Though there’s still snow on the ground in some parts of the country, others are already beginning to see flowers on the forsythias and crocus blooms pushing up from the warming soil, all of which means that spring is soon to arrive – even for those areas where the seasons don’t really change. And with spring comes the celebration of Easter; April 16th this year, to be exact. It’s a time for new shoes and new hats, colored eggs and chocolate bunnies. For many, it’s a time of faithful reflection. For retailers, the Easter season presents a fresh opportunity for sales as customers awaken from a sort of winter hibernation of their own and begin looking for the gifts, decorations, and other things they’ll want to help commemorate this special time of year. Since the Easter Bunny can’t do it all by himself, you’ll want to get a jump on the holiday by stocking some of the outstanding products available from FGMarket’s extensive listings of vendors.

Plush Easter Bunnies by Douglas Cuddle Toys, Inc.

What would Easter be without a bunny (or some other gentle little creature) to cuddle?! Fortunately you’ll never have to think about the answer to that question with an ample supply of plush animals from Douglas Cuddle Toys, Inc. In business for 50 years now, Douglas is known in the gift and toy industry for their plush dogs, cats and horses with endearing expressions, unique gestures and irresistible softness. More recently, their line has expanded to feature fun and functional plush decor and accessory items. For Easter, there are bunnies named Cotton, Hickory Nut, Dutch Boy and Peach Fuzz (among others), a chick named Butter, a lamb named Dandelion, and ducklings named Sunny and Slicker, each created with the same extraordinary cuddle-ability the company is famous for. A line of colorful pastel bunnies rounds out the Easter selection, as well as a new Lil’ Nugget Sassy Pet Sak rabbit with greenish fur and orange ears named Carrot Patch, tucked into a little handbag decorated with carrots.
For rabbits in a larger scale, check out the ones at Ditz Designs. Their Standing Rabbit, available in brown or gray, is a towering 44 inches tall. He’s available natural or dressed as the Easter Bunny in a top hat and a purple vest and bow tie, carrying a basket with eggs. What a great character for a window display! There’s also a smaller, chubby-cheeked bunny in the line named, appropriately, Hugs. At 20 inches long, Hugs is also available in either gray or brown. It is the fine attention to detail that adds to the realism of these rabbits and makes them so appealing.

Arreola Designs' Real Hand-painted Eggs

Even though Christmas has just passed, there are some folks who just can’t get enough of tree decorating. In fact, it’s become quite popular in many areas to decorate an Easter Tree, which might be a leafless, living shrub or tree in the front yard or a dried or artificial one indoors. In any case, an Easter Tree needs ornaments, and there are some beautiful ones to be had from Arreola Designs. Choose from among several dozen different Easter and spring motifs, hand-painted on real eggs which are suspended by a loop of satin ribbon. Arreola also has a couple of exquisite blown glass, egg-shaped ornaments, hand-decorated in floral motifs. These are undoubtedly better left hung on the indoor tree.
Eggs are such an integral part of Easter, being so symbolic as they are of the renewal of life. Originally Easter eggs were painted with bright colors to represent the sunlight of spring and were used in Easter-egg rolling contests or given as gifts. In medieval times, eggs were traditionally given at Easter to the servants. In Germany, eggs were given to children along with other Easter gifts. Different cultures have developed different ways of decorating Easter eggs, some quite elaborately. Poles and Ukrainians, for example, traditionally embellish their eggs in the distinctive manner called pysanki. Melted beeswax is applied to the fresh white egg. It is then dipped in successive baths of dye. After each dip wax is painted over the area where the preceding color is to remain. Eventually a complex pattern of lines and colors emerges into a work of art. Pysanki eggs are a masterpiece of skill and workmanship.
Handmade faux eggs which are extremely realistic in size, weight and texture are available from Clay Concepts. Sold by the dozen, they range from goose egg through hen’s egg to bird egg in size and are lifelike in color. The bird eggs are also available with a natural speckled surface. For Easter, the hen eggs can be had in an assortment of pastel colors. These make great display props, and the naturalistic ones are good year-round sellers as kitchen decor and craft items.
If you’ve got eggs, you’re going to need a basket to put them in, and Baskets, Containers & More lists more than 40 styles of Easter baskets on their website, all of them at excellent prices. The selection includes pot covers, handled baskets, fruit baskets, bun baskets, fireside baskets, trellis baskets and more. Many are available painted in bright Easter pastels. Others are white-painted or natural. If you can’t find a useful Easter basket here, you’re just not looking hard enough!
For more information, watch for our upcoming newsletter, Here Comes Peter Cottontail – Jewelry, Candy, and Other Gift Ideas for Easter, part two of FGMarket’s newsletter series featuring some great gift ideas just in time for Easter and Springtime. Find these and other fine wholesalers and suppliers of Easter gift items in our FGMarket Easter Holiday and Special Occasion vendors’ category.

