Tokyo here we come again!

We are proud to be part of TOKYO FM’s newly launched eco-shop site. All of our Japanese fans can read about our special write-up and purchase our products here.

The American Dream in Recession

I have lived through 2 recessions, or at least the ones I can remember as a child growing up in Malaysia. One in the early 80’s and one in 1997. This current one will be my third. Unlike many who seem to be in denial of our current capital “R” situation (you can call it [...]

Order fulfillment - lead time

A fan wrote in asking what is the expected lead time when buyers place orders at trade shows. Our answer is that it depends on what type of products and the logistics of your fulfillment; if your products are Build-to-order (BTO) or Make-to-order (MTO), or if you already have a warehouse of stocked products ready [...]

Working with sales reps or agents

Before you continue reading this article, let me warn you that Joe and I have a biased opinion on working with sales reps and agents. This is because we have worked with super amazing people and really unethical crappy people. So the experiences that we share here with you come from both sides.
Firstly, there [...]

Getting press - how to do a press/ media kit

Recently a fan wrote in asking us how to put a media/press kit together. I told her we are not professional press agencies or publicists but we can try to share as much information based on our experience.
For small businesses or startups, budget for a publicist or a pr firm is almost non-existent. Over [...]

Establishing a look

A fan emailed, asking if she could mix product styles or if she should stick to a certain look for her line. My answer is if it’s your BRAND new debut collection, stick to one strong cohesive look. The collection has to represent what your line/brand is about. Come up with a concept first then [...]

Trunk show coverage @ Tiny Ginger’s Showroom

Recently, our NY agent Tiny Ginger held a trunk show for us along with some of our friends. WE HAD A BLAST! We invited some of our wonderful friends from Patisserie Co., Origami Bijou and Fablelore to join us for our 2nd trunk show in NY.
Held at Tiny Ginger’s brand new showroom, we [...]

Price Points - Wholesale, Retail & Distributor’s Pricing

A fan that is also interested in establishing her own line recently emailed us asking us about price points. This is definitely a tough question but we will try our best to answer.
Wholesale pricing is generally 50% of the MSRP (Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Pricing). Sometimes wholesale pricing can be more than 50% and up to [...]

Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision by Freida Lee Mock

Maya Lin my hero

A few months ago, The Museum Contemporary Arts in downtown San Diego, had a Maya Lin show called Systematic Landscapes. In conjunction with the show, we had the rare honor to watch the Academy Award® winning feature documentary, Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision and met the filmmaker Frieda Lee Mock.
The [...]

E-Commerce and shopping carts

A fan wrote in yesterday asking what e-commerce site we use. For the time being, we are using Mal’s E commerce. It’s cheap; $8.00 per month for their premium cart and free for their regular cart. It has all the functions we need at the moment for our very simple HTML site. There is another [...]