Awesome! Sellers make $5 billion in sales in a year with niche products

Seemingly insignificant categories often contain huge business opportunities, and greeting cards are one of them.

Some sellers chose this category and sold the small greeting cards all over the world, becoming a super seller with annual revenue of 5 billion US dollars.

Small greeting cards have big business opportunities! HallMark's popular products are popular all over the world

HallMark was founded in 1910 and has a history of more than 100 years. The company is headquartered in Kansas, USA, and mainly sells greeting cards, paper, writing tools, gift packaging, decorations, clothing, cosmetics, etc. Among them, greeting cards are HallMark 's main product.

(Image source: HallMark official website )

At present, HallMark 's gift cards and other products have been sold to more than 100 countries around the world, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, etc. HallMark is favored by consumers for its unique design, high-quality production and rich content, and has developed into a well-deserved leading brand in the gift industry.

According to public data, Hallmark sells 10 million greeting cards every day and employs about 21,000 full-time employees . At the same time, the company also has a large creative team, including 740 proofreaders, designers, copywriters, editors and photographers .

Looking back on the development history of Hallmark, we have to start from 1910 .

Driven by the postcard craze in the early 20th century, 18-year-old Joyce Clyde Hall founded the Norfolk Postcard Company with her brothers William and Rollie .

In 1915, after a fire destroyed their offices and warehouse , they began producing their own greeting cards , including high-quality Valentine's Day and Christmas cards, which were beautifully packaged and mailed in envelopes to meet consumers' needs for private communications.

The biggest advantage of Hallmark greeting cards is their unique design and rich content. They are not only practical but also collectible.

Hallmark pays great attention to detail and quality in the design and production of greeting cards. Each greeting card is made of high-quality paper and printing materials, with unique decorations and text content. There are also a wide variety of greeting cards. Every year, the company's designers will launch a new series of greeting cards to meet the preferences of different ages and consumer groups.

At the same time, Hallmark's greeting cards are also very culturally rich. The brand is committed to promoting etiquette culture and promoting emotional exchanges between people. Greeting cards are suitable for various occasions and festivals, such as birthdays, weddings, Father's Day, Mother's Day, Christmas, etc., allowing consumers to clearly express their thoughts when giving gifts.

Currently, Hallmark 's products are sold through multiple channels .

Hallmark has more than 42,000 retail stores in the United States, including greeting card stores, large-scale department stores, drug stores, food stores and major discount retailers .

Another sales channel is international distribution. Since the 1860s, Hallmark has begun to expand its international market. Greeting cards have been printed in more than 30 languages ​​and sold all over the world. Today, Hallmark's global sales network has covered more than 100 countries .

The independent website is an important sales channel for Hallmark , and users can purchase greeting cards and gifts through the website .

Hallmark has carefully classified greeting cards and gifts on its independent website, including gift types, suitable occasions, emotional expressions, festivals, seasons, gift packaging , etc. It also includes current popular elements to help users quickly find the gifts they want to buy and meet diverse needs.

Hallmark 's independent website also offers a "personalized customization " service, where users can fill in their needs based on questions and answers online to create exclusive gifts . Hallmark also retains users through the Crown Rewards membership system and provides multiple benefits such as point redemption, free e-cards, and coupons .

According to data from Similarweb, direct traffic from Hallmark's independent site accounts for more than 50%, and natural searches account for more than 30%. Hallmark's social media marketing has played a very important role in helping the brand because social media marketing is a powerful tool that can help seemingly ordinary products gain huge attention and sales.

In the early stage of Hallmark brand promotion, it used social media platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram to greatly expand its exposure, and used the popularity of the social media platforms themselves and the promotion of celebrities to carry out effective exposure and precise traffic. Celebrities posted product reviews on social platforms, effectively attracting the target group.

Through extensive social media influence and user-generated content, Hallmark has built a strong brand image and user loyalty, and product sales have grown rapidly driven by social media marketing.

On the other hand, Hallmark has also used cross-border marketing and IP collaboration to create a number of classic products, which have been widely recognized by consumers.

Hallmark often collaborates with popular animated films, such as Disney, Harry Potter, Barbie, Star Wars, etc., using popular IP characters as highlight elements of greeting cards, decorations, and accessories to attract more audiences and enhance the brand's value and influence.

With the help of multiple factors, Hallmark's performance has maintained a rapid growth trend.

In 2015, Hallmark's revenue exceeded $3 billion.

Today, Hallmark 's annual revenue has reached $5 billion.

In general, Hallmark's success was not achieved overnight, but was the result of multiple factors including a deep understanding of consumer needs , strong product power, personalized customized services , the use of social media platforms , and the release of brand power .

The global gift industry ushers in new development opportunities!

In recent years, the gift market in which Hallmark is located has entered a period of rapid growth.

According to research data from businessresearchinsights, the global gift retail market size was US$72.57 billion in 2024 and is expected to reach US$97.35 billion by 2032, with a compound annual growth rate of 3.74% during this period.

The US market, in particular, has broad development prospects.

Because the United States is the world's largest gift market, Americans are keen to celebrate on various special occasions, such as birthdays, holidays, graduation ceremonies, etc., which keeps the U.S. gift market growing at a high rate. Especially during the year-end peak season, consumers will buy a large number of holiday gifts.

In addition to the United States, European consumers also have a very high demand for gifts, especially Germany. According to statistics, the market size of German gifts remains at around US$16 billion , ranking first in the European market.

It is worth noting that the demand for gifts is also growing in many developing countries. As the middle class continues to expand, the demand for gifts in countries and regions such as India and Southeast Asia will be even stronger.

However, sellers who want to enter the gift industry should note that in order to gain an advantage in the fierce market competition, they must increase the artistry and practicality of their products and improve their quality. On the other hand, they must understand the cultural and religious customs of the target market and meet the real needs of consumers. They must also expand market channels and avoid the risks of a single market.

Niche categories