| Clinton Cards Limited | |
| Trade Name: | Clintons |
| Former Name: | Clinton Cards |
| Type: | Subsidiary |
| Industry: | Greeting card |
| Founder: | Don Lewin |
| Location: | Loughton, Essex, England |
| Parent: | American Greetings (2012–2018) Weiss Family (2018–2019) Esquire Retail Limited (2019–2024) Pillarbox Designs (2024–) |
Clintons, previously branded as Clinton Cards, is a chain of stores in the UK founded in 1968 by Don Lewin[1] and best known for selling greeting cards. It also sells soft toys and related gift products.
It was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE Fledgling Index. On 9 May 2012 the company entered administration[2] and following the closure of 350 branches, the company was bought by American Greetings.
The company fell into administration in 2012 and 2019 and was purchased both times by companies owned by the Weiss family.[3] Clintons was managed by Eddie Shepard,[4] from American Greetings’ subsidiary, Schurman Retail Group.[5]
Starting in July 2012, the company began the gradual introduction of a new store design and logo, which removed the previous ‘Clinton Cards’ branding, replacing it with the new ‘Clintons’ name.[6]
On 4 March 2024, Clintons was acquired by Pillarbox Designs, parent company of the similarly-sized greetings card retailer Cardzone and gift stores as Mooch. Talks around merging the two businesses had been taking place since prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Clintons brand will be retained and some stores may transition between the brands. Pillarbox's Paul Taylor replaced Eddie Shepard as Clintons CEO.[7]
Clinton Cards was founded in 1968 when Don Lewin OBE opened his first shop in Epping, Essex. The business grew to 77 shops by 1988 and was then successfully floated on the London Stock Exchange.
In 2004, the company purchased the Birthdays chain of card and party shops for £ 46.4 million but placed the subsidiary into administration in 2009, subsequently buying back 140 of the 332 stores.[8]
In May 2012, the company's main supplier American Greetings bought £36 million of Clintons debt from its main lending banks, and immediately called in the debt for payment.[9] Clinton Cards was unable to make the payment and entered administration on 9 May, with Peter Saville, Simon Freakley and Anne O’Keefe of Zolfo Cooper LLP, appointed as Joint Administrators of the Company. A week later 350 branches were closed, including all the Birthdays branches, and the remaining 397 stores were purchased in June 2012 by US-based American Greetings' subsidiary Lakeshore Lending Limited.[10] In October 2012, 12 stores were disposed of and sold to its main rival Card Factory.
In August 2023, Clintons was once again facing financial difficulties; the company appointed advisors to help it avoid insolvency and looked to close 38 of its 179 shops.[11]