Retail Update   

George Little Management, producer of the New York International Gift Fair, recently launched a new social networking tool for retailers, www.retailerforum.biz. The forum is set up as an interactive retailer-only community where gift, home and stationery store personnel can network, offer mentoring services, receive business assistance, and participate in discussion forums on topics ranging from customer service to merchandising.

“Through attendee feedback and research, we discovered the need for a 365-day networking tool on the part of ret...Read More

The stoneware teapot shown here (and yes, it IS a teapot), handmade by Alabama-based potter Paveen Chunhaswasdikul, is just one of thousands of items on display this weekend at the American Craft Council Show in Atlanta.From March 12-14, more than 230 contemporary craft artists will present their works at this juried show at the Cobb Galleria Centre, with an opening night preview party kicking things off tonight from 6-9 p.m. 

New this year, a Lawn & Garden category featuring outdoor furniture, décor and accessories and GreenCraft, an exhibit of artists who incorporate recycled or found materials and eco-friendly techniques in their work. ...Read More

Target announced today the launch of its scannable mobile coupon program which allows shoppers to have coupons and special offers sent directly to their cell phones, then redeem them by scanning a barcode at checkout. In addition, customers can access their Target Mobile GiftCards, view online assortments, check product availability and store locations, manage their Target gift registry and lists, browse the weekly ad, and receive text and e-mail notifications of special deals – all via their mobile phones. The company says it's the first national retailer to offer such a program.
 
Shoppers can sign up for it online at www.target.com/mobi...Read More

Kasler, who has produced collections for Hickory Chair, Safavieh and Visual Comfort lighting, feels she brings a unique perspective to the Ballard partnership. "Ballard Designs shares my aesthetic and love of all things Continental and they aim to show people how to live better, more comfortably, and more beautifully." 
...Read More

If you've ever wondered about the effect of email, mobile-marketing and social networking on traditional mail delivery, Postmaster General John E. Potter put it in perspective this week when he said the USPS saw its mail volume fall from 213 billion pieces in 2006 to 177 billion in 2009, and predicted it will drop by another 27 billion by 2020. A USPS press release further states that those numbers represent a 37% decline in First-Class Mail alone, and says revenue contributed by First-Class Mail "will plummet from 51% today to about 35% in 2020."

Potter said that although lifestyles and ways of doing business have undergone dramatic change over ...Read More

Earlier this week, Pier 1 Imports presented a check for $1.1 million to the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, representing the proceeds from the sale of UNICEF greeting cards during the 2009 holiday season. Pier 1 started selling UNICEF greeting cards in 1985 and is now the world’s largest retailer of the cards, having raised more than $27 million to date.  

Four managers received special recognition for their stores' 2009 holiday greeting sales results: Robert White, store manager, Pier 1 Imports Orlando/Hunter’s Creek, Fla.; James Alvarez, store manager, Pier 1 Imports Torrance, Calif.; Candice Hamilton, store manager, Pier 1 Imports Gresham, Ore.; and Mark Daily, regional manager for Orlando, Fla.

Each year sin...Read More

Friday, March 5, the Savannah College of Art and Design and Savannah retailer 24e will present the inaugural Furniture Design Awards, honoring student design. The event is free and open to the public, and begins at 7:00 p.m. at 24e, located at 24e Broughton Street.  

Student projects selected by SCAD faculty were judged by industry professionals, city officials and members of the press based on originality and creativity. Three winning designs will be announced at the party.

In addition, 24e will contribute 10% of everything sold Friday to SCAD’s Furniture Design Department for scholarships and student activities.

San Francisco -- This Friday evening, Zinc Details is hosting a reception to kick off a month-long display of Bantie textiles, marking the Swedish company’s first foray into the U.S. This is the same factory that produced Stig Lindberg patterns in the 1950s and continues today with Bantie's vivid orange, red, yellow, black and white patterns that combine Japanese inspiration with Scandinavian form and craftsmanship.  
 
The opening reception is Friday, March 5, 6-8 p.m. (1905 Fillmore Street), but the Bantie display will continue through the end of March. Products for sale will include home accents and acc...Read More

In December, I wrote that construction had begun on "the world's largest ceramic tile mural" in the workshops of Spain's San Gines Ceramics Company, with a target installation date of March, 2010. 

Well, right on schedule, the mural of approximately 55,000 hand-painted tiles is being put in place on an exterior wall of the Oran Convention Center, in time for the center's grand opening next month:






But here's what it looked like back in October when, while visiting Spain's FARCAMA show, ...Read More

Onecoast recently unveiled Snap Retail’s Trafficbuilder, a marketing tool for retailers that, among other things, can automate emails and posts to a store’s Twitter and Facebook pages. Driving traffic with social media, in fact, comes up quite often in my conversations with retailers these days. In a recent roundtable discussion, one shopowner announced she had just hired a virtual assistant to help with the process. None of the retailers in the room had heard of such a person, and everyone wanted to know more.

I’ve met several people in the past few weeks who are finding career opportunities in this social networking nic...Read More

Our annual 50 Retail Stars list recognizes enterprising independent home accents retailers who are creative in their merchandising, successful at what they do, contributing to their communities and, most important, are distinguishing themselves from the competition. They excel at innovative marketing and advertising efforts, head-turning in-store displays and out-of-the-box business ideas.

Once again, AmericasMart Atlanta is sponsoring the list. In the introduction to last year's list, AmericasMart President Jeff Portman described the list as a showcase of those retailers who "continue to press onward with conviction, creativity and an irrepressib...Read More