Grußkarten: Handgeschriebene Grüße im KI-Zeitalter – funktioniert das?

Burkhard Schepermann, the man behind the million-selling greeting cards, often has to field skeptical questions about the viability of his business in the age of AI. Despite the skepticism, he and his partner Constantin von Braun founded the Hamburg-based Papiernest publishing house more than 15 years ago, specializing in anniversary, birthday and condolence cards.

The company's annual turnover now exceeds the low millions, with a year-on-year increase of nearly a quarter in 2023, and the duo aims to triple their revenue in the next 5-7 years. This ambitious goal is fueled by current market projections, which only predict a 1% annual growth for the greeting and anniversary card market. The IFH reports a decline in total industry revenue from 789 million euros in 2019 to 753 million euros in 2023.

The division of this revenue among greeting and view cards is unclear. Despite this, Papiernest is optimistic about the future of papercut greetings, viewing themselves as market leaders with ambitions to take market share from competitors. The company has even acquired the Swiss market leader ABC, integrating a complex operation that initially proved to be their biggest risk.

While online sales are not their priority, the trend towards digital commerce is expected to grow, particularly with the likes of Temu and Shein entering the market.