Inspirational keepsakes from Messages of Love

Jewelry and romantic collectibles are very popular gift choices for Valentines Day, and this occasion presents a great opportunity for selling these keepsakes, even if they’re not part of your usual product mix. In this newsletter issue, FGMarket.com showcases some excellent places to find hand-crafted jewelry, out-of-the-ordinary gift assortments, and Valentine’s Day treasures that customers will fall in love with. They’ll even enjoy adding to their own personal collections.
Messages of Love Jewelry carries a sparkling line of bejeweled bracelets, earrings, bookmarks and watch chains. Handcrafted with genuine Swarovski crystal beads, high-quality silver beads from Bali, freshwater pearls and other semi-precious gems, each item in the line is a special treasure. What’s more, each piece of jewelry is accompanied by a special message that helps the giver communicate his or her feelings toward the recipient.

Stylish glass jewelry at The Glass Cafe ©

More exquisitely crafted jewelry is available from The Glass Cafe, whose unique rings and pendants are sure to satisfy your visual appetite. They’re definitely worth a look! Delicate heart-shaped pendants come with a 16″ or 18″ choker in a variety of colors and treatments. Glass ‘Sparkle’ hearts (in the cooler colors) are manufactured with silver leaf, while the warmer-hued ‘Twinkle’ versions incorporate gold leaf. Their limited-edition heart rings are all accented with gold leaf. This product line is getting great reviews wherever it’s seen, and minimum order requirements are low enough that you can get into it without a big commitment in inventory.

Bryson Studio's collectible charms in purse boxes

Bryson Studios is a company that creates silver charms, bracelets, and new this year, gemstone necklaces, all cleverly packaged in handcrafted paper purses. The whimsical charms are 100% sterling silver and are accompanied by clever and witty fortunes, printed on vellum strips and attached to each charm with a ribbon. Each fortune is unique to the charm style; the umbrella, for instance, carries the message, “You will be showered with love.” Charms are sold individually packaged in one of three purse styles. The Valentine Collection features vivid red purses, each of which includes the choice of a silver charm (the ‘Cupid’ charm might be a good choice here). Other uses for the charm-within-a-purse include hanging it on a bottle of wine or champagne, tying it onto a gift-wrapped package, or affixing it to a greeting card. Bryson also offers a retail counter top display rack, which makes for easier sales.

Fun Cereal Bowls for Lovers at Our Name is Mud

More great Valentines Day gift ideas can be found at Our Name is Mud, manufacturers of ceramic ware such as over-size mugs, cereal bowls, picture frames, platters, etc. All of this company’s products are hand-painted, lead free, non-toxic, and dishwasher and microwave safe. Their sense of humor is visible in products like the Cereal Bowl for Lovers; terms of endearment like “Sweetie,” “Honey” and “Baby” encircle the rim, whereas inside the bottom of the bowl is a “Let’s go back to bed” message that’s revealed once all the cereal has been eaten. Also, especially suited for Valentines Day is the red, heart-shaped ceramic box, which says “I love you …” on the top, and “from the bottom of my heart” on the inside bottom. One more item that stands out (though not particularly romantic) is the scornful, yet entertaining “Ex-Boyfriends in Hell” votive candle holder.

