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  1. News from Us
  2. News from Members
  3. Events
  4. Press
  5. Dollars & Sense
  6. Profile Stories
  7. Updates
  8. Training Calendar
  9. Training Videos
  10. Jobs
+ Bridge in the News - Bridge in the News

346 Results:

September 14, 2023 25% of Brands Offer Discounts for Newsletter Signups
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25% of Brands Offer Discounts for Newsletter Signups
September 14, 2023
Shop Local analyzed the websites for the top-20 selling brands in the tabletop and giftware industries. We assessed what discounts brands offer when one signs up for a newsletter.

Brand Study Findings:
  • Of the 20 brands, 5 (25%) offer a discount when one signs up for a newsletter.
  • For brands that offer a discount, the average discount is 15% off.
  • Some brands offer other promotions for signing up for a newsletter, including free shipping and a raffle entry.

How This Affects ...
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September 10, 2023 Zero Sum Networks ⚔️
How competitive techniques can help lure clients and grow a network.
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Zero Sum Networks ⚔️
How competitive techniques can help lure clients and grow a network.
September 10, 2023
Andrew Chen shares in 'The Cold Start Problem' that many times, networks are competing in a zero-sum game. One network gets a customer to join their network and thereby not participate in another. For example, when a driver used Lyft instead of Uber, Uber, which Chen helped, lost. And it lost in two regards: Uber lost the revenue from the lost ride, and Lyft gained the revenue. Chen’s team was tasked with getting drivers to use all their time driving for Uber and thereby unraveling Lyft&...
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August 1, 2023 Hollywood Gets “Amazoned” 🤖
How technology hurts the entertainment industry just like Amazon hurts the retail industry.
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Hollywood Gets “Amazoned” 🤖
How technology hurts the entertainment industry just like Amazon hurts the retail industry.
August 1, 2023
Over the last three decades, Hollywood and many that rely on the entertainment industry have embraced ordering goods over Amazon.com.  Recap: Amazon is a technology company that often cuts costs by replacing humans with code and robots and bypasses local red tape like, um, taxes and labor rules.  Hollywood writers, producers, and ticket goers embraced a technology company that made their lives easier but often at the cost of others (aka retail workers). 

Today, technology is ...
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July 25, 2023 Thanks for the Memories, by Laurie Gates
Thanks for the Memories, by Laurie Gates
July 25, 2023
I chuckled when I was asked to author this column, as I have been known to have the last word from time to time. As I prepare to leave the industry that has given me so much (I eagerly accepted the opportunity to work in the gift and home area in 1986), I can vividly recall the excitement I felt when I first entered the creative space that we get to live and work in every day. I have been exposed to scores of creative people; I met and worked with artists and buyers who were inspired and ...
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July 25, 2023 Orrefors @ 125
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Orrefors @ 125
July 25, 2023
EMON MAASHO, CEO AND PRESIDENT OF ORREFORS, NORTH AMERICA, is representative of the exciting trajectory in this 125-year operation. The über-exec joined the New Wave Group in 2013, a time when Orrefors and Kosta Boda (OKB) were underperforming assets in the portfolio. "Our crystal brands are national treasures and a part of Swedish history," Maasho affirms. And he wanted a front row seat in their revitalization. Maasho was placed in charge of the new hotel and restaurant division ...
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July 25, 2023 This and That
This and That
July 25, 2023
I have a stack of virtual news clippings that either struck my fancy, taught me something new, or just made me shake my head in bemusement. On their own, they may not be enough for me to make a point, but together they have a thought-provoking synergy (and I'm sure I'll figure out what that is by the end of this column).

Our industry has been negatively affected by the loss of American manufacturing after we entered a long stretch of automation and outsourcing in the late 1970s; every ...
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July 24, 2023 Your Registry Software Helps You Run Affordable Email Marketing Campaigns
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Your Registry Software Helps You Run Affordable Email Marketing Campaigns
July 24, 2023
Your registry service has built in email campaigns for each gift registry list.  These campaigns promote your store in an automated and affordable manner.  The campaigns often cost under $.0.42 per recipient—about half of what other email marketing campaigns cost.


Details
Your software sends out an anniversary reminder email to a customer that gave a gift for that registry. 

