Improvised Life [ November 30th, 2011 ] Posted in » Words and Then Some... by Anne
Thanks Grenville Station
Avoid Chirstmas Gift Giving Stress
It may be hard to believe, but Christmas is right around the corner. It feels like only a few weeks ago we were roasting hotdogs and hamburgers, and donning our swimsuits for a weekend at the beach. The crisp chill of autumn flew by and now it is time to celebrate and sing Silent Night. If the busy holidays have you wanting to hide under your down comforter until next July, relax. A few simple tips can ensure you have a happy, stress-free holiday season.
Everyone knows the hustle and bustle of the holiday brings with it the need to shop for gifts. It can be overwhelming finding just the right item for everyone on your list. The stress and frustration may be enough to make you want to give up. However, if you still want to spread the joy of Christmas through unique, one-of-a-kind items, consider creating a present filled with things the recipient will love.
Exchanging gifts for Christmas is a longheld tradition that helps to spread the joy of the holiday. Presents are appropriate for a variety of situations. During gatherings, you should bring a token of your appreciation to the home of the host. You may also have people in your life like teachers, co-workers, and service providers who would appreciate the thought of a small present. While they may be expecting a run-of-the-mill item, appropriate for just about anyone in your life, you could surprise them with something especially chosen for them. You will need to take time to think of their likes and dislikes, but they will notice your effort.
Father’s Day Gifts Now Online!
Great designs sometimes make themselves. For Father’s Day, designing manly gifts didn’t require much effort. Men like poker, fishing, sports and bbq. We have all of these covered in our Father’s Day Gifts category page. Our designs for dad are now online and available to send to your special him anywhere in Canada.
Corporate Halloween Gifting
It is very common in corporations today to send holiday gift baskets. Although generically referred to as holiday gifts, what is really meant is Christmas gift baskets. It is natural for gift giving to spill over from the personal to the business side of relationships. Businesses start gearing down in anticipation of the extended time off. Everyone is in ‘holiday mode’ the 2nd and 3rd weeks of December.
A small yet substantial segment of the business community takes advantage of opportunities in the business cycle to exploit heighten marketing sensitivities. The smart marketer knows that people start preparing for the holidays immediately after labour day. Corporations start brainstorming on what they will be doing ‘in the new year’. They’ve forgotten to focus on the remainder of the current year.
A major part of business gifting is to reward employees for hard work, remind suppliers of your appreciation for their support throughout the year and thank/encourage past customers that you value their past purchases of your products or services and sincerely value their future consideration. While December is a great time to send a holiday gift, October is the perfect opportunity to leap frog ahead of your competition and get in front of your customers by sending them a Halloween gift basket.
The holidays are coming…
Grenville Station is buzzing. New holiday stock is arriving daily and we’re running full tilt preparing for our favourite time of year. We have some really nice designs this year that we can’t wait to put online. Our Halloween gifts are almost ready and our Christmas baskets should be online in early October. Although we don’t usually introduce new gifts after October 1st since we’re fully focused on Halloween/Christmas, this year we couldn’t help ourselves. Our new NHL Gifts arrived today. Well, the containers arrived today. We have all 6 Canadian teams (Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Edmonton, Calgary, and Vancouver). These gifts will be available just in time for the start of the hockey season. Join our Mail List and you’ll be notified as soon as they’re online!
Back to School at GrenvilleStation.com
This morning the kids were skipping off to school past our offices, the first day of the year. Many were excited while many disappointed. It was hot and sunny, like the middle of July. I think the weather wasn’t informed that it’s time to cool down and starting turning the leaves. The first day of school is the unofficial start of our holiday prepping. It actually begins in late June, but we never *feel* like it’s the start of holiday prep time until now. Even though many tasks are accomplished beforehand, it’s hard to think of Halloween and Christmas until school is back in session.
And now the real fun begins…stay tuned!