AE Wholesale heart plaque with tealight candle holder

Gift shops can find a selection of keepsake items at AE Wholesale, an importer that is able to offer a wide variety of merchandise at reasonable prices. One of their heart-shaped satin boxes (sold as a nested set of three) makes a lovely container for a special gift. Their gorgeous cut glass rose is beautifully detailed, right down to the leaves and thorns on the stem. They also have a modestly priced, double panel, hinged glass plaque that has the look of stained glass and carries an inspiring message of love. And their paired, frosted glass swan candle holder is a romantic gift that symbolizes so much.
Florists and gift basket makers can benefit from the products offered by Baskets, Containers and More. This is a great source of Valentine-themed merchandise, including white-painted baskets embellished with red hearts, glass and plastic vases and other vessels for fresh flowers, and heart-shaped ceramic containers that could be used by florists to create in-house special arrangements for the holiday. A plastic, heart-shaped box could be used to fill with candy and tuck into a gift basket.

Ceramic heart bags found at Baskets, Containers & More

We’ve hardly scratched the surface of all the Valentines Day goodies out there. You’ll find more quality vendors and even more products when you visit the Valentines Day Holiday & Special Occasion category at FGMarket.com.
Do it now; you don’t want to be caught with your quiver empty when it comes time to help Cupid fire one of his arrows of love! Let your shop be the destination for those who are seeking just the right thing to delight their heart’s desire.

Hico Balloon's 'Funny Love' Mylar and Coordinating Vase

Wonderful Valentines Day balloons, new balloon gift items, and unique valentine balloon ideas are featured in today’s newsletter, showcasing products from just a few of the excellent wholesale companies listed on FGMarket.com!
Balloons are another easy add-on sale that can be highly profitable. Your sales staff ought to suggest one or two of them with everything they sell, reminding your customers that they’ve got great visual impact. Fun and festive balloons are available from Hico Balloons, who carry a full line of everyday latex and foil balloons as well as all the accessories – such as ribbon, balloon sticks, weights, helium valves, air inflators, etc. – that go with them.

Their ‘Seasonal Promotions’ pages are updated monthly, so you’ll be able to check back for Valentines Day features, like the 18-inch one sided Valentine mylar patterns, 18-inch two sided Valentine mylar patterns, 36-inch Valentine mylar patterns, Valentines latex balloons, and other Valentine vases, accessories, and gifts.

21-in. Google-Eyes Balloons are NEW from Betallic!

For more inflatable ideas, visit the website of Betallic, one of the most innovative balloon manufacturers in the industry. Their outstanding line encompasses the new ‘Holographic’ designs, giving foil balloons that extra bit of sparkle.
Some of their latest products – just in time for Valentines Day – are the ‘Google-Eyes’ balloons. These 21-inch, heart-shaped balloons feature a variety of characters with those wiggly eyes that seem to move when you shake them. The dancing peanut declares “I’m Nuts About You” (what else could he say?). The cutest one may be the Boston terrier with the lipstick smudge on his forehead and the caption “Love At First Sight.”

Betallic also has a unique assortment of ceramic floral containers, mugs, picture frames, plush, and candy items that make it easy to create beautiful coordinating arrangements. Remember, Betallic products are only sold through local distributors, many of whom are listed on their website.

Wrinkle-free Bubble Balloons available at TK Innovations

One of the most exciting products to hit the balloon industry is the amazing wrinkle-free Bubble Balloon from T K Innovations. These crystal clear balloons are intended to be inflated well past the “wrinkle stage” that would be recommended for most foil balloons. Many of the designs have smaller balloons of various sizes and shapes inserted within them, giving them a unique three-dimensional look.
For Valentines Day, TK offers a cluster of variously-sized red foil hearts floating within a clear bubble that’s printed with a “Happy Valentines Day” message. Or, select a bouncing inflated teddy bear inside a balloon that’s embellished with hearts, X’s and O’s.

Several patented inventions are the secret behind TK’s unique Bubble Balloons, which will last inflated from three to five weeks. No special equipment is needed. The company’s website features a video that explains how it’s all done.

Find these and other fine wholesalers and suppliers of Valentine’s Day gift items in our FGMarket Valentines Day Holiday & Special Occasion vendors’ category.

