Growing up, my mother would take my sisters and I along with her to the Hallmark store to buy cards and assorted gifts. It was engrained in me that anytime someone did something nice or was going through something, whether it was good or bad, that the thoughtful (and mannerly) thing to do was to send a card. Its is also a personal gesture that I have learned to love.

Givingli

More recently, I wanted to send a thank you card to someone I wanted show a little gratitude to, so I set out to find the perfect paper and matching envelope to write a handwritten thank you note. It was a lot harder than I had expected. It got me thinking. When did it become so hard to find a card?

Los Angeles-basedNicole Emrani Green and her husband Ben Green, founders of the newgifting app,Givingli, experienced something similar when they were planning their wedding, which is why they chose to go digital for their invitations. Going digital for our wedding was ten times cheaper than sending physical invites. When it came time for us to send greetings cards and gifts for our friends' weddings, birthdays and special moments, we realized there was nothing design-forward and easy that we could do on the fly. The use case was there, but no one was filling the need. So we decided to build our own, Nicole tells me of why they created Givingli.

Givingli Founders: Ben Green (l) Nicole Emrani Green (r)

Givingli officially launched in February 2019 and the pair launched the Givingli Gift store with the majority of the brands they have partnered with a few months later. With Givingli starting out as a side passion project, we decided to bootstrap it with help and support from our families, responds Nicole when I ask her if they self-financed. We generated revenue from day 1 and grew quickly after our first few months, especially once Apple started featuring our app in the App Store. At some point in the future we may be open to strategic partners.

Earlier this year,Hallmark cut 400 jobs,Papyrus, owned by Schurman Fine Papers, declared bankruptcyand closed all of its stores, and retailers like CVS and Walmart are cutting back their card offerings recognizing the upward trend of digital e-cards.WSJ reportedthat the United States sales of printed greeting cards, estimated at 4.5 billion in 2019 fell 13% over the last five years.

Givingli

Givingli

Personally, I dont enjoy seeing other companies like Hallmark and Papyrus taking a hit. I love greeting cards and stationary myself. However, I believe it shows that there is a major shift going on in our world right now, says Nicole. Whether its because of convenience or sustainability...who knows? But what we do know is that paper greetings are becoming less popular and digital options are becoming more and more appealing.

Addressing the shift in the greetings and gift space is Givinglis sweet spot.

Were re-thinking how we gift in the modern day with convenience, endless personalization, and design at the top of mind. Our customization tools allow for a complete personalized experience via text, stickers, video, photos, brushes, and more. If you choose, you can add an optional e-gift, and then send it all from your phone, instantly, explains Nicole. We partner with incredible independent artists, notable designers, and popular gift brands and bring them together in unique and creative ways. Weve made the entire gifting process digital from start to finish because we care about providing a sustainable solution for quality modern gifting.

Givingli

When it came to creating the platform, convenience and design were first priorities for the pair.

We are the first digital greetings company to partner with independent artists alongside recognized design brands like Pantone. Our personalization tools are similar to Snapchat or Instagram, in that you can literally make your Givingli any way you want; there are no limits with stickers, text, video, photos, brushes, and more, shares Nicole. But honestly, I think what makes any company great is the intangibles and the feeling behind it. First and foremost, we wanted Givingli to be a place where people can lift each other up and put a smile on a friend's face. So, the most important thing for us is that Givingli enables the human connection that we all desire: supportive, empowering, and positive. We're just providing a platform for it.

Givingli has partnered with a variety of artists, some of which took a chance on the platform before it was in beta.Melanie Johnssonis one of them and is known for using bold and powerful colors with a modern aesthetic.Zoe Wodarzis another, who Nicole tells me is the queen of pattern work and helped create Givinglis icons on the Create page: Text, brushes, stickers, and photos. I can call her up anytime I need help or advice on anything design related.

Givingli

Givingli

Givingli

One of my personal favoritesisSpaghetti & Meatballs (Marie Castiglione)who uses dry, clever humor. Another artist isAshley Le Quere, who Nicole tells me is all about expressing support and empowerment through her work.These are just a few of our artists. They are all incredible, extremely talented, and hard-working women. Theyve been such a pleasure to work with and Im excited to grow Givingli with them, and with all of our artist partners.

Since the launch, Givingli has partnered up with some big brands including Wine.com, Sephora, Saks Fifth Avenue, Crate And Barrel, AirBnB, and Pantone. Working withPantonehas been a dream come-true, states Nicole. With Pantone as the leader for color standards in the fashion industry and a major staple in the design world, a collaboration with them has always been a dream. We were able to launch a collection of 18 color-matched greetings with real Pantone colors, including this years Color of the Year, which can also be tied to celebrating special life moments and events.

In addition to partnering with big brands, Givingli also actively tries to partner with local businesses too.

Partnering withDayglowis a partnership I was really excited about, Nicole tells me. Theyre a small business with only two locations in LA, yet they source and distribute the best coffee from all around the world and attract all types of people from true coffee fanatics to A-list celebs (yes, Ive seen a few while grabbing my morning coffee). Were so lucky to have them as our go-to coffee spot across the street, which is why onboarding them as a gift partner was really special.

Givingli

Givingli

Givingli

With Givingli being the first time to step into the entrepreneurial space (Nicole has a background in both marketing and psychology and Ben was a intellectual property lawyer), I was curious to know what it has been like getting Givingli off of the ground.

I truly couldnt have imagined the growth we saw in 2020. From incredible collaborations with some of the biggest brands to being featured at the top of the App Store on Mother's Day and crashing from too many downloads, it's been a whirlwind, responds Nicole. Who knows what will happen going forward, but we're exploring integrating with other platforms, growing our gift list, partnering with and supporting small businesses, adding physical gifts, and even expanding internationally.

When I ask what folks can expect from the app moving forward, Nicole tells me that they have big things in store for their users. We have a super-secret major partnership we're really excited about. I cant share details now but if you follow us on social @givingli or keep up with us on the app, youll surely hear about it in the next month or so.

See the rest here:

Givingli: Step Aside Hallmark, Theres A New Gifting Platform In Town - Forbes