Eid cards: Gaining popularity

Colourful cards attract buyers

Eid is a time for rejoicing. What could be better than to send along a greeting card with a gift or simply on its own?

Cards of both local as well as foreign companies are available aplenty in Bangladesh. These companies produce special Eid greeting cards for corporate companies as well as personal and family gifts. There is something for everyone and a buyer can opt for his or her preferred decoration, size and texts of cards.

There are usually two types of greeeting cards-- standard cards and special cards. In maximum cases, the graphics of the Eid greeting cards contain either the image of flowers or some typical Eid motifs. 'Eid Mubarak' is written in different calligraphy either in Bangla or in English.

The eye-catching handmade cards are also available in plenty in various outlets such as Aarong, Kumudini, Jatra among others. However, for the family and personal greeting cards, people look for diversity and uniqueness. Young girls and boys are basically choosy. They first go for some exceptional graphics and size of the cards. Sometimes, texts of the cards are also an important factor for picking Eid greeting cards for that 'special one'.

Azad Products and Ideal Products are the two local wholesalers, which are big names in the market. During Eid, they bring out special cards. The price of the cards varies up to Taka 100.

One finds graphic designs of the standard size cards in traditional motifs such as mosques, moon, stars flowers and more. Corporate companies are the main consumers of this variety. However, special cards decorated with crystals and glitter on the graphics design of flowers are very much in demand.

Often retailers collect cards from these companies and sell them on the streets near the residential areas. In these mobile street shops, sometimes, enthusiastic children are seen selling these cards.

Archies and Hallmark are the two foreign outlets for greeting cards in Bangladesh. The showrooms are situated in most of the popular shopping malls and are a popular haunt for people who look for interesting messages for their family or friends. The price of the cards varies from Taka 20 to Taka 250 in these galleries.

In an innovation, E-cards have gained popularity in this festive season. Besides popular webs, a few companies have opened a free website for E-cards. Through these webs, anyone can send animated E-cards to wish Eid greetings.