROYAL TALENS front cover_ADS 01/06/2018 09:44 Page 1 £3.50 ISSUE 132 JUNE/JULY 2018 CraftBusinesswww.craftbusiness.com The leading trade title for the craft industry BACK TO SCHOOL 2018 Bruynzeel: proud supporter of everyone's imagination since 1948 there we were. at your fingertips, when you drew your first line. one of many. those lines became ideas and those ideas became drawings. we at Bruynzeel love them all as we believe that every drawing is an expression of imagination worth sharing. so share away! BACK TO SCHOOL SEWING INTERVIEW Study up and They are Staying be classroom sew on in the ready trend pink P9 P19 P26 POSCA page_ADS 31/05/2018 10:40 Page 1 2 XXXXXXXXX NEWS 3 Create and Craft announces partnership with Euro Crafty Limited Welcome z Create and Craft have entered into a partnership with one of the leading distributors in the arts and z Mark Hayhurst z @craftbiz crafts industry with a specialism in mixed-media z [email protected] products from the four corners of the world; Euro Crafty Limited. z Craft is cool – some might not think so but I think it is now an In conjunction with Create and Craft, unavoidable fact. Euro Crafty will be bringing a number of craft Thousands of people visited the hundreds of sites from brands to the channel over the coming months, Peckham to Walthamstow, Brixton to Mayfair, during London Craft including DaliART, Pentart, Stamperi and Becky Week. Visitors met makers face to face as all things craft were Seddon as well as several new UK and USA celebrated. TV Exclusive suppliers including PipART, D’arts And one of the generations that is pushing craft forward are the and Sospeso Transparente, with a joint aim to so-called millennials. According to some statistics there are now as bring mixed-media inspiration to the world. many younger crafters as there are from older generations. Euro Crafty is the brainchild of Dalvinder Graham And the touch of a younger generation could be seen as Liberty (Dali) and Paul Griffin and was born from a desire to helped launch London Craft Week by announcing the winners of bring unique, affordable and quality products to the their social media Instagram-based talent search #LibertyOpenCall. market, giving crafters access to different mixed- The winners were sculptural designer Alex Chinneck, and media products from global companies. Dali will ceramicist Katch Skinner and Rūta Bartkevičiūtė. be the main guest demonstrator for the majority The recent Hobbycraft report stated that the crafting movement of the brands that Euro Crafty will be launching mixed-media following can grow with me, and in is a growing trend with almost two thirds of UK adults describing on Create and Craft, but the company will also be turn we as a company can grow with them too.” crafts as ‘fashionable’ and those aged 25-34 are the age group who introducing additional new and recognised faces too. Lindsay-Jane Vines, Create and Craft Managing think it the most (67 per cent). Dali said: “For us here at Euro Crafty, working Director, added: “Here at Create and Craft we couldn’t And it also millennials who are helping to push the mindfullness in partnership with Create and Craft means we will be more thrilled to be announcing this partnership. and wellbeing aspects of arts and craft – helping to take away the be working together to create and drive a mixed Euro Crafty have so much to bring to the channel, taboo of mental illness. media market which will enable us to educate from well recognised brands such as Dali’s own When it comes to switching off from hectic lives 54 per cent of and inspire a much bigger crafting audience. DaliART, to new to market suppliers which have the nation use craft to relax and 28 per cent of people use craft to “In working with Create and Craft we can see never been seen in the UK and USA before now. help with their mental health. And this can only be a good thing. the opportunity for both our businesses to work “Through our relationship with Euro Crafty and Social media has seen an explosion of crafters showing off their together and nurture one another on both continents. Dali, we will be able to bring even more inspiration makes on platforms such as Instagram and Pintrest. This shows Both companies have so much to give each other; and product innovation to the channel, working the pride in, and popularity, of arts and crafts. Create and Craft have a massive audience whose together to grow the mixed-media market.” So crafting is cool and we should all embrace it. Enjoy this month’s edition of Craft Business. Alibaba lawsuit highlights the ON THE RECORD “The word battle against counterfeiters z ACID has called on online platforms to take Liangshangmei; Yi Wu Yu Yi ‘mindfulness’ is