Hallmark Cards, Inc. history, company profile (overview) and history video
Hallmark Cards, Inc. creates and sells a variety of products including greeting cards, gift wraps, stationery, ornaments, gifts, art materials, toys, and other related products. It is headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, United States.
HISTORY
Hallmark Cards’ history began in 1910 when 18-year-old Joyce Clyde Hall stepped off a train in Kansas City, Mo., with two shoeboxes of postcards. Joyce Clyde Hall became captivated by a salesman who stopped by his family’s store in 1906 in Norfolk, Nebraska. Driven by the postcard craze of 1903, Hall decided to venture from retail of various products to wholesale of postcards.
As time went on, Hall became more convinced that greeting cards would become more prominent than postcards. Greeting cards, according to J.C. Hall, represented class, promised discretion and “they were more than a form of communication—they were a social custom.”
By 1915, Rollie Hall joined his brother in business, and the company was known as Hall Brothers. They sold Valentine’s Day and Christmas cards.
In 1915, a fire destroyed their office and inventory. They took the only salvageable item and set up shop again.
In 1917, The two brothers “invented” modern wrapping paper when they ran out of traditional colored tissue paper.
In 1922, the line increased from holiday cards to include everyday greeting cards.
In 1928, the company adopted the name “Hallmark”, after the hallmark symbol used by goldsmiths in London in the 14th century, and began printing the name on the back of every card.
In 1931, the Canadian William E. Coutts Company, Ltd., a major card maker, became an affiliate of Hall Brothers.
In 1944, the company adopted its current slogan, “When you care enough to send the very best.”
In 1954, the company name was changed from Hall Brothers to Hallmark.
In 1958, the company acquired William E. Coutts Company, Ltd.
In 1998, Hallmark acquired the Britain-based Creative Publishing (a recent spinoff of Fine Art Developments), and U.S. based InterArt.
In 2001, the Hallmark Channel was established.
BUSINESSES
- Hallmark – greeting cards, gift wrap and related products;
- Crayola – art materials and toys;
- Hallmark Media – operates three cable networks: Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, and Hallmark Drama and Hallmark Movies Now;
- Crown Center – a real estate development company.
With more than 30,000 employees, Hallmark Cards, Inc. is considered one of the largest manufacturers of greeting cards in the United States. According to Forbes, it is considered one of the Largest Public Companies in the World.
*Information from Forbes.com, Wikipedia.org, www.hallmark.com, and corporate.hallmark.com.
**Video published on YouTube by “hallmarkcards“