Hallmark is expanding its greeting card line to keep up with evolving social structures, rolling out two new Mother’s Day messages specifically written for lesbian moms.
One of the cards addresses “two moms” and the other is intended for partners to give to one another, according to Hallmark spokeswoman Kristi Ernsting.
“Moms do it all and they do it with ease, from helping with homework to bandaging knees. They’re coaches and confidantes, role models, too…whatever it takes they’ll do,” reads one of the cards. “When it comes to big hearts, moms are second to none.”
While the outside of the greeting card seems fairly general, the inside gets more specific: “How does anyone ever get by with just one?”
A second design includes the line, “So happy I get to share this day with you — my partner, my love, my best friend.”
The move to include gay-friendly greetings follows Hallmark’s decision to sell similar Valentine’s Day cards earlier this year as well as offering other cards for same-sex weddings and anniversaries, NBC reports.
Hallmark Inc.
American Greetings, one of Hallmark’s top competitors, has not followed suit with Mother’s Day cards, with spokeswoman Patrice Saad explaining that the holiday is really “about a one-to-one relationship.”
Since there is a unique relationship that a child has with each parent, the need for a card addressing two moms hasn’t yet been seen by American Greetings. There’s also the natural inclination that a single card for two separate mothers actually cuts down on business for greeting card companies, as NBC News highlited.
It is entirely possible, though, that Hallmark is hoping to pick up a positive reputation by being ahead of the curve — one that could potentially lead to an uptick in business as gay partnerships become more accepted.
Hallmark has discussed its plans for same-sex greetings in the past, with Andre du Broc, a senior writer with the company, telling NPR in 2011 that he believes a line of gay-friendly greetings would eventually come.
So far, Hallmark has been slowly slow to release these cards, but has done so nonetheless.
“They’re performing on par with our regular wedding cards,” he said of cards commemorating same-sex unions at the time. “So we’re validated there that people do want these.”
Hallmark has more than 900 Mother’s Day card designs, making this year’s two lesbian-specific card offerings miniscule in comparison. Still, their inclusion indicates the company is anything but afraid to dive into the same-sex marketplace.
