Feb 1, 2020 - Economy

The death of paper greeting cards

Erica Pandey

Rack of paper greeting cards — Photo: Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images

Americans aren't really buying each other cards anymore.

The big picture: "U.S. sales of printed greeting cards, estimated at $4.5 billion in 2019, fell nearly 13% over the last five years, according to market research company IBISWorld," WSJ reports.

That trend is hitting Hallmark — and its nearly 2,000 U.S. stores — hard, per the Retail Brew newsletter.
The 110-year-old company is responding to the sales decline by pushing personalized cards on a redesigned app, opening smaller stores in places like hospitals and shaking up leadership, Retail Brew notes.

The bottom line: Young people are increasingly using social media or text messaging to reach their friends on holidays. Those 7-frame Instagram story birthday tributes may soon be the end of greeting cards.

Go deeper: New York City fights the cashless future

Add Axios on Google

The death of paper greeting cards

What to read next