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?