Bug Art are a small UK company based in Nottingham, who have been trading for over 30 years and are internationally recognized as publishers of quality art greeting cards. All our cards are folded and blank inside (with no message).
This website provides the opportunity for customers to browse and buy our cards online for delivery to several countries. Please see ‘Postage & Delivery’ for postage details. All prices are shown in British Pounds (£).
Over the last few years, Bug Art have licensed their images for use on giftware to several companies worldwide. These giftware products are not available directly from our Bug Art website. You may be able to find some of these products in gift shops and online retailers.
- Lesser & Pavey licence our Kooks designs for giftware, selling to trade customers in the UK.
- Kiub licence designs from most of our ranges, selling to trade customers mainly in France.
Our Story
Originally from York (UK), Bug Art’s founder and artist, Jane Crowther studied Illustration Ba(Hons) at Kingston Polytechnic (now Kingston University).
In the early 1990’s, whilst based in North London, Jane designed a small range of greeting cards to supplement her meagre income as an artist, initially selling them at craft fairs alongside her large multi-media paintings. The cards started to sell really well and Jane made the commercial decision to concentrate on her card designs. Bug Art was born.
These first cards, called the Snout range, featured a cute little bug character with a plastic nose and wobbly eyes. The earliest Snout cards were a labour-intensive cottage industry – they were hand-painted and the noses and eyes were glued on by hand.
Bug Art attended several trade shows before the Snouts attracted significant attention. There was nothing else like them on the market and soon agents and distributors began to show an interest. As trade started to pick up – and with Jane increasingly overcome by spray paint and glue – it was clear that she needed to upgrade her production methods. She was able to invest in four-colour printed cards and bespoke coloured noses.
The orders started to roll in and within a couple of years Bug Art had acquired a team of agents covering most of Britain and distributors covering North America, Australasia and parts of Europe. Friends and family were employed to keep up with demand.
The range proved hugely popular and over the next 10 years would sell in their millions across the world. This range is now discontinued.
A second range was released in 1993 and although different in style was again a great success. These innovative cards were more of an art card and had a handmade-paper design. They were enhanced by embossed gold foil. This Paper & Foil range is still one of Bug Art’s best-selling ranges and is regularly updated with new designs.
In 1995 Jane and Bug Art moved to Nottingham. They started from a small industrial unit and soon expanded into offices and a larger warehouse in 1998. In 1999, Jane’s sister Anne joined the company as a non-executive director. Anne, a chartered accountant with many years of consultancy experience, initiated and oversaw the financial and logistical restructuring of the business.
In 2002 Anne and Chris Griffiths (Bug Art’s general manager) founded A La Carte to provide warehousing, distribution and credit control services to greeting card publishers – with Bug Art as its first client. Jane was now able to concentrate on her role as Creative Director for Bug Art.
In the same year Bug Art released the Jewel range. The innovative use of ‘jewel-like’ foil embossing against black backgrounds provided a classic yet contemporary look, which again has had lasting appeal.
Our Story – Now
Every Bug Art design has a tiny little bug hidden somewhere in the image. This was originally done as a way to link the art ranges to the original cartoon-style bugs of the Snout range. 30 years later, we still do this and some customers love to look for him. Occasionally we forget to add the little bug and these cards become collectors items!
Having come a long way since the first Snout range, Bug Art is now broadly recognised as a publisher of quality art greeting cards. Printed on high quality board, most of the ranges are embellished with a variety of finishes designed to enhance the artwork onto which they are applied. The design, printing, finishing and packing of Bug Art Cards are all done within a 10-mile radius of Nottingham, an area with a renowned history in printmaking and the master crafts affiliated with the industry. This local craftsmanship is a major asset to Bug Art’s international reputation as a designer of quality greeting cards.
Bug Art has on several occasions received formal recognition both for its designs and the quality of their production, having been nominated several times for various internationally-recognised industry awards.
In the UK the company sells to independent retailers, small chains and quality department stores. Internationally, Bug Art continues to enjoy growth in exports, with distributors in over twenty countries including Australia, USA, New Zealand and most of Europe. Our cards are blank inside, ensuring that they can be bought for most occasions in different countries.
Meet the team at the Bug Art Studio L-R:
Jane – Creative Director
Daisy – Quality Control
Truffle – Office Shredder & Foot Warmer
Mike – Studio Manager
