Spa Gift Baskets Sell Fast on Valentine’s Day
Chocolates, cookies and candy create a great assortment for clients ordering Valentine’s Day gifts for spouses, daughters, and other relatives, but don’t forget to offer spa gift baskets as alternatives.
Soaps, sponges, sprays, moisturizers, powders, and bath pillows arranged in a miniature tub were a big seller for me in 1996 after showing it on a local New York television morning show.
Today, the golden shoe containing bath beads, in the above picture, is ordered by customers who request it for shipping to relatives worldwide.
One gift basket design also included a plush dog with a ball and chain on his leg dressed in a T-shirt with the words Prisoner of Love written on the front and back. The dog was so popular that I couldn’t keep it in stock for Valentine’s Day or Mother’s Day.
What’s most important about selecting inventory is making sure that it can be transferred to another event later that year. I didn’t realize this my first year in business and had to eat or throw away some items because they could not be saved until the next Valentine’s Day.
One more tip: identify your Valentine’s Day gifts with special names. That will create a whirlwind of excitement that encourages prospects and clients to buy quickly.
What methods are planned this year to market your Valentine’s Day gift baskets?
A Report to Benefit Your Gift Basket Business
Setting the tone for a productive and profitable year starts by:
1. Reviewing your current systems for changes and updates.
2. Adding new practices to streamline production.
3. Incorporating habits that are practiced every day by veteran designers.
Here are three more tips that create a great experience for your clients.
1. Learn one new bowmaking technique (a great starter bow is found here at GiftBasketVideo.com).
2. Send your best customers a sample sweet with a note of appreciation for last year’s orders.
3. Ask these same clients how you can be of help to them this year. What do they want to achieve, and how can you be part of attaining that goal?
I’ve asked my designer clients this question, and to help them, I created a special report entitled, Five Steps to Achieve Success with Gift Baskets.
You also have access to this special report. Just join the Gift Basket Business fan page on Facebook. Here’s the link:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gift-Basket-Business/271093563655
Once there, click the “Become a Fan” link on the page (at the top), and you’ll then have access to the report’s download link.
This page complements the Gift Basket Business Facebook group page, which is here:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=74453386284
The difference between each Facebook page is that the group is where we discuss industry issues. The fan page is where you’ll receive downloads and other unique reports for your success.
I’m pleased to make this report available to you and look forward to receiving your comments through this blog and suggestions for other information to benefit your business in 2010.
What Will You Achieve This Year with Gift Baskets?
Those are three of the accomplishments that my designer clients have shared with me as their ultimate business goal this year.
Learning why a gift basket designer starts a business and asking each of them about their dreams for success are part of the mentorship process. It lets me know what they’re thinking, how much they’ve studied successful people, and where my assistance is needed most.
When you think about your goals on a one year, five year, or ten-year basis, no answer is ever wrong.
New designers often want to make changes in their lives and in the lives of their families.
Veteran designers graduate from focusing on vacations and lifestyles (as they’ve incorporated both into their lives) and think more about the impact their businesses make within the community and throughout the state, country, and world.
Have you taken time to consider what you wish to achieve by year’s end? If not, you still have time to write down your goals and also document the steps you’ll take each month to get there.
You are welcomed to share you goals here, but most of all, make your plan and head to the finish line.
Why is a Dedicated Gift Basket Workspace Important?
Although I live in a large home where I decided to start my gift basket business, my thinking about how to set up my workspace was limited.
In fact, the idea of setting up a space didn’t exist. Here’s what I mean.
In the first three months of business:
Talk about chaotic.
I was so happy about being in business that creating the proper atmosphere was not my primary focus, but the chaos quickly convinced me to change gears, which increased my productivity and sales.
Whether creating designs at home or in a storage room within a shop, designating a space that allows you to create custom gift baskets or experiment with your design style is the ultimate turning point in your business.
It alerts your mind to the fact that your enterprise is real, that you are in business to not only make money and create a rewarding lifestyle, but that your business benefits the people who are impacted by what you offer and deliver.
When you walk into that dedicated space, you suddenly want to create a masterpiece to enhance a personal or professional relationship between the customer and receiver. Your workspace positively changes your mind. That’s why it’s important to create this special environment.
What emotions about being in business come to mind each day when you walk into your design studio? Do not be concerned if it’s not a good feeling. Share it here so that we can offer ideas and change your circumstances for the better.
How to Find Money to Buy Gift Basket Supplies
Two years before my daughter was born, I began saving money towards her college education.
I realize that such a feat isn’t on most people’s minds, especially because each of us lives in the “here and now.”
However, this is the type of forward thinking that’s necessary to have the funds to purchase gift basket supplies whenever it’s needed.
Here are two situations when the money crunch happens most often:
One way that I learned to create an inventory investment account for my business was to save a certain percentage of profits each month exclusively for buying merchandise.
For example, the profits I made in my first sales month in 1990 for selling baskets to celebrate New Year’s Day, birthdays, and new babies totaled $1,019. A sum of $102, or 10 percent of that amount was placed into my inventory account.
There are many ways to find cash for business, as the money sources pages at GiftBasketBusiness.com reveal.
The designers I mentor also save a portion of their profits so that they have monies readily available to buy inventory whenever needed. You can develop this same habit and benefit from knowing that you’ll always have the funds to buy inventory and generate sales.
Have you developed a similar investment savings plan, or is there another method of buy inventory that works for you?
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