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Art history, business savvy
Twenty-four-year-old Leslie Kritzberg is an unusual recent art history college graduate.
Instead of looking for a job with health-care benefits like most classmates, she chose a completely different path, and a risky one in this economy: She launched her own business — in a small town.
Leslie Kritzberg is the owner of Blue Orchid Studio on Route 47 in Yorkville.
Downsville pottery business fills niche
Downsville – For years, John Thomas’ functional pottery was a mainstay of the Creamery Restaurant and Inn.
With the recent reopening of the Creamery, the new owners opted not to continue operating an attached gift shop.
Thomas, who used to co-own the Creamery with his siblings, then decided to start a gift shop next door at his Dunn County Pottery shop.
Dunn County Pottery now has fair trade gifts, items from local artisans and nontoxic toys.
“We have three grandkids,” Thomas explained. “We started looking for toys.
Late Black Friday, Shorter Holiday Season Impact November Retail Sales, According to NRF
Washington, DC – While shoppers were out and about Black Friday weekend, they kept their pennies to themselves the rest of the month with November retail sales showing continued consumer restraint. According to the National Retail Federation, retail industry sales for November (which exclude automobiles, gas stations, and restaurants) increased 0.6 percent seasonally adjusted from October and decreased 2.0 percent unadjusted year-over-year. Industry related month-to-month sales saw the first increase in four months.
November retail sales released today by the U.S.
Mud Pie Debuts New Sea-Themed Tableware Collections at Winter Markets
(Stone Mountain, Ga.) — The award-wining international gift company, Mud Pie, will debut a variety of sea-themed tabletop products at the January 2009 winter markets. The category continues to be the most popular among Mud Pie’s tabletop collections, and for 2009, the company introduces new sea-themed product offerings with its new Fiji and Go Fish Collections, and new introductions to the firm’s popular Coral Reef Collection.
Anna Griffin Opens Showroom
Atlanta, GA – Making her start 15 years ago in the temporaries of the AmericasMart, Anna Griffin has come full-circle with a brand new 1,200 square foot showroom at the largest wholesale marketplace in the world. With a decade and a half of fabulous under her belt, what started as a wedding accessories and invitation company has blossomed into a lifestyle brand.
“Our line has expanded to include so many incredible products, that it is only natural that we create a beautiful home for it,” said Anna Griffin, President of Anna Griffin Inc.
Handmade Spotlights Jewelry and Sustainability at Winter 2009 NYIGF
White Plains, NY — Handmade® at the New York International Gift Fair® (NYIGF®) will welcome some 60 newcomers to the winter 2009 edition. Showcasing both sustainable designs and jewelry, these new exhibitors will join the division’s 575 artisans from 36 American states and 13 countries worldwide at the winter show, January 25-29, 2009, at New York City’s Jacob K.
New Product Introductions From Pure & Simple Solutions, LLC
The Casa D’Oro company ‐ familiar to many retailers for products such as Casa D’Oro Modular Charms, Bling Things, Cell‐A-Bright, Mobile Ice and other trend items introduced in December 2008 a trio of new products to be merchandised together.
Metal PURSE HANGERS – COMPACTS – ID HOLDERS are all in style and Casa D’Oro unique take on these products stands out. Featuring complimentary designs in eight styles per product, displayed together they become a gift bazaar for the retail consumer.
Dogeared.com Celebrates 2nd Year Anniversary with Launch of New Website
Dogeared, a trendsetting brand that creates handcrafted jewels and gifts in Los Angeles, is celebrating the second anniversary of their flagship retail store, dogeared.com. In recognition of this milestone, a newly designed site with upgraded features was launched in November. The retail website, which joined the existing wholesale website two years ago, was a key tactic in Dogeared’s five year strategic marketing plan, which included growing direct and international business.
Holiday music sensitive to economic stress
NEW YORK (AP) – Few people think as much about holiday music as Leanne Flask, whose job is to select every song played in the stores of Swedish fashion retailer H&M, Williams-Sonoma and Nordstrom, among other retailers.
Flask, vice president of music design for branding company DMX, calls her products music designs – not playlists – and said they are extensively researched and tailored for each retail chain.
“It’s so much more detailed than what people envision,” Flask said.
For example, the music blasting in Abercrombie & Fitch stores is targeted very specifically to appe
Holiday Shoppers Treated Like Celebrities
With retail sales at their weakest in more than three decades, stores and businesses are going above and beyond to get shoppers inside to spend money. Many stores are offering consumers some unique incentives for the holiday season.