As promised, today’s newsletter features wonderful Valentines Day teddy bears, stuffed animals, and plush gift items from just a few of the excellent wholesale companies listed on FGMarket.com!
Speaking of teddy bears, there are probably more plush animals sold at Valentines Day than during Christmas. According to their manufacturers, the bears at First & Main, Inc. have been “stitched with love.” Their Angel Bears sport cupid-like wings and wear dainty floral necklaces and headbands (cleverly draped over one ear). ‘Minky’ is an old-fashioned style teddy bear constructed of soft faux mink material, making him perfect for cuddling. ‘Tucker’ is a little shaggier, a little plumper, and wears an appropriately red bow around his neck. ‘Delaney’ is a white bear with a soft pink snout and a burgundy bow, make him an ideal Valentines Day messenger. First & Main offers an entire menagerie of bears, stuffed animals, and other plush characters – even people – designed especially for the holiday, as well as for year-round sales.

Find these Adorable Animal Vase Huggers at Fiesta Toy!

Another excellent source for Valentines Day stuffed animals and plush, Fiesta Toy Company has a website with several pages of whimsical critters that are dedicated to the occasion. From a wide range of bears, gorillas, puppies, tigers and other plush fauna, their 9″ Sitting Polka-Dot Frog has got to be the star! His big, floppy feet keep him balanced as he stretches his arms as wide as he can to reveal the words, “I love you THIS MUCH!” emblazoned on his belly. He’s irresistible, and he’s only one of a large selection of plush valentine creatures at Fiesta. A few noteworthy standouts include the floppy-eared, Assorted Comical Puppies, each dragging a string of hearts in his mouth, as well as the cuddly 9.5″ Sitting Bears, holding heart-shaped Valentine Gift Boxes that can be used to contain a special, personal Valentine’s Day surprise. Did someone say “diamond ring?” For flower shops and florists, Fiesta has a fun, loveable assortment of Vase Huggers – bears, monkeys, pandas and puppies – whose arms can easily slide over a valentines bud vase of roses. What a great, eye-catching way to upgrade an otherwise ordinary sale!

6-in. Precious Pink Beanie in Anico's Valentine Assortment.

Retailers can enjoy special pricing on quantity purchases for Valentine’s Day and everyday, at Anico Plush. Browse their Everyday product section to find a vast array of plush bears in all shapes, sizes, colors and species, any of which could be easily spruced up for the holiday. ‘Minky Bear’ is especially soft, as his name implies, and he’s available in standing or lying down versions. Their Valentine 2006 collection features an assortment of adorable bears and puppies, appropriately decked out in pinks and reds with hats, ribbons, and heart accents. One especially cute shaggy white 11″ bear, with red nose and ears, carries a red heart that reads “XO XO.” There’s no mistaking that message!
Balloons are another easy add-on sale which can be highly profitable, but those important details will have to wait… Soon to come is FGMarket’s Valentines Day Is On Its Way – Balloon Gift Ideas. In part three of our series, we will showcase Valentines Day balloon gifts and products, as well as some of the latest design innovations in Valentine’s Day balloons and balloon accessories, specials on valentine balloon packages, valentine gift promotions, etc.
More quality Valentines Day gift vendors are easy to find in the Holiday and Special Occasion category at FGMarket.com!

Melt-In-Your-Mouth Chocolate from Quality Candy

Valentines Day is on its way! There are just a couple of months left until Christmas, which means that it must be time to start thinking about Valentines Day … already! Maybe it seems a little early, but remember that you’re going to have to fill all those empty shelves and display cases with something once the holiday merchandise is gone. Valentines Day merchandise ought to hit the sales floor by January 1st (if not sooner), so it’s a good idea to get it all ordered now; then you won’t have to worry about it during the Christmas rush. To help you along with your purchasing decisions (and make shopping a little easier), we’ve identified just a few of the excellent suppliers from our extensive FGMarket Valentines Day Holiday & Special Occasion vendors’ category. These companies offer a wide array of traditional as well as unconventional Valentines Day merchandise. For gift ideas that go from romantic to whimsical, from stylish to silly, from tempting to tasty to downright tawdry, read on …