Cost Per Email Sent 
Let’s assume that a registry received 100 purchases.  ...
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July 18, 2023 To Kill a Mockingbird
How a company's sales and growth can be affected by the message it conveys to customers.
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To Kill a Mockingbird
How a company's sales and growth can be affected by the message it conveys to customers.
July 18, 2023
Allbirds stock is down 95% since its November 2021 initial public offering. People may say the company launched the wrong products (did you buy one of their puffer jackets?) or tried to grow too quickly.  I believe there is a larger reason: you can’t scale a company by leading with an environmental message—which is Allbirds’s pitch. Consumers rank saving the planet as one of their least pressing concerns when making a purchase. The leading factors consumers look for when ...
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July 14, 2023 The Ultimate Bride Engagement Gift Box
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The Ultimate Bride Engagement Gift Box
July 14, 2023
Imagine gifting a stress-free wedding planning experience to your best friend, sister, daughter or daughter in law to be. This gift set was created by Master Wedding Planner Kristin Sullivan after 25 years in the industry. She curated these products intentionally for Brides to Be to actually enjoy the journey of their entire wedding planning process. Included in the beautifully boxed set: *A wedding journal & planning guide; a place to document the love story & planning details while ...
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July 10, 2023 70% of Brands Offer Free Shipping
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70% of Brands Offer Free Shipping
July 10, 2023
Shop Local analyzed the websites for the top-40 selling brands in the tabletop and giftware industry. We assessed what promotions and discounts, such free shipping, brands offer. Shop Local did this because a product's price, which is impacted by discounts, is often the leading factor when shopping online. 70% of the brands surveyed by Shop Local offer free shipping.

Brand Study Findings: 
  • Of the 40 brands, 28 (70%) offer free shipping. 
  • For brands that offer free
...
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July 9, 2023 Bye Bye, Buybuy Baby 😔
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Bye Bye, Buybuy Baby 😔
July 9, 2023
We follow the gift registry industry and Buybuy Baby has been a formidable player in this space. The WSJ reports that Buybuy Baby is being sold for $15m and the stores closed. 

Bed Bath & Beyond was recently sold to Overstock.com for $21m.  

Read the article: 
https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/bed-bath-beyond-abandons-efforts-to-find-buyer-to-save-buybuy-baby-chain-3a698792
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June 30, 2023 Mission: Statements 🧨
What we can learn about a company through its mission statement.
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Mission: Statements 🧨
What we can learn about a company through its mission statement.
June 30, 2023
This past week, I read a mission statement from The Knot's corporate website (https://www.theknotww.com/). The statement included a paragraph and five principles. The paragraph describes what the parent company does. The statement says:

"We help couples around the world navigate and enjoy life’s biggest moments together. As a global company, our industry-leading websites, top-ranked mobile apps, and trusted resources provide the most sought-after information, connections, and ...
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June 24, 2023 Thanks to Ari Lowenstein for hosting industry friends 🍝
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Thanks to Ari Lowenstein for hosting industry friends 🍝
June 24, 2023
A special thanks to Ari Lowenstein, owner of the new Dallas catering service Ari’s Pantry, for hosting industry friends at his home. He cooked Italian specialities and his wife entertained us with stories about their new home.  Ari treated us to ‘affogato,’ which he shared literally translates to ‘drowning,’ with Italian liquors.  


Mille grazie, Ari and Amy 😁🍝🇮🇹 View Post
June 8, 2023 Give Me a Goodbye Kiss 💋
How businesses keep customers coming back after they make a purchase.
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Give Me a Goodbye Kiss 💋
How businesses keep customers coming back after they make a purchase.
June 8, 2023
Six Flags is updating its theme parks to encourage families to spend more time there and visit more often, according to this past weekend’s The Wall St. Journal. The theme park's president, Jeffrey Siebert, says that the nightly fireworks show is what the industry calls a “kiss good night.” After park-goers have spent the day spending, they perceive the show as a free, post-purchase gift with no strings attached.  The fireworks thereby help the customer leave fulfilled and...
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June 2, 2023 Acquisition
How we can acquire new prospects by leveraging our existing network of customers.
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Acquisition
How we can acquire new prospects by leveraging our existing network of customers.
June 2, 2023
In Andrew Chen’s book The Cold Start Problem, he breaks the network effect into three parts: engagement, acquisition, and economize. At Shop Local, we rely on the network effect and its three parts. I feel that we’re succeeding in terms of engagement but need improvement in acquisition. 

