Toula's Home Gift Garden

Every once in a while I am shocked by one of our customers when they tell me they had no idea our furniture is for sale. Despite having price tags strategically placed on each item, some folks don’t know we sell all our display items. To be fair, we do have lots of lovely things to distract shoppers from looking at the beautiful furniture thoughtfully placed around Toula’s. It is hard to see things at eye level when there are items dangling from the ceiling or grouped together on the floor!

The great news this holiday season is I have decided to treat everyone to a 20% off FURNITURE SALE starting the day after Thanksgiving and running through December 24th, 2009! I am very excited about this decision as we have never put any furniture on sale before. There are many times we have had conversations in the store with people about a certain piece of furniture and how it would fit perfectly in their home. Now is a excellent time to bring a piece of Toula’s home for the holidays!

I spend a lot of time picking out items from around the world, both old and new, that I think will fit right at home at Toula’s. Every item we buy for the store is fully functional with wonderful appeal and character. Some items were made last year while others were made over one hundred years ago. I think my favorite items are those “shabby chic” pieces I have retained from Eastern Europe. They bare the signs of a well worn life, but still have many years left of function and appreciation. I always select items that I would have in my own home. This benchmark seems to pair well with all our other items in the store and allows me to convey my passion for each piece of furniture to the customer.

So when you visit us at Toula’s this season for your unique holiday gifts, please notice the wonderful furniture every item is meticulously displayed on. If it catches your eye and you have the perfect spot for it, this might be the best time to bring it home.

Eric

I noticed on TV last week advertisers were running holiday commercials. I got a little anxious thinking about the coming weeks and everything that needs to get accomplished by the middle of December. I also remember passing by a rather huge holiday section in a national chain I was in recently, while looking for something like paper towels. I  think that was in the middle of October! We tend to let retailers rush us into the next holiday before we have settled into the current one. I know we battle that idea at Toula’s every year.

I worry about missing sales if we don’t decorate our store early, but then I feel like we lose the specialness of the season if we stretch it out too long. There is always something odd to me about glossing over Thanksgiving to race for the holidays in December. This year I think we are striking a happy balance.

We have been selling assorted holiday candles for a few weeks now. We put out our very best sellers for those customers who like to start early with their gift buying, but we are saving some surprises closer to December. We also plan to decorate the store this year close to the end of the month with our fantastic assortment of ornaments and decorations we have collected this year from around the world. I am VERY excited about our selection this year!

So if you pop in the store today, you may find some great smelling seasonal inspired candles that will transport you to holidays past, but you will have to wait and come back soon to see Toula’s transformed into a holiday gift store. Be patient, don’t rush the season!

Eric