Pecan Turtle Hearts from Robicheaux's Specialty Candy

Not a Valentines Day goes by without someone, somewhere getting a heart-shaped box of chocolates. You can be part of that time-honored tradition with the high quality, award-winning chocolates from Quality Candy/Buddy Squirrel (as the name suggests, the candy operation merged with the nut company some years ago). A family business since 1916, Quality creates premium melt-in-your-mouth candy in all the traditional milk chocolate and dark chocolate varieties, including double-dipped cherry cordials, buttery caramels, creamy nougats and savory nut clusters. They’re available in a wide range of beautifully boxed sizes and assortments, and they can even be paired with deluxe nut mixes, rich caramel corn or jumbo cashews from the Squirrel side of the business, all presented in an attractive gift tin.
From the Southern part of the country comes Robicheaux’s Specialty Candy, makers of some of the best handmade chocolates in Dixie. As you might expect, pecans figure heavily in their product line, with chocolate-covered pecan turtles being their number one seller. For Valentines Day, they do their traditional turtles in the shape of a heart, either “plain” (not frosted) or dipped in white chocolate and decorated with red, pink or white drizzles… yum!! Robicheaux’s has a large selection of gift bags, boxes, tins and crates filled with their delicious chocolates, or you can buy them in bulk and market them in your own containers. Their 8-ounce red heart-shaped tin, filled with 14 individually wrapped assorted candies, is sure to be a great Valentines Day gift. It’s even comes filled with sugar-free candies.

Say LOVE with Chocolate Bars from chocolateTalk

To help your customers communicate what’s in their own hearts, check out the verbal candy bars from chocolateTalk. Smooth, creamy milk chocolate or scrumptious dark chocolate is hand-molded into a 2.5 ounce bar that delivers a special greeting. For Valentines Day, the ones that proclaim “LOVE” or “SMOOCH” are the likely choices. Each bar is packaged in an eye-catching, multicolor striped wrapping with an attached gift tag. A handy 32-bar counter display comes free with the first order. This is a great impulse item to keep near the cash register, and it can be an easy add-on sale to go with something like a flower arrangement or a teddy bear.
And speaking of teddy bears (did you like that segue?), there are probably more plush animals sold at Valentines Day than during Christmas. For more information, watch for our upcoming newsletter, Valentines Day is on Its Way – Plush Animals Gift Ideas, part two of FGMarket’s newsletter series featuring some great gift ideas for Valentine’s Day. Find these and other fine wholesalers and suppliers of Valentine’s Day gift items in our FGMarket Valentines Day Holiday & Special Occasion vendors’ category.

The Rhyn-Rivet Collection

If your store isn’t decorated yet for the Christmas selling season, you’d better get busy! Even though some complain every year that Christmas seems to come earlier and earlier, most of your customers are ready to start planning their holiday purchases. For many, that means seeing what new delights can be added to their own Christmas ornament collections this year. And while high-style, color-coordinated, themed “designer” trees do look great in a retail showroom, most regular folks decorate their Christmas trees at home with a hodge-podge of ornaments and other decorations that have been amassed over the years. The result is a familiar and old-fashioned look that’s loaded with nostalgia.
With competition from ‘big box’ stores being what it is, it’s important for other retailers to find a variety of sources for ornaments that are out of the ordinary and grab your customers’ attention. Fortunately, FGmarket.com has identified several vendors that can help you establish your store as the destination for unique and original ornaments. Ne’Qwa Art for example, creates extraordinarily beautiful ornaments in the centuries-old tradition of painting inside the glass ornament, giving the designs a wonderful luminosity. Their artists produce an appealing and diverse array of subject matter, from the whimsical to the dramatic. They can even create custom designs according to your own specifications. These ornaments are unique works of art that will surely become cherished family treasures for their buyers.
Fine, hand-made porcelain is what gives the ornaments from Piazza Ltd. their exquisite, delicate appearance. Using a labor-intensive “slip trailing” technique, these award-winning ornaments have a dimensional surface that’s embellished with lots of detail. They are manufactured from high-quality kaolin clay, which makes them very lightweight, translucent, and soft to the touch. Other beautiful bisque porcelain ornaments are produced by The Rhyn-Rivet Collection, Inc. These ornaments are hand-decorated using China paints, dimensional glazes, inlaid metals, and a fine dusting of diamond glitter, giving them a subtle shimmer. The vibrant colors and distinctive shapes give each of their diverse ornament collections a unique character.

