Card company Lawson Falle marks its first anniversary under new ownership this week at Advance with a new name and logo that follow a remarkable turnaround story.

“Lawson Falle” is now tucked into the space below the first and third letters of the new Life logo, which reads, “celebrating life's special moments.”

The Ontario-based company was acquired by Dicksons Gifts in February 2006. But just a few months later it was plunged into crisis when the company that published its lines went bankrupt, with all the designs being sold off. That left Lawson Falle with only a tenth of its former 4,000 SKUs, in licensed items.

Having recently moved distribution to Dicksons' Seymour, Ind., headquarters, Lawson Falle had some inventory in hand. But as some stores started to run out of product in the fall, the company encouraged retailers to use other publishers' materials to fill the Lawson Falle display space, said President Rick Tocquigny.

He led the efforts that saw the company secure printing agreements in Pennsylvania and China and replace its image library in a short time. By June, the newly renamed Life will be back up to around 4,000 SKUs, he said.

“We have been born again, in a way,” said Tocquigny, noting that the unexpected development enabled the company to refresh most of its offerings. Attributing the success to “the hand of God and His grace, and to how fast you can work,” he said that customers have “hung in with us.”

There had been a positive response to Life's new catalogs, which include an innovative line of scented cards, he added.