So, while I am on the subject of unusual sightings … In this business, we see a lot of “Stuff.” And one of the things that always comes to mind when I go around the trade shows is, “Who buys this all this stuff?” There is a lot, that I personally never see at retail. (I’m sure that it is just because I am not shopping in the right stores!”) On the other hand, there is a lot of merchandise out there that I do recognize when I go shopping. (It sometimes drives my friends crazy!)

But seeing things at retail is one thing; seeing it being carried, used or displayed by the end-consumer is another. That’s when you know the product or line is a success. Such is the case with Vera Bradley. I see Vera Bradley totes, handbags and luggage being carried by women of all ages all over the place.

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As I mentioned in a previous blog posting, you see a lot on a daily basis in New York — whether it is a film shoot of some sort, a “community of homeless” sleeping on the sidewalk under the ever-present scaffolding all over the place, or heavily armed police and military personnel. Therefore, we tend to take things in stride; so in a city where the unusual is usual, and it takes a lot for us to stop and take notice or smile at something.

Recently, I have several such experiences. Is it spring making us come out of our shells?

One personal traffic-stopping experience occurred one morning on my way to work. For some reason, I varied my route to the office; I wanted a change of scenery and a break with routine on a fresh spring day. Half a block from my office I came ac...Read More

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We receive a lot a press releases via email everyday, much of it relevant and important to producing the editorials for the magazine, the web site and the e-newsletters. But today takes a prize for some pretty weird releases of no relevance to gift retailers or the gifts and decorative accessories industry that we write for. These press releases come from "pr flaks" who either don't do their homework and tailor their "sends" or who just don't care and who, like direct marketers, do mass mailings in hopes of getting a certain percentage of response or in this case coverage. (I wrote on this subject once before in "Love/Hate Relationships"). So since they sent them, I thought that I would share, because as my friend Nancy always says, "Sharing is Caring."&n...Read More

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I am excited! Are you excited? Monday night begins the new season of “Dancing With the Stars.” I admit it, I am addicted to the show. It is the only thing that I have programmed my VCR to tape, just in case I get delayed at the office and may get home late. I try not to miss it.
 
I think that it is such fun to see how these celebrities start out as rank beginners and improve (or not) as the weeks go on. And I like to cheer on my favorite pros (some of whom I know from sharing the floor with them and their students at dance competitions) as well as my favorite celebs. It is such pure and simple, good old-fashioned live entertainment; anything can happen, and sometimes does as we have seen — fainting spells, costume malfunctions, missed steps, surprise kisses and falls. There are no “do overs.”

I also try not to miss the sh...Read More

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I correspond via email with a lot of people on a daily basis, as do we all it seems these days. It's the nature of doing business in this techno-age. As part of my email sign-off, I draw attention to this blog by asking, "Have you read my latest blog?" and provide a link. This introduces my little piece of cyberspace to industry colleagues, as well as friends, who may not have previously been aware of it. (It also can cause me grief when I don't post frequently enough and loyal readers complain that they would like to read my latest blog but I haven't posted anything new! But I digress... ) 

Anyway, I have been in touch with Katie Vincent of donovandesigns, a stationery vendor, who, upon seeing the link, came to our Web site and read my postings. She even drilled back to what I have written...Read More

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I don't know about you all out there but I am tired! This winter show season has been a grueling marathon of travel, "dancing in the aisles" to view product and talk to exhibitors and retailers, writing show reports, attending industry functions and all else that goes with the trade show business. But it's not just me who is tired, I know. This is a hard time of year for vendors, reps and intrepid reporters alike.

"I don't know how you do it!" one reader exclaimed to me at the recent New York show. "You've been at all the shows! When do you have time to write and send out all those reports that we are receiving, let alone, do the magazine?!?"

Let me tell you, it ain't easy! Life goes on hold; there's little time for family and friends, let alone any humble homey tasks that need attending to. The dust bunnies have a heyday taunting m...Read More

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Some of my more loyal readers have been heckling me about something that I myself have been feeling guilty about – not  keeping up with fresh postings. “I went to your blog. How can I read the latest, if you haven’t updated anything!” complained one disgruntled reader. My bad, and I apologize.

When I embarked upon this venture, it seemed a simple matter to write something a couple of times a week in my own personal voice. But when you write and report for a living, adding one more writing assignment to the weekly “To do” list is not as simple as it seemed to be at first. And it becomes even more complex to fit it when we hit the road for all the gift shows. Between feature stories, show previews and market runups, Product Wires, market reports, attending to email and all the other equally important matters that need to be attended...Read More

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I have been holding on to this card meaning to write something about it since it was first released in mid-2007. It is a part of the Naughty Betty line from Calypso Cards , and is intended as a New Year’s card. It is naturally appropriate to write about now as we begin a new year, but I have felt that it is perfect to send at any time of the year; it also makes a perfect birthday card or “just because” card to say “hello”. What I love about it is its tongue-in cheek, irreverent humor. The greeting inside the card reads:

LET&rsq...Read More

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The one place that I wanted to see while I was in India was the Taj Mahal. After all, if I’d come all this way, I couldn’t not visit one of the wonders of the modern world.

Freight-hauling camel cart shares road to Agra with trucks, cars and motorbikes

The Taj Mahal is located in the city of Agra, which is also known for its fine marble and handmade rug crafts, as well as its fine jewelry. Agra is about four hours south of Delhi, so I was up and out very early; my tour driver picked me up at my hotel a 6 a.m. The roads area ...Read More

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Before I finish my long overdue travelogue on India, I want to share with you a related story. In the course of pulling together material for one of my On Trend pages for an upcoming issue, I was corresponding with a vendor, Jodi Sinden of SindenHome, who, upon reading my blog comments on taxi drivers, related her own story:

“My previous work has taken me to India a few times, including Delhi.. One time, I noticed that my taxi driver seemed to be adverse to using the brakes, so I asked him what he had against them? He said brakes are the third strategy. Naturally, I asked: If brakes are the third strategy, what are the first two? He said, First you honk, then you pray, THEN you brake. It all made sense after that....Read More

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After a good night’s sleep and a hearty breakfast, I was ready to get out and explore my new surroundings a bit. What I usually like to do when I visit a new place is to walk around; for me, it’s a more intimate way of getting know a city and its neighborhoods — walk along the streets, look in the shop windows, observe the people. But in Delhi, this was not something that was recommended, so off I went to the hotel’s travel desk to arrange for a tour of the city. I actually ended up exploring Delhi in two bites, so to speak, since on my first day, a Monday, my choices of what to do were limited; as with many major cities around the world, on Mondays, the museums and some of the bigger tourist attractions and historic sites are closed. I had a lovely first day being driven around the city seeing what I could see — the India Gate, the government ...Read More

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Although it is nearly a month since I since took this trip the memories and impressions are still very vivid and fresh.

With equal measures of trepidation and excitement, I embarked upon my recent trip to India. I was heading off to New Delhi, India, to attend the Indian Gifts & Handicrafts Fair, one of the largest trade fairs devoted to handcrafted goods and one of the few that is open only to foreign buyers. I am not a novice at traveling to foreign places on my own for business, but somehow, this trip was a little different, perhaps because India is a country of extremes – wealth and poverty; modernity and backwardness. And there is a certain historical and cultural exoticism that is different from the other places that I have traveled to. This is the country of Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Books, the Taj Mahal, the British Raj of history...Read More

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