Ornaphints & Yulery Ornaments

When decorating a Christmas tree, whether it’s for display or for home use, it’s important to remember the design principle of depth, which helps give your completed tree a more dimensional appearance. Enhance the overall depth by placing some of the ornaments deep within the boughs of the tree, drawing the viewer’s eye inward. This is a good place to put inexpensive, solid-color, shiny glass balls, creating a backdrop for the finer ornaments that are placed in front of them.
Doing this also gives the tree the appearance of looking fuller and having more volume, while allowing the nicer, more expensive ornaments to be seen to full advantage. For good balance, hang larger ornaments near the bottom of the tree, placing smaller, more delicate ones closer to the top. If you’re using bead garlands, place them on the tree before the ornaments, so you can more easily control the shape and size of the swags. With the garland in place, you’ll have clearly-defined spaces in which to hang the ornaments.
The Barnhart Gallery has an original line of ornaments called Ornaphints & Yulery, created from thinly-sliced segments of ancient volcanic agates fitted with jewelry findings. These naturally-colorful ornaments are lustrous light catchers, and their porous outer edges can act as diffusers for scented oils. In the smaller sizes they’re also great to use as package ties or to hang on the neck of a bottle of wine. You might consider pairing these natural jewels with some of the beautiful leaf-shaped ornaments from Crafta.com. Available in different shapes and colors, the artificial leaves are decorated with beads and glitter to dress them up for the holiday season. In addition to a wide range of more traditional kinds of ornaments, Crafta.com also carries a distinctive pine cone petal ball in two sizes that will coordinate perfectly with a naturalistic decorating theme.
Some of the realistic nesting cardinals offered by Floraltrims.com would also complete this setting nicely. Both the male version (Harrison) and the female (Holly) are nestled into frosted grass nests, and Holly even has a couple of eggs in her nest. (Never mind that cardinals don’t actually lay eggs in winter… all fantasies are permitted at Christmastime.) If you prefer cardinals without nests, Floraltrims.com offers those, as well as many other birds in every size, shape, and wing span.

Hand-painted Animal Angels

For a Christmas tree with plenty of personality, start with some of the ornaments produced by Bottman Design. Artist Paris Bottman has created an adorable line of hand-painted, resin Animal Angels collection ornaments – winged dogs, cats, pigs, bears, etc. – that could be matched up with the whimsical Chubby Cherubs collection (the name says it all) or the Real People Holiday Ornaments collection (for example, ‘More Chocolate Please’ – a “plump” woman with a box of chocolates, passed out on Santa’s lap), both designed by the talented Erika Oller.
Combine these ornaments with some of the clever Clay Dough Ornaments from Decorative Traditions. Be sure to check out their hand-painted Classic Tin Ornaments as well, featuring such motifs as dancing Santas and smiling snowmen. Then, hang some of the charming, handmade Christmas stocking ornaments from Christmas Cove Designs, are made of 100% virgin wool and available in several sizes. Hang a few of their beautiful, full-size traditional stockings nearby to promote add-on sales (also, check out their clever stocking hangers). The Heirloom Tree Skirts also offered by Christmas Cove would make a nice addition to any traditional holiday decor that endures in families for generations.
AE Wholesale is an excellent source of inexpensive ornaments, made with a variety of materials and in several themes, including sets of twelve snowmen, Santas, or angels packaged together in attractive hexagonal boxes. Another supplier, Kel-Toy, Inc. also offers a large selection of Ornaments online at http://www.keltoy.com. There you’ll find lots of unique baubles, bangles and beads with faceted surfaces, adding a touch of sparkle and light to any decorating scheme. Think of these ornaments as Christmas tree jewelry! Hanging several of these reflective ornaments within the interior of the tree will help carry light into the center and make the decorated tree more dazzling.
It can sometimes be challenging to exhibit Christmas ornaments in an attractive way, that’s also accessible for customers to purchase. One handy idea for displaying non-fragile items is to wire different-sized baskets directly onto the boughs of the tree. These baskets can then be filled with ornaments for customers to select. (Hang a few ornaments in nearby branches, too.) Baskets like this could also hold seasonal plush toys in assorted sizes. Another idea is to use display trees without needles, such as the ones offered by Christina’s World. You’ll find trees in a variety of sizes, styles and finishes, from freestanding, 6-ft. tall “rhinestone” trees to 42-in. high countertop models finished in matte gold.

