Home and garden specialist, Primeur, has launched a brand-new collection of doormats produced under license from Bree Merryn, one of Britain’s most popular wildlife artists. The collection of 18 individual doormat designs made its debut at Spring Fair (4th – 7th February 2024, NEC, Birmingham), where Primeur exhibited for the first time this year.
Bree was on Primeur’s stand in Hall 8 to help promote the new collection and catch up with her friends and colleagues in the home and gift industry. With many retailers already stocking Bree’s distinctive wall art and incredibly successful licensed gift collections, the doormats help to create a seamless look throughout the home, from the moment you set foot inside.
Bree commented: “I am absolutely thrilled to be working with Primeur. I’ve known them for a long time – almost 30 years now – and they’re such lovely people and a joy to work with. It’s also lovely to be here at the forefront of the launch at Spring Fair and the response has been fantastic. There’s nothing like this in the market and people have loved it. The designs make you smile when you come to the door!”
The idea for the collection began to take shape in Summer 2023, when Bree and Primeur Managing Director, Jenny Douthwaite, decided to form a winning partnership. Whilst she describes this as a perfect match, Bree highlights the care taken in refining the product by meticulously selecting colours from her extensive palette for printing onto doormats.
“It was very important for the work to be recognisably mine”, Bree continued saying, “right down to my signature ‘splats’ which give the artworks vibrancy and movement. We also needed to choose designs that are appropriate to this product category. The ducks wearing wellingtons were an obvious choice, as were my highland cows, which are always so popular”.
Perhaps most fitting of all is the Nice to See Ewe design featuring a sheep and collie dog, perfect for making guests feel welcome and bringing that happy smile to their faces as soon as they arrive at the door.
Bree Merryn artwork portal
A total of 18 Bree Merryn artworks have been used in the initial launch for Primeur, across a range of qualities and price points, with more already in the pipeline for future line extensions.
There are seven Printed Washable Mat designs: Phelan the Pheasant, a family of Cuddly Coos, Barney and Fred the donkeys, the Hedgie Hike hedgehog family, a House Party of British birds, a Puddle Parade of ducks and the Nice to Meet Ewe collie dog and sheep. These short pile digitally printed mats are sized at 40x60cm and are competitively priced to help drive volume sales.
The digitally printed Luxury Collection of 50 x 75cm washable doormats includes two additional characters, Blair the highland cow and the ‘We are not Amoosed’ party of cows. The supersoft mats have a heavier pile for enhanced comfort under foot, making them perfect housewarming gifts.
Nine printed Boot Trays showcase Bree’s work to its full potential, with charming characters such as Brillo, Barb and Bumble the hedgehogs joining Morrag the highland cow, Three Duckgrees, Jack and Vera the donkeys and the stunning kingfisher King of the North.
Not only are these versatile trays the perfect place to store muddy boots, but they also come in very handy around the garden during planting season, stopping seeds from going awry or hand tools getting lost in garden beds.
Also with muddy boots in mind are six hard-wearing Coir Mats featuring stencilled designs and alternative animal friends that include Oswald the barn owl and Ralph the robin alongside some of the more familiar faces. A true market innovation, these fabulous images bring wonderful vibrancy to the humble doormat.
The collection is completed with a set of six Portrait Rubber Barrier doormats. Hardwearing with a short-cropped pile, they offer an excellent surface that shows off Bree’s artwork to great effect.
Jenny Douthwaite comments: “We couldn’t be more pleased about our first foray into licensing with this Bree Merryn collection. It is totally unique in this market and brings something really special to what is traditionally seen as quite a utilitarian product category. It has been a true delight working with Bree, whose fabulous wildlife art is incredibly popular with the British public. Retailers who saw us at Spring Fair loved this new collection and I’m looking forward to showcasing it again at the Garden Press Event* later this month.”