Designing Inexpensive Holiday Gifts
A very popular price point for Christmas gifts is the lower end price range. These gifts are great choices whether your budget is tight or your relationship with the recipient is not extremely close. A supplier who may not be instrumental to running your business but makes it a bit easier to operate. An aunt who you don’t see very often but like to remind you’re still thinking of her. A friend from college you see only every few years but enjoy that experience all the same. Inexpensive holiday gifts are great also if you need to send multiple corporate holiday thank you gifts.
Remaining 5 Reasons…
[continued from previous post]
5. Increased business. After Father’s Day we experience a bit of a lull for the summer. We make use of this time by completing other necessary tasks, such as taking inventory and redesigning existing baskets. Once autumn arrives, we have several holidays that we need to prepare for. We also find that the amount of orders we receive increase, largely due to the travelling season ending. Our customers are less likely to be able to visit their distant loved ones for occasions such as birthdays. That’s where we come in!
4. Thanksgiving. Turkey Day is one of my favourite holidays! I enjoy the family dinners, my Grandmother’s pumpkin pie and, most importantly, the Statutory Holiday! This is the time when most of our orders are for our fall designs. The baskets are usually sent as a “Thank you” for someone who has hosted a Thanksgiving Dinner, or sent between loved ones who unfortunately are not able to be together during the holidays.
3. Halloween. Arguably, one of the most exciting days of the year for kids! But for us, Halloween is a season, not just one day of fun. Designing our Halloween baskets is certainly some of the most fun we have here. We are literally kids in a candy story when the sweets start pouring into our design studio! Among the goodies are gummy tarantulas, candy mice and bloody eyeball gumballs. When it comes to candy, the grosser the better!
2. Christmas. You can’t help but be jolly when preparing for the holidays! Once the stock arrives and the new designs are online, we get to work pre-making the holiday orders. We need to start as early as possible to keep up with the hundreds of orders that pour in almost immediately. The Christmas season easily occupies about 4 or 5 months of the year for all of us here at Grenville Station. It may still be beautiful autumn weather outside, but we will be like busy little elves in Santa’s workshop! Ho ho ho!
1. Chocolate! Need we say more? Due to the aforementioned summer temperatures, we have to stop using chocolate in our designs by (usually) late spring. Normally we use a fair amount of chocolate, so we have to remove quite a few designs from the website. Instead we use chips, crackers, coffee/tea, and other such products that will be unaffected by the heat. Sure they’re tasty treats… but nothing as exciting as chocolate!
And there you have it, our Top Ten Reasons We Love Autumn!
Halloween…just around the corner?
Here it is, the 6th of July, and it’s a beautiful sunny 29 degree day (that’s 84 degrees for our American friends). I’m trying desperately to focus on business but the sound of my young daughter playing with one of her friends is providing a major distraction. One might be tempted to give up trying to work on such a fine day and simply join the kids for a popsicle, but I can’t. Halloween is a mere three months away and I’ve got plenty of planning to do!
Summer fun @ GrenvilleStation.com
Fathers’ Day has come and gone and the slow summer period is upon us. Slow is a relative term. Orders are still coming in for non-holiday events (birthday, new baby, anniversary, wedding, etc.) and our team has already started pre-planning the 2008 Christmas season. You learn from past years what works and what doesn’t. You decide on marketing strategies and inventory levels. The fall CGTA trade show (in August) determines some major inventory concerns…it’s the circle of gift basket life!
For those Dads who have heavy feet…
“You don’t truly understand something unless you can explain it to your ‘grandmother’”. Einstein alledgedly said this. I believe it holds true for most topics, including NASCAR racing. I’ve asked several friends who claim to understand it but could not explain it to me. At least not very well. I think they just like to see cars driving fast. Moving billboards, er, I mean race cars, driving at tops speeds until one guy (or girl) gets to waste a bottle of champagne getting their friends and family wet. If your Dad loves NASCAR, make him your Crew Chief this Father’s Day!