Sock Hooks Stocking Hangers

While at Christina’s website, indulge yourself by viewing her slideshow and touring her entire selection of exquisitely-detailed blown-glass ornaments, featuring both traditional and out-of-the-ordinary images. These are the kinds of heirloom ornaments that are passed down through families and cherished for generations – and, they are infinitely collectible! Produced in a myriad of styles and price points, Christina’s ornaments give you the means to compete with some of the more well-known, “designer label” lines that require a deeper commitment of inventory. One look at these ornaments and you’ll see how well they live up to their slogan, “Poetry in Glass.”
Christmas ornaments are such wonderful, versatile gifts that they practically sell themselves. They’re good impulse items and they make excellent stocking stuffers. Perfect as hostess gifts for holiday parties, they’re also great for those office grab bags or as tokens of appreciation for favorite teachers. However, most of your ornament sales will probably come from customers as gifts for themselves, usually giving in to the urge to add a few new “special finds” to their own ornament collections each year. With the Christmas shopping days countdown soon to begin, visit all of FGmarket’s Christmas ornament, holiday, and special occasion vendors to see what we have collected… just for you!

Christmas is coming!! And we all know what THAT means… Thanksgiving is coming first! Sometimes in our rush between Halloween and Christmas, it seems that Turkey Day gets overlooked as an opportunity to harvest more holiday sales. That needn’t be the case if you designate one or more areas within your store – somewhere between the jack-o-lanterns and the angel tree-toppers – to create an enticing display of specially-selected merchandise that’s geared toward the festive fall celebration. Whether your customer is the host or hostess of the traditional meal, seeking to decorate for the season, or one of the dinner guests looking for an appropriate gift, there’s a bounty of merchandise from which to choose.

The Pumpkin Tree by Creative Displays

Pumpkins, of course are a perennial and versatile symbol of the autumn season. For carving spooky (or friendly) faces, baking into pies, or simply setting them on the front stoop, their selling period extends for several weeks. Some of the best fresh pumpkins anywhere come from Bottomley Evergreens and Farms, Inc., where the pumpkins are given special treatment so they are prettier, cleaner, and last longer. They plant pumpkins through a cover crop, such as rye, giving them a nice soft, clean bed to grow on, as well as yielding a bumper crop that is clean and ready for sale. The variety of pumpkin shapes and sizes is almost endless, from small, round pie pumpkins to jumbos weighing in at 60 pounds or more! Bottomley Evergreens also grows Autumn Wing gourds; a beautiful assortment of shapes, sizes and colors that are perfect for decorating indoors or out.
Now, what’ll you do with all these pumpkins? You could showcase them on The Pumpkin Tree from Creative Displays. These unique pumpkin merchandisers are designed to sell more pumpkins in a minimum of floor space with maximum visual impact. Rings hold pumpkins up to 12lbs. each; and after Halloween or Thanksgiving, you can also use these racks to display mums and poinsettia plants.
While we’re on the subject of gourds (a pumpkin is really just an oversized gourd), check out the fanciful creations at Gourdaments. Your customers will love the menagerie of whimsical animals, like cats, roosters and other barnyard animals that artist, Devon Cameron creates by applying paints, dyes, clay, and varnish to various dried gourds. Sizes range from 3 inches (ornament size) to 12 inches or more, and the finished products are as hard as wood. Cameron turns some of the gourds into birdhouses with many distinctive styles, like the “Beatrice the Bird House Cat” whose open, meowing mouth is the hole through which the birds may enter.
Thanksgiving is the time for home and hearth, for family, and for celebrating the bountiful harvest. Decorating themes center on products that nature offers. For example, see an assortment of gorgeous wreaths, composed of natural, dried materials that are made by Naturals by Webster, Inc. Their Farmer’s Market Harvest Series features a lush “Fall Gathering Wreath” created of yarrow, coxcomb, globe amaranth, sunflowers and more. Spicy wreaths of dried red chili peppers are included, as well. Webster’s also produces a line, “Haystack Harvest,” free-standing bouquets of dried flowers that make great cash-and-carry purchases. If you or your customers like do-it-yourself (D.I.Y), Webster’s has all the natural loose, dried flowers, pods, grasses and berries necessary to create beautiful fall arrangements, wreaths, and door swags.