Engagement
We use the 64,000 products in our Syncing service to engage 1,200 our retail clients. We email them new intros, price updates, archived items for these synced products. Once they ...
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May 30, 2023 Training Video: For Sales Reps ~ Why Your Stores Are Struggling Online & How to Help
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Training Video: For Sales Reps ~ Why Your Stores Are Struggling Online & How to Help
May 30, 2023
In this new webinar for sales reps, I share why your retailers are struggling online and underselling your lines. I share how you can help them and boost your commissions by 18%.

Watch:
https://vimeo.com/824398821/e29adb9787

View a PDF of the slides: 
https://bridge.myshoplocal.com/docs/BRC/Shop-Local-for-Sales-Reps-2023-v2.pdf

Why watch?
  • Retailers that use Shop Local sell 18% more.  That translates into 18% more in commissions for you.
  • Help your retailers save money
...
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May 29, 2023 STAY ON TREND by JULIE SMITH VINCENTI
STAY ON TREND by JULIE SMITH VINCENTI
May 29, 2023
It was October 2021, and I had just finished my first in-person trends seminar since the pandemic impacted all industry shows. At the end of the image-packed program, an audience member raised her hand and challenged, “Do trends even matter anymore?”

It was a valid question. The pandemic had disrupted business, upended supply chains, transformed education, revealed vulnerabilities, altered priorities, and unexpectedly claimed many lives. The question was tinged with cynicism. Pent...
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May 29, 2023 Tableware Today Interview – Susan Gravely
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Tableware Today Interview – Susan Gravely
May 29, 2023
Susan Gravely – alongside her sister, Frances, and mother, Lee – founded VIETRI 40 years ago after a serendipitous vacation where they discovered the charms of Italian ceramics. Gravely’s new book, Italy on a Plate, equal parts travelogue/cookbook/memoir, is a culinary delight celebrating four decades of bringing the best of Italy’s tableware to an adoring fan base.
................................

You and I go back almost to the start of VIETRI in 1983. [Editor&rsquo...
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May 25, 2023 Wine store collapse stains retailers
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Wine store collapse stains retailers
May 25, 2023
The New York Times shares a salacious story about Sherry-Lehman, a world-famous wine shop.  The story recounts how the retailer was hit by tariffs, online competitors, and COVID shutdowns. It had borrowed excessively, which many retailers do.  At first, it reads like a Bed Bath & Beyond obituary. But then the owners veered into the criminal realm.  They sold rare wine to new customers that belonged to existing customers, in other cases didn’t deliver what was sold, and ...
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May 13, 2023 Warby Parker: 60% of sales come from physical stores
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Warby Parker: 60% of sales come from physical stores
May 13, 2023
Your physical store can be a great asset in this ‘Age of Amazon’—just ask Warby Parker. 

Details: 
- Warby Parker has 200 stores in the U.S. and Canada.
- Retailers report that online advertising costs have increased 15%-20% in the last two years, making physical stores more attractive. 
- Brands report that in-store shoppers buy more per purchase. 

I believe the The Wall Journal should have noted a caveat about using Warby Parker as a poster child ...
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Next page

Press: Shop Local & Bridge in the News
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Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Florida Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Florida Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
April 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Tennessee Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Tennessee Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
April 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Louisiana Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Louisiana Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
April 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Delaware Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Delaware Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
April 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Pennsylvania Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Pennsylvania Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
March 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants Get Sales Leads in Mississippi
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants Get Sales Leads in Mississippi
March 2024

Shop Local Merchants Are 60% of Google Page 1 Results in South Carolina
Shop Local Merchants Are 60% of Google Page 1 Results in South Carolina
March 2024

Shop Local Merchants Are 50% of Google Page 1 Results in Georgia
Shop Local Merchants Are 50% of Google Page 1 Results in Georgia
March 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants Get More Sales Leads than Big-Box Stores Using Google
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants Get More Sales Leads than Big-Box Stores Using Google
February 2024

Shop Local Retailers Rank on Page 1 of Google in 60% of States
Shop Local Retailers Rank on Page 1 of Google in 60% of States
February 2024

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