Some stores and malls are trying to lure shoppers by treating them like A-listers, offering massages, drinks and a chance to relax at “rejuvenation stations.”
Making the case to SHOP LOCAL
“Keep it Local. Keep it Real.
Smyrna Trading secures more space for growth in 2009
(ATLANTA)— Family-owned Smyrna Trading, Inc., internationally renowned manufacturers and importers of Oriental rugs, is making room for continued growth in 2009, with the unveiling of its new showroom at AmericasMart this January. Now with more than 3,000 square feet on Floor 6 (6D3), Smyrna will showcase its one-of-a-kind and programmed handmade carpets in a larger, more impressive space.
“We are a family business, and Atlanta has been our home for 22 years,” says Ahmet Icen of Smyrna Trading.
Art gallery announces opening of gift boutique and new exhibit
New Port Richey – Progress Energy Art Gallery, located in historic downtown New Port Richey is your one stop shop for all of your holiday shopping needs and has coordinated several events to make shopping easy.
The first is “Baubles, Bangles and Bling” an exhibit of handmade jewelry by Cyndie Smith, a local jewelry designer. The exhibit will continue through Jan. 23, 2009.
Smith is a former health care executive who is now a silversmith. “I let the metal tell me what it wants to do and the results are very interesting.
Pretty as a Package
Valerie Courtney doesn’t believe that what’s inside is all that counts. At least not when it comes to giving presents. An associate product designer at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia and a recent graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology’s packaging design program, she’s been obsessed lately with everything on the outside — boxes, wrapping, you name it.
“It’s the packaging that makes something really special,” Ms. Courtney said, adding that it need not be expensive.
Businesses bullish on holiday sales
Although the nation was officially declared to be in the clutches of a recession recently, a number of Germantown businesses have reported that they remain optimistic about the chances of posting good sales during this holiday season.
According to statistics compiled by a national research firm, sales during the day after Thanksgiving rose three percent from last year nationwide. Although no hard figures on local sales were available yet, some local retailers said that they have seen a good number of customers coming through their doors.
GHTA Announces New Board and Executive Director
Grand Rapids, Mich. – The Gift and Home Trade Association (GHTA), the industry’s non-profit professional trade association, announces its new Executive Director, as well as its 2009 Board of Directors.
Diane Carnevale Jones was recently appointed as the executive director of the Gift and Home Trade Association (GHTA) during the 2008 GHTA Conference, held November 20-22, in Sanibel Island, Florida. She has acted as the GHTA’s interim executive director since February 2008.
The Gourmet Market Showcases More Than 150 Companies
Dallas, TX — Dallas Market Center, the world’s largest wholesale merchandise resource, today announced that The Gourmet Market will showcase more than 150 gourmet companies with a variety of new lines during the Dallas Total Home & Gift Market taking place January 14–20, 2009. The Gourmet Market is the 25,000-square-foot shared showroom that features more than 2,500 product lines of gourmet foods, kitchen accessories, casual tabletop and gourmet gadgets.
Shop for Christmas at Pam’s Flowers & Gifts
Nixon — The list of gift ideas is endless for those seeking that perfect Christmas gift at Pam’s Flowers & Gifts.
Owner Pam Wilson has always wanted to own a floral and gift shop. After working for a bank for 22 years, she had that opportunity. What started as a hobby working with arts and crafts became Pam’s Flowers & Gifts in 2001.
Bringing up baby with safe and green toys
Atlanta, Georgia — After last year’s massive toy recall, Stacy Duran isn’t taking any chances when shopping for toys this holiday season.
Neddie Bishop looks for safe, environmentally friendly toys for her 1-year-old nephew.
“I’m looking for toys that meet all the safety standards,” said Duran, 41, of Atlanta, Georgia.
The mother of a 3-year-old girl, Duran has done her homework.
Shoplifting on rise in tough times
Store clerk Summer Johnson knelt in front of a rack of leather jackets inside the Blanding Boulevard Jagmania outlet and used anti-theft tags and security chains to connect them together.
“We double-team ’em,” she said as she linked the jackets into a hanging chain gang.
To steal one of the $240 coats, a shoplifter would have to cut the chain and disable the security tag that would howl if it passed the detector by the front door.
The security measure is just one way retailers are reacting to shoplifting, a crime that has expanded from individual thieves who steal for pers