Archives: News
Real Estate With a Past
There’s an empty space in a North Dallas strip mall that’s a proven good spot for a business, says commercial real-estate agent Dane Thomson.
Trouble is, when prospective renters look at the space, all they see is an empty storefront, old bathrooms and the worn sign of a brand whose time has passed: Natale’s, a restaurant that for 17 years drew crowds with its homey pot roasts and soups—but that closed when a new, inexperienced owner took over. The location, Mr.
Downtown Laurens sees a new business boom in recent months
Laurens – In the midst of Wall Street worries, Main Street in Laurens is seeing a resurgence, said long time business owner Julie Wurr.
Located in northwestern Pocahontas County off Iowa Highway 10, the town of about 1,400 bills itself as “The Busiest Little Town in Iowa.”
A trip through downtown Laurens shows few empty store fronts.
Wurr, who has operated Heart’n Home, a bridal and gift store, in downtown Laurens for 10 years, said she has been joined by several new businesses in recent months.
And as far as she’s concerned, the more, the merrier.
“When you he
MMPI Unifies West Coast Gift Resources with Acquisition of the California Gift Show
Los Angeles, CA – MMPI (owner of the L.A. Mart) announces the acquisition of the California Gift Show® (CGS) from dmg world media, effective immediately, creating a unified and strengthened market experience anchoring the gift and home industry for the West Coast.
Midwest-CBK Join Forces to Create the Country’s Premiere Gift, Holiday, Candle, Home and Garden Decor Company
Cannon Falls, MN – Midwest of Cannon Falls, Inc., a leading designer and manufacturer of the Colonial Candle® and Seasons of Cannon Falls® brand products, and CBK Styles, Inc., a leading wholesaler of quality home and garden décor, gifts and accessories under the CBK Styles® brand, proudly announce today a major merger in the giftware and home décor industries, with the introduction of Midwest-CBK, a premiere home accents company.
Mountaincow Software to Include Easy Printing Templates for Top Brands Meri Meri, SanLori, Whitney English, Hicks Paper Goods and Bonnie Marcus Collection
Providence, RI – Providence, Rhode Island based Mountaincow LLC today announced that five top invitation designers have joined the Mountaincow Content Partner Program to integrate templates for their stationery into Mountaincow’s cutting edge professional invitation software.
Entrepreneurs try team approach: Store combines computer repair with gift shop
A paycheck that one week was as small as $19 for 40 hours of work was an incentive for a Clarkston man to start his own business.
Gary Marcott has opened Sinecure Enterprises in Lewiston with Malcolm Greene Jr. of Pomeroy.
Baby can have a cake and wear it too
When Christy Brocato realized she was in Mascoutah to stay, she made herself a cake.
A diaper cake decorated with rattles, bibs, stuffed animals and ribbon, and restarted a home-based business. It’s similar to one she had when she lived in Australia from 2003 to 2005.
There, she called it Happy Nappy Cakes. In Australia, a diaper is a nappy.
Here, it’s Bella Baby Bundles.
“Mom used to say, ‘It’s not the gift. It’s how you give it,'” said Christy, 44, picking up a pink-themed cake, complete with a blanket, a onesie, a cap, bottles and a bib.
Couple has right mix for retail
Frankfort, KS — It’s the fudge that brings most customers into Elsie Grace’s.
But they’ll find a lot more inside the store that constitutes most of this town’s retail business district.
“The idea was to have a shop that when people walked in they would say, ‘Ooh, I love this place,'” said owner Nan Lisher, who does all the buying for the gift shop and created the food mixes with the Elsie Grace’s label.
“There has been fudge on this corner for at least 20 years,” Lisher said.
The corner is where customers enter the building at Kansas Avenue and 2nd Street, which is
New facility houses much more than plants
There is something special about Portage la Prairie’s newest greenhouse that is making it the talk of the town.
Solomon’s Home Garden Gift, located on 25th Street N.W., opened on May 2, and is already receiving rave reviews.
“It’s very bright and cheery,” said co-owner Aileen Solomon, adding customers are quite pleased with the new design.
Formerly known as Prairie Blossom, the new, expanded Solomon’s offers a great deal more for garden lovers.
It is more like a garden centre and a marketplace in one.
“It’s very spacious and it has the gift store,” Aileen point
Xanterra Converting Hotel Gift Shop To Green Educational Store
Yellowstone National Park – Xanterra Parks & Resorts, operator of lodges, gift shops, restaurants and activities in Yellowstone National Park, will convert its gift shop in the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel into an interpretive facility dedicated to informing park visitors about climate change and offering environmentally friendly products.
