Fourth Quarter Means More Stuff--and That's in Two Days

I'm putting our gift stuff out as fast as I can, in between events and well, everything else. Yesterday, Jocelyn helped me receive our Madison Park holiday cards, which are now in that big oval table in the home section. We've brought in several new vendors, so the mix should be a bit different. We brought in the designs that sold through quickly, but if it was still sitting around in December, you probably won't see it this year.

So what were the trends that I noticed? We needed a bit more religious cards, and more photography. And though I love them myself, I wound up cutting back on the cute cartoony. And yet I picked up Hello Lucky boxed and loose, which I can only describe as adorable.

Interestingly enough, though we sell a a good number of books of Jewish interest, we have trouble selling Hanukkah cards, to say nothing of Chanukah. This year we did have a few Jewish New Year's cards, also slow. I think folks buy those at their synagogue or temple gift shops. It could be an example of the not-enough-selection-to-generate-sales theory. Who knows?

Instead of putting them in overstock, we're displaying the Christmas titles on the display shelves underneath. You have to be particularly astute to catch them, but in September, you've got to be a big fan to shop holiday.

So what's next? Well, there are those 17 boxes of one of our gift vendors by the pillar. It's imposing. Hope to find some time for that soon--it was a limited-time offer that I had to take advantage of to get some good deals.