Foremost Card and Gift retailer, Celebrations, is set to make its debut in Lagos on February 10, 2018.
With over two decades of quality service and happy shoppers in Jos and Abuja, Celebrations will expand operations with its store located in Lekki Phase 1, Lagos. The stylish and modern store is set to offer shoppers a unique shopping experience for gift items ranging from greeting cards, perfumery, jewellery, accessories, leather goods, confectionery, porcelain pieces and precious items that are perfect for celebrating life’s special people and occasions.
The company, Celebrations, which is a licensed distributor of world renowned card makers Hallmark, will showcase an array of exclusive gift items from brands such as Christian Lacroix, T2 Tea, Cross AT, Keel Toys and others from across the globe, satisfying shoppers cravings for variety in meeting celebratory needs.
According to the Managing Director Celebrations Cards and Gifts, Dele Balogun, “Our story has been one of consistency, dynamism and growth. We have found ourselves constantly evolving to meet growing needs of our clientele and seeking ways to serve them better. We look forward to bringing the same quality assurance, affordability and service that has kept us growing all these years to Lagos and building new relationships.”
Located at 45A Adebayo Doherty Road Lekki Phase 1, the store will officially open its doors with welcome cocktails to the public. The store’s opening hours will be 9am to 9pm Mondays to Saturdays affording shoppers a fresh and inviting ambience to explore, be inspired and find unique and special ways to celebrate others and reward self.
“Gifting is an art and at Celebrations, we take no exceptions. We are a vibrant fun-loving family run business, with a passion for celebrating bonds and special moments through gifts. We began about 30 years ago in Jos, providing quality greeting cards and since that time, we have evolved to offer a qualitative and eclectic range of carefully selected gift items.
“At the heart of our operations is the understanding that gifting is so much more than just the physical exchange of objects. We believe that when you care enough, you can change the world. That’s why we are dedicated to creating a more emotionally connected world and making a difference in the lives of others,” said Balogun.
He said Celebrations started in 1989 as a corner shop kiosk in the student village hostel of University of Jos. “The idea was developed by my father then as a means to providing university students with quality but affordable gift items (mainly greeting cards) during the school term. The vision then was to locate many kiosks along the different hostels in Nigerian Universities.
“Through the years, that vision was chopped and tweaked to evolve into a full-fledged gift store at Plateau Club in Jos, servicing not just students but across all socio-economic classes in the city. In 1999 with 3 stores in Jos we made the over to Abuja and opened the first store in the Asokoro district, another followed in Wuse Zone 4 and then Maitama still upholding the values of quality and affordability.
“I took over in 2013 after the death of my Father and immediately sought to restructure the business still maintaining our key attributes of quality and affordability but also introduced a plan to create a modern outlook for retail thereby giving shoppers a better experience in store. We now have 3 stores in Abuja including a full Hallmark licensed store and one in Abuja.
“Over the years in charge we have had some interesting and difficult challenges, most recent has been the economic downturn which we managed to withstand through a careful curation of product categories. We found we were able to appeal to the student who wanted just a birthday card to the ‘Madam’ who wanted a curated gift box/hamper for her husbands birthday.
“We have also found out that our core product (greeting cards) is still a growth product in our market. We have seen consistent 20% year on year growth through the last 5 years. Again we have been able to source a variety of greeting card types to match the ever evolving consumer taste. We are also sourcing a god number of cards from Nigerian publishers.”
He said they have been able to serve their customer base through providing quality and affordable products but most important also offering a pleasant service and environment. “We have staff that have been with us more than 20 years. We also have a loyal customer base that have shopped with us as they have progressed from Kiosk visitors at the University of Jos to seasoned professionals. We are also there to provide our products and services when people celebrate memorable life events such as anniversaries, weddings, child birth , graduations. Retirements, promotions and even the very simple but key every day celebrations.”