“Although other stores may offer some of these products, we believe this is the first retail operation – in a national park or elsewhere – devoted to interpreting climate change,” said Beth Pratt, director of environmental affairs for Xanterra
Victorian Trading Company Forms Licensing Agreements with Giftware Giants
Lenexa, KS – National mail-order gift company, Victorian Trading Company, has aligned itself with two distinguished names in the gift industry: Demdaco/Silvestri has licensed Victorian Trading Co. to create an authentic 19th c. themed snowglobe collection created from authentic antique sources with lit embellished bases and movements. The “Wonder Globes” offer both mechanical movement as well as beloved melodies from centuries past. This collection will be available for Holiday 2010.
Kurt S. Adler, a time-honored entity in the gift business, has licensed Victorian Trading Co.
Home Textiles Market Week Offers Summer 2009 Activities
White Plains, NY – A full slate of activities, including topical seminars and events unique to New York City, will augment Home Textiles Market Week’s® resources and enhance the market experience for attending retailers.
Terra Traditions Debuts New Decorative Pillows and Guest Towels
Los Angeles, CA — Terra Traditions, a wholesale Italian style artisan studio, introduces decorative pillows and guest towels. Using master and vintage-styled art, Terra Traditions gives a nostalgic flair to our pillows as well as other pieces which touch the heart such as photo albums, guest books, and La Tella wall art.
Our decorative pillow, Blossom Bride, measures 18 inches wide by 18 inches tall. It is available with the option of Swarovski crystals. All Terra Traditions images and custom photos are also available to be used on our decorative pillows.
Pair bags piece of ‘green’ market
North Carolina natives and Charlotte-based eco-entrepreneurs Carla Manna and Renee Fischer describe success this way:
When friends and customers forget their Neela shopping bags in the trunk or at home, they say they won’t accept a plastic or paper stand-in at the store. Instead, they juggle their purchases as they walk to the car.
But the owners of Neela Products Inc.
The Gift-Card Economy
Mother’s Day is coming up. Which do you think Mom would enjoy more—a day-spa gift certificate that expires at the end of June, or an otherwise identical gift certificate that expires a year from now?
The answer is obvious. Longer is better, of course. Mom will have a higher chance of making it to the spa if she has a whole year to find a convenient time.
Perfectly logical—and probably wrong. Mom might actually be happier with a shorter-lived gift card, new social-science research suggests, because she’d be more likely to use it.
Show mom love: mommy vs. the economy
Frugal-minded consumers may skip eating or might hold onto that car a little longer, but retailers are hoping they won’t go cheap when it comes to Mom.
Local gift shops, florists and eateries are heading into this Sunday’s Mother’s Day holiday in the midst of one of the country’s worst economic downturns. As a result, shoppers are expected to cut spending nationally for the holiday by nearly 11 percent, according to this year’s poll by BIGresearch and the National Retail Federation.
Area store thanks customers dollar at a time
Storm Lake, Iowa – When Molly Wilson lived in the Twin Cities, there were days she’d visit a store three times. Nobody bothered to say “Hi.”
“We were all rats driving down the interstate,” she says of a glum memory.
Things have changed for Wilson, who co-owns Sugar Bowl Gift Shop with husband Mike Kohler in downtown Storm Lake. On a recent chilly morning, she meets every customer at the store’s front door and hands them a crisp $1 bill.
History lover launches business, wins acclaim
Some might argue Suzanne Hines single-handedly keeps the history of Hamburg village alive.
Hines, director of the Hamburg Historical Museum and president of the Hamburg Historical Society, last week was named 2008 Marv Pedersen Citizen of the Year by the Hamburg Kiwanis Club for her efforts to preserve, restore and promote the historic area.
The small village community, south of M-36 down Hamburg Road, is somewhat off the beaten path from highly developed areas of the township down the M-36 corridor.
Hines is known around Hamburg Township for transforming the former Townsh
Flowers a staple of Mother’s Day gifting
Orem — This Sunday is Mother’s Day. And no group of businesses knows that better than local garden shops, nurseries and big-box stores that have a large variety of flora on sale to brighten Mom’s day. In fact, this is the biggest week of the season for sales in the garden departments.
“People always think about flowers when they think of mothers,” said Danielle Holdaway Taylor, a second-generation gardener and employee at the Vineyard Garden Center, 435 S. Geneva Road. “This is the craziest week of the season.
Flower shop opens new location
Fremont — Prairie Flowers recently opened at 121 S. Fifth St. and will continue to serve customers with fresh and silk floral arrangements.
Upon entering the store, you can see two display coolers of colorful fresh cut flowers and shelves filled with a variety of giftware. Green plants are everywhere.
Owners Bob and Christine Michael are enthusiastic about the new location. “It is a nice building, and there is plentiful parking.