Visual Print’s MD moves To Solopress
Graham Hunstone, managing director of recently acquired print provider, Visual Print & Design, has been hired as head of partnerships by fellow UK printer, Solopress
Moonpig, Koehler, Konica Minolta, and Apogee are among the companies providing joy to children during the festive period
As Christmas nears, Print Monthly highlights stories from companies across the print industry bringing joy by raising money and providing support to children during the festive period. Here, we mention just a few of the initiatives print companies have undertaken to give back at Christmas.
National Christmas Card Day was celebrated on December 9th with a host of specialist printed card releases.
Among those releasing cards for the day was personalised greeting cards and gifts retailer, Moonpig, which created its first ever collection of musical charity cards in partnership with Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity (GOSH).
GOSH provides services including in-hospital play teams, music therapy, and entertainment programmes to seriously ill children in the UK, helping hundreds of young people each year.
Moonpig’s new range of charity cards feature the melodies of the GOSH and University College London Hospitals (UCLH) staff choirs. When opened, the card plays a rendition of the choirs singing the Christmas hymn ‘Deck The Halls’.
12 GOSH themed charity cards are available in the range, with each featuring a QR code on the back of the card which, when scanned, brings up the option to play further audio of the GOSH Arts Choir. Money raised from the sale of the cards will go directly to GOSH.
Alongside the special card range, Moonpig are donating an additional £50,000 in support of GOSH’s arts programme, funded by GOSH Charity, which works to bring joy to children in hospital through the arts.
The funds raised will go towards supporting creative workshops for seriously ill children, as well as live performances of music and theatre, helping to bring joy to the hospital environment during the festive season.
The festive spirit was alive and well at Koehler Group, where the company’s annual children’s Christmas party was celebrated in its home country of Germany.
The event has been run by Koehler for over 100 years, bringing together employees and their children from across all of its German sites. As part of the event, gifts were given to 480 children by the festive figure of ‘Saint Nick’ himself.
The yearly event took place on December 5th, a day before the Saint Nicholas Day holiday which is traditionally celebrated during the Christmas period in Germany.
After the festivities were opened by Saint Nick (Nikolaus in Germany), Koehler finance and administration director Frank Lendowski and group works council chairman Gebhard Müller welcomed the children and their parents. In his welcome speech, Lendowski said: “Our Children’s Christmas Party is an important tradition here at Koehler, and one that has been near and dear to our hearts for decades now.
“We are delighted to see so many children and their parents showing up once again to ring in the festive season.”
This was then followed by an interactive show about “understanding the true meaning of Christmas”.
Across the pond, Konica Minolta Business Solutions UK helped to kick-start the festive season by volunteering at the Candlelighters Christmas Party event.
Candlelighters is a charity which provides support to families dealing with children's cancer.
The charity’s annual Christmas party in Bradford seeks to bring joy to families affected by childhood cancer. Konica Minolta employees supported the event both with donations and by volunteering on the day, alongside organisations including partner company Intuitive BI.
Overall, around 60 families were provided with food, games, activities, stalls, and entertainment that included Champ the elephant, the Candlelighters official mascot, and a visit to Santa’s grotto.
Marie Woodhead, partner marketing manager at Konica Minolta, carried out fundraising activities for Candlelighters throughout the year, including participating in its Ready Steady Cook challenge and coordinating chocolate egg and toy donations from Konica Minolta.
Woodhead comments: “This was my first time attending the Candlelighters Christmas Party and the team and I found it an afternoon of pure joy.
“Seeing the children light up meeting Santa, dancing with their favourite characters, and even booing the Grinch was truly heartwarming. It was an honour and a privilege to be part of this beautiful event.”
Managed print and IT solutions provider, Apogee, sponsored a ‘Rudolph Fun Run’ near to its Maidstone headquarters, which was hosted by Royal British Legion Industries (RBLI).
The annual event, which took place this year on Sunday, December 15th, at Leybourne Lakes in Kent, raised funds to provide financial, social, and emotional support to British Armed Forces veterans and their families.
This year’s Rudolph Fun Run featured both a 2.5km family-friendly route and a 5km chip-timed route, allowing participants of all ages and abilities to join in the fun. Adults and children alike were encouraged to wear red Rudolph noses to get into the Christmas spirit.
Apogee sponsored the event for a second consecutive year. As part of its sponsorship, employees from Apogee ran the 5km chip-timed route, calling for donations and encouraging others to register on Apogee’s social media channels.
In total, the event raised over £19,700 for RBLI’s charitable work. Natasha Wadhams, RBLI’s events fundraising manager, hailed it as “an incredible success”.
Wadhams adds: “With runners aged from three to 84, everyone came together to spread festive cheer and support our work with veterans. We’re immensely grateful to everyone who took part and want to make a special thank you to Apogee for their generous sponsorship.”
Dom Gryszan, director of marketing at Apogee, adds: “Sponsoring the RBLI’s Rudolph Fun Run is a wonderful way to give back to the community local to our head office in Maidstone.
“We’re delighted to be able to raise awareness for Armed Forces veterans and their families while spreading some festive cheer!”