responsibility in the battle against counterfeit Co; Gongzhiqian; ZFParty used a lot in goods. Handcraft; Qianyan; Anti Copying In Design, the UK’s leading Yiwu Import and Export crafting these days, design and intellectual property campaigning Trade; Universe Flag; and and it brings joy to organisation, made their call following the news QLLH. In each instance, that Stampin’ Up has filed a lawsuit against Stampin Up accused the my heart that it is” Alibaba in a US court for copyright infringement. defendants of selling “knockoff” Stampin’ Up, which produces and versions of its own stamps. MISS LIBBY ROSE sells decorative rubber stamps and other A Stampin’ Up! spokesperson said: “Stampin’ scrapbooking and paper craft supplies, filed its Up! has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in the complaint at the US District Court for the District US Federal District Court of Utah against Alibaba. of Utah Central Division on Wednesday, April 4. com Hong Kong Ltd., the operator of the AliExpress TWO-THIRDS OF SME CRAFT AND DESIGN The lawsuit was filed against Alibaba, e-commerce platform; in order to stop the sale of RETAILERS SEE AN INCREASE IN SALES which operates the e-commerce platform counterfeit Stampin’ Up! products on AliExpress AliExpress, an online shop that allows by merchants not associated with Stampin’ Up! z Almost two-thirds (65 per cent) of the UK SME craft and design merchants to sell products across the world. We are committed to ensuring all of Stampin’ retailers spoken to have seen an increase in their sales over the last Dids McDonald (pictured), ACID CEO, said: Up!’s art and intellectual property are protected.” 12 months, according to a study commissioned by Royal Mail. On “Many of our ACID members are continually Stampin’ Up alleged that the defendants average, these retailers have seen a 19 per cent increase in sales in frustrated by the difficulties they face with have been selling rubber stamps with designs the last year. online infringements on online platforms such identical to its own since September 2017. The A spokesperson for Royal Mail Parcels said: “The craft and design as Alibaba and AliExpress. Taking action can infringing products are allegedly being sold sector is booming in the UK and it’s promising to see the level of put a huge strain on businesses and, more at dramatically lower prices than authentic confidence from SMEs in this space. At Royal Mail, we support many especially micro businesses, because it is Stampin’ Up products. It is believed that over retailers across a variety of sectors and we’re also helping to make cost and time debilitating made even more 90 of the plaintiff’s stamps have been copied exporting simpler through our easy to use Click & Drop system. We difficult in that online platforms differ in their and offered for sale by the defendants. look forward to supporting more craft and design retailers in the processes for take down, their response Between November 2017 and future”. time also is inconsistent and there is often March 2018, Stampin’ Up submitted 143 Over eight in ten (81%) of these retailers are confident that their resistance. There is growing pressure from takedown notices to AliExpress. sales will continue to increase in the next year. To grow sales, UK SME Government to create Codes of Practice not Dids McDonald added: “To put a scale on the craft and design retailers intend to list their products on more only to support IP owners but to hold online growing threats of online infringement, according marketplace sites (41 per cent), look for space in another physical platforms to account but this is a monumental to OECD statistics, imports of counterfeit and store (26 per cent) and use social media (22 per cent). task looking at the scale of infringements. pirated goods are worth nearly half a trillion dollars Over half (52 per cent) are also planning to increase their “If this lawsuit is successful it will send a year, or around 2.5 per cent of global imports and marketing spend and 34 per cent intend to take advantage of the a clear and resounding message that many of the proceeds going to organised crime. increased interest in UK exports. online platforms need to take the subject In the UK it is four per cent, well above the 2.5 per Gifts, artwork and jewellery are the most common products sold of IP infringement much more seriously. cent average share of fake goods in world imports by UK SME craft and design retailers. The UK Government, for example, has so there is even more of an issue nationally. Almost half (49 per cent) of UK SME craft and design retailers signed Memoranda of Understanding with “Counterfeiters take advantage of our export goods, with 50 per cent importing goods.