Direct from Market: California Gift Show
Millie Szerman -- Gifts and Dec, 2/1/2011 1:50:36 PM
Los Angeles - The word on the street is that retailers have had a positive, profitable end to 2010, and the climate at the 
January California Gift Show ran true. Weather-wise, with the rest of the country in pretty much a deep freeze, Southern California was certainly the place to be, with balmy 70+ degree temperatures, bright sunshine and plenty to attract industry attention.
Although I'd expected a slow start to the show, which ran January 18-24, I was pleasantly surprised to find retailers lined up for registration at the LA Mart on Thursday, as well as actively shopping on the 13th floor, 30,000 square-foot space of manufacturers' representative California Marketing Associates (CMA) at the California Mart building.
Industry icons owner Mickey Lang and sales manager Dave Thomas were gracious hosts, taking me through the extensive showroom. One of their newest lines, Pure Vision, is a collection of 100 percent pure soy candles, made with essential oils, in 36 incredible fragrances, including popular Exotic Plumeria, Mango Peach and English Tea. What makes this line so unique is that the company is able to "private label" these candles for individual retailers at a price point that makes them fly off the shelves. And they're made in America! Says retailer Evelyn Taplin from Petals & Wax in Marina Del Rey, CA, "This is the best marketing I can possibly do for my store! Not only is this a high quality product, but there's no set up charge for my store name and logo. Minimum order is only 36 pieces! At this price point, I can give my customer a ‘real deal,' and they come back for more. The gift box packaging is phenomenal as well. As a gift, the private label tells the recipient where the candle they love so much came from. With the store label on both the box and the candle, every retailer in America should carry this line. It's a no brainer."
Also in candles, the Signature Collection from Enjoy Lighting offers a new remote-control, flameless wax candle. It looks
Raz Imports
like a candle, of course, but with the touch of button, the candle switches on or off. No odor, no flame, no smoking wick. Battery operated and available in three sizes, the Remote Included and Remote Ready pillars are great for high or hard-to-reach places. The company also offers multi-hour timer candles that can be set to turn on and off as desired.
Raz Imports, a long-running home decor manufacturer, is CMA's number one line and occupies about 6,000 square feet. Introduced this past holiday season were pre-lit flat artificial trees, but Lang says that they're still selling into 2011! Available in 4', 5' and 9' heights, the trees are perfect for smaller spaces. There's even a black Halloween version.
With an eye to attract attention, Desert Sunglasses sported a broad range of 
Desert Sun Sunglasses
sunglass styles and a terrific display of Marilyn Monroe photos, each wearing a different version. Smack in the middle of some 13 Marilyn images was one of the infamous Albert Einstein, sticking his tongue out, and he, too, was sporting a spiffy pair of specs. National sales manager, Rick Burdette, told me "It's all about variety, and retailers need to pay close attention to display. What's old is back..." as evidenced by large size glasses and plenty of bling.
Retailers demonstrated a continued interest in culinary trends this market. Likely fed by the popularity of HGTV and the Food cable networks and with an economy that nurtures staying at home, CMA's Welcome Home Brands introduced its newest exclusive U.S. distribution of Paper Bakeware. According to Sherri Wolfe, vice president of sales for the company, "Our paper bakeware eliminates the need for metal bakeware as well as messy after-baking clean-up, making it easy for the consumer to bake, serve, store, give and recycle! A plethora of designs come in various shapes, making this decorative paper bakeware fun and convenient. It's ready-made presentation."
Following the culinary trend, The Modern Cocktail is the newest rendition of a convenient "at home" Happy Hour. Touting 30 pre-measured mixers with a modern twist, the company has gone to lengths to market these flavors in a beautifully packaged six-bottle tote. With five packs currently available, consumers can cover their bar basics - Modern Highballs, Modern Martinis, Modern Berrytinis, Modern Margaritas and Modern Champagne Toppers - without having to purchase and store larger bottles of flavored mixers. Each mini-bottle has been carefully evolved by the company's mixologists so that, combined with the appropriate libation, a single modern cocktail is created. And at a retail price point of under $10, these six-packs really can make your party!
Beverly Hills Cookie Co.
The other side of the party rests on the Beverly Hills Baking Company, a pinch of glamour in every batch of delicious cookies. Again, the company has made great strides to create bits of taste indulgence and package them in exquisite boxes.
