Christmas is looming and I know that many of you were up all night tormented about what to get for Uncle Joe. Or maybe that bitch in accounting that no one likes and who's name you drew for Secret Santa. Or maybe you were wondering what to get a Sales Rockstar like myself as a token of appreciation for another year of Road Rage. (my wish list is public on Amazon, just so you know). Never fear dear readers, I feel your angst!

Regardless of your quandary, my quest to be a resource of help, information and value roars on with this little item I found. It just might be the solution to all YOUR holiday angst. Cheers!

It's hard to believe there are only 11 days until Christmas. Now, I understand that not everyone celebrates, likes or even cares about Christmas. I’m not asking you to suddenly don a festive holiday sweater, but as retailers and wholesalers, we’ve got a certain investment in the red suited fat man.

It’s no secret that this year has been emotionally, financially and spiritually tough on everyone. People have lost jobs, homes, and in some cases, lost hope. But, this is America, dear readers, and at the end of the day, we go shopping.

Retailers have a special opportunity to make every shopping experience fun and exciting and memorable. It doesn’t matter if the customer is buying a $.79 finger monster or a $79 picture frame. There are so many ways to make them feel special and show them appreciation. The really great part is that most of those things are free! Smiles are free. Patience is free. Most importantly, having a positive attitude is free. Note, I didn’t say effortless, I said free.

No one understands that customers can be difficult more than me. I’ve been in retail and wholesale for over 18 years. I’ve got stories too. But, think about the difference you and your staff can make by doing the simple things that your big box competitors promise but don’t come close to delivering. Like finding someone who actually works in the store. Nothing irritates me more than being ignored at checkout as I hand over the money I busted my ass to earn to some casher who will barely even look at me. Think about that. Do you do that, even unintentionally, because you are distracted or tired?

If you’re gonna pull out all the stops, this Christmas is the time to do it. People may not be buying as much but they need double the top shelf customer service. I say crank it up and get every single person working in your store to do the same. Not because it gives you a competitive edge (it does) or that people will want to come back to your store (they will), but because we’re all in this crappy economy together and being a little extra nice is just the right thing to do.

So, here’s my challenge to you: Have your own 12 days of Christmas. Starting today—and every day from now until you lock up on Christmas Eve—make a conscious and concerted effort to be extra friendly and welcoming to your customers. Make the time in your store the BEST part of their day. Take 10 minutes right now and list something fun you can do every day for the next two weeks to make your store a fun place to be and shop.

Not sure how to get started? How about this for an example: A couple of weeks ago, I was at an account when the manager spontaneously opened a bottle of champagne and poured glasses all around. People loved it and her store was full of laughter and delight. Complete strangers were toasting to the afternoon. Even a jaded rep like me was impressed! Did her cash register ring? You bet. Will those customers be talking about that for a long time. Uh, yeah!

Respond back. Let me know what you come up with and how it works and I’ll send you a prize. To comment, click the word “speak” below.

I am in beautiful California this week. I started in Los Angeles where I spent yesterday with my good friend, Michael Caulder. Not only is he a great guy, he's also the creative genius behind Nuk-u-lur Greeting Cards.

Retailers take note: if you don't carry this line, order it. Today. Seriously.

When Michael first approached me 3 years ago about repping his line, I played hard to get. It wasn't my intention but it sure came off that way. His wife, Julia, was doing some of the business management at the time and she stalked and pursued me for months. She finally gave up, bless her heart.

Two years ago, I was wandering the aisles of the National Stationery Show and I stumbled across Nuk-u-lur's booth. The line looked different than I remembered. Brighter, funnier. I was hooked. Michael wasn't in the booth and I was in a hurry so I left my card and a note that said, "I promised I'd call you back. Sorry it took a year".

Two weeks later, I was signed and had samples in hand. Its been love ever since.

It was fun to spend yesterday afternoon at Ground Zero for Nuk-u-lur. I'm so intrigued by creative people and love to see where and how they work. The Nuk-u-lur cards all feature miniature sized items created from clay and mixed media so many don't survive past the photo shoot. The actual studio looks like an eBay seller set up: small shoot box and light and a camera on a tri-pod. The images are then tweaked and cleaned up digitally, paired with some really funny text and voila...cards.

Shipping is housed in a small office in Michael's home.



Paper hamsters delight at the stock shelves:



Michael laughed when I marveled at his low inventory. He took me back out to the studio and revealed the full backstock. These cabinets are probably 10' tall. Note the ladder to the left. Yep, that's how he accesses the boxes up top.



I'm so excited about the new releases for Nuk-u-lur. They're in stock and ready to ship. Oh, you haven't seen them? Well, I can help with that. Give me a call at 877-277-1171 to set up an appointment and we'll get you hooked up. Besides, we need to help Michael unload some of those cards!

My week of thanks continues. Today, I am thankful to be alive. Yesterday I was almost killed...by a shopping cart.

I was doing my regularly scheduled MikWright maintenance at a Wegmans grocery store. Everything was going according to plan. I was on schedule, the rack wasn't a complete disaster, and a reorder was necessary. The store was also packed with people. Carts were over-flowing, patience was running thin and I experienced a general lack of any type of holiday spirit.

It didn't matter. I was buried back in the card racks, right? Guess again.

The spinner I was working on is on the end of longer section of card display. It also sits on the end of cross through aisle. Now, I'm not an especially big girl so it's easy to miss me when I'm crouched down on the floor. Wegmans has these really nice, very large shopping cards that are about 1.5 times longer and wider than standard carts. They're also double deckers so you can load them up.

