It's Farm Chicks Fever!

Do y'all know about the Farm Chicks?

Check out their web site to learn allllll about 'em: http://www.thefarmchicks.com/ . Teri Edwards and Serena Thompson are two POWERHOUSE women, thoroughly feminine forces of nature who produce an awesome antique show in Spokane Washington. Not only is the show promoted by Country Living magazine, for whom Teri & Serena are contributing editors, but it has a reputation as being one of the best in the industry. After being there and meeting the Chicks this weekend, I could not agree more!

I was at the Farm Chicks show filming some video segments for the Gift & Home Channel, and had the pleasure of interviewing Teri & Serena on camera. Just a short 15-minute session to get a shorter five-minute clip - but what fun! These gals are pros at this, and they made everything easy. Thank you again, ladies, for your help in making this shoot so smooth and successful. You are wonderful!

(Teri's gonna' kill me when she sees this photo...sorry, babe - Mr. Deb took it, not me!)

A quick and heartfelt thank you to Peak Video Productions, and Jim, Robin, and Rick. WOW. Your profesionalism and great attitudes made this an exceptional experience for me. Thank you for making me look good! Brittany (Lund, GHC producer): We did it!!! You can breathe now!!!

I'll share more photos soon, and as soon as the videos get through post-production and are up on the GHC web site, I'll link to them. I can't wait to se how they turn out...

Six Degrees...

I have to tell you all about a great story I heard at the Portland Gift Show!

I was shopping the Vintage Collection (truly my fave part of the big shows), scoping out the FABulously foofy offerings at wonderful Jennifer Osner's booth. She has ribbons and laces and fabrics and vintage dresses and millinery supplies....oh, I could go ON.

Anyway, I was talking to Jen about antique laces, and she casually drops the bomb: "Oh yeah, my laces were used in one of the Project Runway dresses this season. I got a call from one of my regular clients and he said he needed some laces, but couldn't tell me what for. Imagine my reaction when I saw the dress on the runway!" She pulls out a big ol' book of samples and photos and flops it open on the counter. 'The Dress' she refers to is THIS one:

Yeah, her client is Rami Kashou! He couldn't tell her that he was a finalist and the laces were for his runway collection...she said she actually thought he was doing a hush-hush wedding design for a celeb! Rami also included this stunning creation in his collection:

Jen said that Santino is also a client who buys vintage trims from her for his fashion designs...now THAT doesn't surprise me a bit. The 'Rasputin of Ruffles' must be in seventh heaven when looking at Jen's stock of antique & vintage trims.

I tell you, if she had told me that Christian Siriano was a client, well, I'd be wrangling an intro. LOVE that kid! As it is, she told me to come visit her thirty thousand square foot warehouse in San Fran sometime. sigh. Oh, I will, Jen! And you can bet I will be looking over my shoulder for those fashion gods while I'm there...

Portland Gift Show

Let's Make Business Personal Again!
Yep, that's me, up there on my soapbox again...
I mean, really, how many times can we hear "It's not personal, it's just business" before we just GAG? We all know that phrase is fulla' bull. If it's your small business, then ALL of it is personal. Right?

So, my seminar concept was let's take our small businesses - retail shops, service providers, product manufacturers - and personalize them. By doing so, you'll make a personal connection with your customers, and you'll succeed. And really, who wants to be the same as every other shop in town??!!!

My seminar titles was officially 'Store Design - Tell Your Story', so I explained the wine industry concept of Terrior, and talked about how that 'Pride of Place' can translate into your entire environment to tell your story. You do that by using color, texture, materials, style, and appropriate choices to express the values, mission, and purpose of your business. The two stage displays shown here morphed a bit throughout the presentation to illustrate the concepts. I discussed store layout, flow, displays, zone concept, web presence, and more. It all related to the visual impact your business has.

I am so blessed to have had exhibitors at the show who allowed me to use and promote their products in these displays. They are generous, giving, and ready to help others. People are wonderful, you know? And it really is ALL about people!

Retail is not about products and merchandise and displays - retail is about connecting with people. Designers & Manufacturers connect with buyers. Shops & Stores connect with their customers, and help their customers connect with other people through the products they buy. Delighted gift recipients connect with the giver and with the store that provided the gift. It's so simple - a 'circle of life' kind of thing. I think that especially in the face of never-ending reports on a failing economy, we tend to forget the purpose of what we are doing in retail.

I also connected with wonderful attendees at my seminar - many of whom joined me for an impromptu 'after party' when I led a walking tour on the show floor as soon as I wrapped the stage presentation. We moved at a pretty fast clip, visiting booths that I thought were great examples of expressing the story of the products. This translates into telling a story in your store - something all of the 'tourists' loved. Some booths feature displays that can be duplicated down to the last detail in any store, to maximize the presence of the merchandise. They are giving you tools to succeed - FREE! Again, it's all in the concept of 'connecting' with one another. Alone, we may not make it. Together? We all succeed!

My heart is truly in helping small businesses succeed. And no offense, guys, but women entrepreneurs are my soul sisters. Designers, handcrafters, artists, independent manufacturers who are creating jobs and contributing to their communities and local economy - oh, I just have SO much respect for these courageous people. And I have no doubt, after meeting and talking with some of them this past weekend, that THEY will be the big successes that show up on Oprah and Donny Deutsch and in glossy magazines very soon.

With quite a story to tell...