here comes NYC again...

I confess, I used to do the whole circuit of trade shows, Atlanta, Chicago, New York, sometimes Boston and San Francisco, plus, sales reps would do some of the shows in Dallas, LA, Seattle and Portland with my line...I believe that my sales would be alot higher if I added a few more shows to my present list. I know that my expenses would be a boatload higher if I added more shows to my present list. What's my present list you ask? New York International Gift Fair. The show I love to hate, or hate to love...(it's a long story).

It's July 12th. In a few weeks from now I will be trading my Beetle for my father's SUV, praying baby will have a nice long nap (in an ideal world, 6 hrs or so), packing up my odds and ends and heading to what I inevitably say will be "my last trade show EVER!"
I will head out early in the morning on a Friday and get to NYC around 2pm. The parking game will start...how long can we get away with parking in front of the Javits Center, can we bring in what needs to be brought in and leave the car there so that we can get a few hours of setting up the booth done? (thus saving the trip to the hotel/check in/ parking etc...?). Sounds silly, but this detail is key in saving time and energy on a set up day, ask any carni, I mean, exhibitor and they will agree!
(although highly illegal, ahem, you might be offered to "help out" one of the parking guys in front of the Javits Center and he in turn, might want to "help you out" wink wink...magically, somehow, the parking problem is not such a problem anymore, but you didn't hear that HERE!)

For the last few shows, the baby dance would then start, but I won't even be attempting it this time.
Babies are NOT allowed on the show floors during set up and tear down, understandably so, but not always a logistically easy feat for a small company without a nanny and a breast feeding Mom...anyhow, she is older now and things will be easier, there will be no baby in the booth during set up!

We will get to the bare booth, find our shrinkwrapped pallet with essentially our whole booth sitting in the middle of it and the week of craziness will ensue.

I have recently decided to focus several parts of my blog on booth set up, logistics and resources to help you! (fellow exhibitors, first time exhibitors and anyone who needs great, inexpensive, relatively simple but impactful ideas for booth design and set up). Why? you might ask.... Well, it seems my blog is getting lots of traffic from first time exhibitors or just nice folks who appreciate what I have done with my booth over the years. You would be shocked at how many phone calls and emails I get asking for help. (Dare I say, almost more than calls for orders some weeks?!...no no no, never!)

So, my thought is, heck, why fight it? let's see where this takes me...here we go! if you enjoy the postings, tips, resources and help that I will be offering you, or just have a question, please leave a comment! or send and email!
It is your feedback, calls and emails that have pushed me in this direction, so keep pushing!

jacob javits convention center in NYC,
a beautiful photo that I found at http://www.merakohblog.com/

(looks so calm and peaceful, not really so much in reality!)

things are coming together for DC

As some of you might already know, (ie: my twitter followers) BlueDogz Design is heading to Washington DC in a couple of weeks for the Metropolitain Cooking & Entertaining Show. Since it is a retail show and not one of our regular wholesale "trade only" shows (where we sell to retailers), it brings with it some major changes in how we will set up our booth, what we need on hand (as we will be selling directly out of the booth), general logistics complications and of course what some of you might already be asking yourselves...what the eff is BlueDogz going to a cooking & entertaining show for?
Well, here's the deal. The wholesale shows are just not what they used to be, at least not in the Gift Industry! Although we still get business and visibility at trade shows, in the last year and half or so traffic is WAY down (and don't believe anyone who tells you otherwise, they are liars!), buyers are much more rushed and more apt to just breeze through and ask for a catalog, order writing at the shows has simply changed, the shows have changed. So what's a small company to do? Especially a small company that did most of it's sales at trade shows?
My favorite answer, SURF!
I had this amazingly wise professor at University that told me that all we really needed to know how to do was surf. If we could surf through whatever life threw at us, we would always be ok. Just like surfing, sometimes you wipe out, sometimes your timing is right, sometimes it's tough out there and other times it's perfect...you can never predict, you will never get the same wave twice, you will take your share of hits and spills and you will likely get caught inside...but if you can just stay afloat and keep surfing and depend on the water to BE unstable and moody, you will get through anything. I LOVE that advice!
So we are surfing over to DC for some selling and to show these foodies what great gifts BlueDogz Design has to offer. For Hosts or Hostess', as shower or bridal favours, for organizing in style or for jotting down lists or thoughts, we have all the supplies covered!
From our Teeny Tags, to our clipboards, to our CC boxes, we are going to show these fabulous DC foodies how to glamourize and punctuate their gifts, tables and spaces with useful, affordable and total prettiness!

I can't wait to show you how the booth will turn out.
I have been mulling this one over for weeks now and I have finally come to some decisions. As a teaser, I will let you know that we will be showing all products like a candy store, here is a fantastic photo of a candy table designed by Amy Atlas that I think is Absolutely Gorgeous! - so imagine this idea, but without the candy, essentially, our products become the candy! Sweet huh!?

We will stay true to our white booth, but this time (since we are stocking goods and not just displaying samples) we will have some fun new twists to the booth design. We are also using fresh new tag line for the show,
BlueDogz Design, Purveyors of Delicious Gifts!
what do you think?