I was crouched down, nicely balanced on my sensible (closed-toed) shoes, when a suburban mom, child in tow, cart bulging with holiday vittles, talking on a cell phone came barreling around the corner. She plowed right into me, knocking me off balance and onto the floor. I toppled over, letting out a little hoot. The customer (and this is where it gets really good), backed up her cart, redirected it around me, looked down at me, and kept walking. I sat on the floor laughing.

Yep, you read that right. She didn't miss a beat of her cell phone call and she kept right on walking down the aisle. I've been run over by shopping carts before. It's part of working in grocery stores, but it's never been a hit and run!

One of the merchandisers from a major card company saw the whole thing go down and she came over to make sure I was okay. More than anything, I was in shock that she just kept walking. Now, to be fair, she may have said, “excuse me” or asked if I was okay but I didn't hear her.

For the record, I am okay, unscathed and still in fightin’ shape.

One of the guys in Receiving told me about fist fights breaking out over the grab-and-go boxed Thanksgiving Dinners last year and how they were adding extra hours to workers for crowd control. At a grocery store. In America.

Later, in another grocery store, I watched a woman go berserk on a stock clerk because something she wanted had sold out and wouldn't be back in until the next day. She didn't want to return to the store the next day.

So, dear readers, as you're out hunting and gathering your Thanksgiving treats, please take a minute and be considerate of the folks on the other side of the register. We're all in this together and being nasty or short-tempered really isn't necessary. Nor is the drive-by attempt to cap the ass of a greeting card rep...even this one. Sorry competition, I live to sell another day. :)

Like many of you, this time of year gets me thinking about gratitude. Despite my best of intentions, I sometimes lose sight of all that's dope and focus on the wack [translation: all the good in the face of the bad].

So, in the spirit of giving thanks, I'm digging into my archives of thankfulness to share some of the things for which we should all be thankful.

Today, be thankful this is not your sales gig but also, take note at how this guy stands behind his product, even when it all goes horribly wrong. A true sales warrior for sure, dear readers. A reason for thanks AND a sales lesson...together at last! More turkey, anyone?

People ask me all the time: "Meryl, how do you do all that you do? How do you keep it all straight? How do you set and maintain your priorities? How do you wrangle such a rock star lifestyle and still have time to sleep?"

Well, dear readers, I have help. Like my sales hero, Gene Simmons, I only surround myself with professionals. No losers allowed. Unlike some of my esteemed industry colleagues, I also make it a point to be friendly with as many other sales reps as possible. I believe there is big power (and money) in gang mentality. Most importantly, I also have behind the scenes support at home and in the office.

As you can see my most beloved, Cheeto, thinks Pomegranate should be at the top of the list today.



Holla back: how do you keep it together?

While you may find the more obvious parts of this old "Love Connection" video funny, it doesn't do much for me. As a person also with an "unfortunate" name, I cringe with empathy as our pal is laughed at by audience. I say "Screw 'em, Robert", your bank account is probably bigger than theirs (especially if you worked in gift sales in the 80's) and you're totally my hero of the week...from one "unfortunate" to another!

HOWEVER...

What did make me laugh out loud (and the whole point for posting this) was the bit about how his job in gift sales had cost him several relationships. That, dear readers, is a true road warrior!

God bless you, Robert...wherever you are today.



Thanks to Michael Caulder at Nuk-u-lar Greetings for the heads up on this one!

I'm a huge fan of store window displays, especially this time of year. I love the way stores can find non-seasonal merchandise and feature it in new and enticing ways. Despite my marriage to the card and gift industry, I am not a shopper so it delights me when a store can pique my interest with a catchy window.

My good friends at Pulp in Washington, DC have knocked it out of the park with their Mighty Michelle window. It's no wonder they won the "Best Card Shop" in DC by "The Washington Post Express".

Featuring items from assorted manufacturers, most prominently Blue Q, their virtual shrine to the First Lady of Fabulous is enough to melt even the most die hard anti-Obama heart. The window consists of a life size cut-out of Mrs. O surrounded by products. I'm especially impressed with the way the Mighty Michele bags are featured so front and center.

A sunny day:


A starry night:


Day or night, this window is fantastic: Focused, simple, and totally effective.

Pulp reports that they sold out of all the bags they had inside the store and ended up selling them out of the window. An emergency order was called in STAT!

Fear not, dear readers, yours truly was on deck to take the call and disaster was averted.

People ask me all the time, "So, you seriously make a living selling all that crap?"

You bet I do! This is America...land of the impulse buy and a nation of people who love to laugh.

From day 1, I've kept a rock solid principle of "if it doesn't sell itself, I don't sell it." Think about it, if you have to work to convince a customer to buy a product chances are it isn't right for them. This has panned out pretty well for me. Sure, I've made some bad calls and my customers let me know that pretty fast. Other times, I just sit back, relax, and watch them giggle with glee.

This holiday season is no exception. Many of my best selling items have already sold out. On the surface, this is sad but what it really does is open the flood gates for products that may have been B-listed due to tight budgets.

One item that is soaring to the top of the popularity charts is none other than Handerpants.

Yep, you read it right.

Underpants for your hands, brought to you by those crazy cats at Accoutrements.

Not sold? These bad boys speak for themselves. Click below, rub your eyes, watch it again and then pick up the phone. Quantities are limited and you don't want to miss out on this. 877-277-1171 is the number to call. Holla!

No matter how frustrated you might be with out of stocks, discontinued and generally unavailable items, compared to this we've got it easy. Click on the image to enlarge.



Thanks to Failblog.com for keepin' it real.

Have a great weekend.