Speaking of eating and drinking, Jill Bryman of Sport + Store has created a terrific sports bottle, with a compartment on the end to hold everything from 
Sport + Store
keys and change to credit cards and snacks for your kids (four-legged ones included). Lightweight and sleek, the design features a non-skid base and screw top with handy belt clip, and is made of durable, food-grade stainless steel. The bottles are available in six fashionable colors, too. Looks like plastic disposable bottles are passé.
Well, maybe not quite yet. Seems those water bottles are being recycled into ecologically conscious tote bags by Joann Marie Designs under her JAM label. These convenient tote bags are lightweight and durable, featuring a canvas handle/strap. They're water-resistant, wipe clean and can hold up to 45 pounds. There are eight sizes in nine beautiful designs. The lunch tote is perfect for your midday meal and the larger utility tote comes with a three-bottle insert, perfect for that spring or summer picnic.
LA Mart
Making my way through the downtown streets of Los Angeles brought back wonderful memories of California Gift Shows past. Streets appear cleaner and less congested, believe it or not, and the buzz at the LA Mart building beckoned. I was greeted with upbeat music and bright yellow signage. Smiles were everywhere, and retailers were lined up to spend their holiday profits.
Street level Two's Company offered room vignettes, a valuable merchandising visual. Robin Weiss, sales director for the company's western region, took me on a tour. First stop, Happy Rescue Dog, a new line of pet accessories. Each sale 
Two
provides a percentage to a pet rescue organization. Very sweet for those four-legged children in your life.
Handmade is still (and hopefully will always be) a sought-after commodity, and with the explosion of coffees and teas, the Vintage Tea Cozies were charming. Second Life uses recycled materials, and here I found magazines plied into photo frames. Curiosity Shop held treasures galore: In particular, a line of glass trays taking their motifs from nostalgic board games.
Tozai Home, Two's Company's home decor line where East meets West, savors the Asian influence. Large porcelain pots, specifically designed to look like metal, caught my eye. Here, too, were decorative accents made from camel, buffalo and ox bone. Decorative floor rugs, a new category for this collection, are designed from animal hides, demurely elegant or brightly colored.
In Deco Breeze's showroom there were more than 40 styles of a range of characters from domestic cats and dogs to roosters, turtles, floral arrangements and more. Their new product line of metal sculpted figurine luminaries offers decorative electric nightlights that cast an enchanting aura against the wall of a darkened room. The magnetic heads have free rotation for any angle and are removable.
Nostalgia Looms Large
Nostalgia remains large at Oak Patch Gifts which, under its Laid Back brand, presents Vintage Vixen (licensed from pin-up artist Gil Elvgren) and Vintage Dude Collections - a throwback in time to images from the '40s and '50s, with today's clever quotes. As seen in other showrooms as well, coin banks are again making a comeback. This company's Skinny Piggy Collection touts slim banks with clever sayings such as "I'm not cheap, I'm financially challenged," and "Wow! I'm having an Out of Money Experience."
DCI
Charming and ready for spring, Designs Combined Inc. (DCI), imports a broad range of decorative accents. Their newest French-inspired line of accessories and everyday decor shouts "Parisian flea market" in vintage style with coordinated everything. Rabbits, roosters and sunflowers are still selling strong for this importer.
Principals Becky Bainer and Jo-Ann Amrhein at Net 30 escorted me around their busy showroom. Up With Paper, one of their long-running manufacturers, is doing well with its new Sight and Sound cards. With the press of a corner, the image comes alive with its own unique sound. Danielson Design is showing Puzzle Frames for the spring selling season. Made in Colorado, these clever photo frame sections fit together like a giant puzzle piece. Kids Preferred, a cuddly plush manufacturer, now has the Disney license, which allows small retailers to purchase Disney plush for resale, something not previously allowed by the Disney machine.
Bookmark Trendz uses lenticular printing to create bookmarks, posters and luggage tags with a spectacular kaleidoscope of 3-D color, and Barcino Designs, from Barcelona, Spain, features enamel mosaic on animal figurines and carousel music boxes. The new Living Victoriously collection from Boston International stood center stage in the Net 30 showroom, with a grouping of boxed notes, paperweights, magnets, mouse pad/notepad combination and more. Explains sales manager Pam Metz, "This line is truly inspired and the artwork is gentle and soothing."
The Haight-Ashbury grouping from About Face Designs follows the nostalgia trend with "flower child-inspired" designs and colorations, sure to conjure memories of peace, love and brotherhood. Several product categories are showcased in this collection, including ceramic message tiles, women's accessories, "dangler" photo frames, block art and even flip 
About Face Designs
flops. Also popular from About Face Designs are pretty penny banks to make saving spare change even more fun. This product category showcases their successful Reminisce artwork and best-selling titles - College Fund, Naughty Words, Casino Cash and Whatever, to name a few.