Creative Touch Wood-carved Home Decor & Gifts for Fall

Need some containers for those custom arrangements? A unique wholesaler, Kraft Klub, Inc. carries a large variety of nostalgic, handmade tin items in rust, galvanized, antique white-wash, black colonial, wire, and a new enamel line, their most popular yet. Even empty, these basins, pitchers, buckets, washtubs, and wire baskets impart a wonderful sense of home and history to a Thanksgiving display.
If you’re not in the business of creating your own floral designs (or even if you are), check out the great collection of pre-made permanent arrangements from Burton & Burton from Flowers, Inc. They’re super time-savers … just take them out of the box and fluff them up. Burton & Burton also carries a unique line of home decor items and tabletop accessories that will surely generate Thanksgiving sales. For even more decorative accents, be sure to visit Creative Touch. Their clever wood-carved pumpkins and turkeys are really charming.
Most people have strong and pleasant memories of Thanksgiving celebrations past, and many of those memories are conjured up by the sense of smell. Especially familiar are the aromas of foods traditionally prepared and eaten during the holidays. You can make the most of this fact by offering scented items, like candles and potpourris that carry with them the smells that evoke nostalgic memories. Unique Aromas produces a line of scented, double-wick, poured candles in glass dishes. The sweet aroma of Pumpkin Pie, Lemon Meringue, Blueberry Muffins and other dessert favorites inspired the delicious candle scents featured in the Bakery collection.

Pumpkin Pie Bundt Cake Candles by Unique Aromas

Their sophisticated square votive candles (packaged in fours) burn up to 18 hours each, and carry such essences as Cranberry, Gingerbread, Spiced Pear and Cinnamon Cider. The same fragrances are available in 7-oz. poured candles in unique triangular glasses, wrapped in cellophane, and tied with a matching ribbon. Unique Aromas’ Bundt Cake candles smell almost good enough to eat and look like little bundt cakes. They make wonderful holiday and hostess gifts that are sure to please!
Another candle company, Applemill Cottage makes double-wicked, palm/soy candles in old-fashioned 16-oz. cottage jars with domed lids. With such yummy “flavors” as Apple Pie, Cinnamon Buns, and Pears and Berries, their candles carry one of the highest scent loads in the industry. They’ll also create private-label candles, which you can brand with your store’s name and logo. A portion of Applemill Cottage’s profit is donated to help establish freshwater wells in rural villages in India; customers feel good about their purchase and humanity benefits.
If all this talk about food is making you hungry for the real thing (and so much of Thanksgiving Day has to do with eating), let’s go straight for dessert. Award-winning Heart’s Desire Chocolates creates extraordinary confections in the Sonoma Valley in California. Taking the cake, so to speak, is their incredible Chocolate Cornucopia- overflowing with chocolate fruits, vegetables and nuts (unfortunately, it’s too delicate to ship, but local delivery is available). Perhaps more realistic for your store is their uniquely-delicious Pumpkin Fudge, English Toffee Assortment and harvest-decorated Gold Ballotin, a gift that’s filled with tempting chocolate truffles or other sweet treats.

Chocolate Cornucopia from Heart's Desire Chocolates

Finally, The Fruit Company creates baskets full of luscious fruits, gourmet nuts, crackers, and such delicacies as smoked salmon and chocolate-covered Bing cherries in all price points. You might also consider trying their irresistible gourmet cheesecakes. They are all out of this world… think Triple Chocolate Raspberry… yum!! Based in Oregon, The Fruit Company has orchards that produce eight varieties of fruit and they also have a drop-ship program, offering online gifting companies the ability to provide orchard fresh gourmet fruit baskets and gifts to their customers.
So, as you’re busy decorating your store for Christmas during the next few weeks, remember that Thanksgiving presents a lot of great sales opportunities long before Santa starts loading his sleigh. From hostess gifts to home decor, FGMarket.com can direct you 24 hours a day to vendors that can satisfy every craving, suit every desire, and fill every sales niche. Don’t be a turkey… go shopping right now!