Scott C. BorowskyGreat products, displays and staff members can help you reach your goals in retail. Still, the learning can never stop if owners and managers want their stores to stay fresh and relevant. Each issue of Souvenirs, Gifts & Novelties is a clearinghouse of ideas from your colleagues in the industry around the country. The articles contain both common sense reminders of good business practices and new ideas to borrow or that can help spark your imagination to come up with your own novel methods for selling more merchandise.
This edition contains the summer installment of our bi-annual Profiles in Excellence feature. The Profiles are half-page editorial opportunities that give advertisers space to tell the stories of their companies and products. We also offer an expanded Resort and Beach Store Section that includes a beach retailer profile and covers holiday and Christmas merchandise, home décor and sunglasses at a variety of stores.
The National Stationery Show and Surtex are in mid-May, and we offer a special section that covers everything from signs, stationery and frames to party supplies and gift wrap.
Jewelry is a solid seller for countless types of stores. For this edition we took our coverage of this category up a notch to include interviews with store staff members at waterparks, resorts, seaside shops and museums. We also went straight to the experts by interviewing jewelry store managers and owners in California, Colorado and Iowa for their top display tips.
In our recurring Zoo and Aquarium section, we cover name-dropped souvenirs, plush and edible gifts. May special features are articles about garden and outdoor stores and winery gifts.
Apparel and fashion accessories are critical merchandise categories, and we look at the T-shirt picture at cave and cavern gift shops, selling apparel at inspirational stores, doing well with branded clothing and accessories, the licensed apparel and accessories picture at college stores, and the outlook for socks at hospital and gift stores.
Additionally, we cover baby apparel, gifts and toys, and selling more playthings at Public Lands Partner Stores and nature centers.
I hope you enjoy reading the issue. Please email me at editorsgnmag@kanec.com with your comments, questions and suggestions, and I will respond to your note personally.
Scott C. Borowsky
President and Executive Editor
Souvenirs, Gifts & Novelties magazine