Down to Temporaries
Temporary booths on the LA Mart's second floor were calling, and several 
Collections West
aisles kept my attention for several more hours. Outstanding were Collections West, a relatively new representative group that was introducing the Vinylux brand for the first time on the west coast. Utilizing ecological concepts with old vinyl records - 33s, 48s, and 78s, etc. - this company produces mirrors, clocks, bowls, coasters and even note cards that duplicate record album covers.
Exhibiting for the first time ever, Chilanthropy is defined as the act of relaxing while being philanthropic. This 100 percent soy-based candle line uses raw organic denim wicks, which are tightly woven cotton, to create a unique, large and quite beautiful flame. Philanthropy plays a huge part in Rey Herrera's new business as he donates five percent of sales to several environmental charities around the world, as he hopes to offset the carbon footprint of the production 
Chillanthropy
and use of the candles. The charity is chosen based on the theme of the candle and how it can help the indigenous area. Names of the candles are based on his travels, and the candle's scent is then created to coordinate with his journey to that location. You'll find such enchanting scents/names as Manuel Antonio (ginger/papaya) helping Kids Saving the Rainforest, and Yucatán (pomegranate/grapefruit), assisting MARTRA. The company currently offers five individual scents.
The Glycerin Soap Company, whic loaf soap by the slice, had returned to the gift show. With a broad spectrum of colors, designs and fragrances, retailers can purchase loafs of deliciously enticing soap, and sell it by the slice (and there's even a slicer available for perfect slicing), and a "soap sock" for the shower!
Off to the Convention Center
Along with the standard resort, accessories and stationery fare, MMPI sectioned off a Kids Korner. Among the newest exhibitors, I found Nate Lau (the sultan of sketch) stacking wooden blocks on the floor in one corner of his booth. His 
Tegu
company Tegu offered magnetic wooden blocks for children, each finished and imported from their factories in Honduras, where they employ and support some five dozen workers. "These blocks are exceptional in that they have a magnet embedded between the wood fibers. The blocks simply click together, and kids can use their imagination to create all sorts of structures!"
Spring garden decor abounded as I strode up and down the aisles. In the center of a particularly wide aisle, I was fascinated by exquisitely blown glass mounted on a hard surface wall. Thinking that these were lamps of some sort, with designs by American and Italian artisans, I was captivated to learn that they are really wall art, as no two are alike. Mouth-blown in China, Viz Glass imports these pieces, along with glass yard, vase and service ware.
Among all the new exhibitors, some of our long time suppliers were also present. I visited with Frank Chu from Coe & Dru, a basket supplier with a wide range of basket staples, and Peter Norton from Art Glass Imports, with his extensive array of perfume bottles.
Kentia Hall
Buzzing with activity, booths were vibrant with color and a broad assortment of worldly and ethnic goods. The Cash and Carry section always seems busier than ever, and retailers were scurrying to bring back a variety of jewelry, fashion accessories, handbags, scarves and such to help round out their offerings.
Show Management
According to MMPI show management, this January market has seen significant growth with more than 20,000 buyers attending the show, more than 230 new exhibitors and numerous expanded showrooms. "This market offered buyers a unique experience, and buying options they wouldn't find anywhere else," explains Peggy Coleman, vice president, marketing, LA Mart and California Gift Show. "From all accounts, the show was very successful. Attendance was up, exhibitors and showrooms were writing orders, buyers were finding the merchandise they need - it was very positive and everyone was so excited about all the resources available at both venues."
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Millie Szerman, a gift, stationery and home decor industry veteran for nearly three decades, is the owner of New Directions, a public relations and marketing agency.
Next time you are in The MART please come and say HI! We have sooooooo many wonderful NEW Manufacturers and ideas! Look forward to showing you around our NEW space!! Warm Regards, Cina/SHOWROOM 504 on 3
Cina Hodges - 2011-02-01 17:18:20 ESTRoger Gruen Showroom added the CasaQ Ornament Collection to its permanent showroom at the LA Mart. The line includes exclusive designs such as Our Lady of Guadalupe, Frida Kahlo, La Catrina, Star Piñata, and many more symbolic treasures that reflect the Latino culture.
Ruben Dario Villa - 2011-02-01 17:04:48 EST-
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