Newsletter

THE LATEST FROM JOOLZ...
February 2009

It’s snowing, snowing, snowing here – and feels like it’s been doing that non-stop since November. Honestly, I’m sick of it. Winter is my least-loved season, but despite that, there are some good things happening…

NORTH OF THE BORDER
Larry and I have just returned from an overnight trip to Toronto, where we attended two trade shows and visited with artist Lisa Ridout. We also managed to get upgraded to a 3-room hotel suite without even asking…but that’s a whole ‘nother story!

There were four trade shows going on in Toronto at the same time, but at Lisa’s suggestion we hit only two of them. First we went to the By Hand show, featuring handcrafted work in many different craft media. We found several artists whose joolz we liked – joolz of twisted silver wire, copper collage beads, borosilicate glass, shell disks combined with pearls, etc. Some artists were new to the business and others were long-time veterans. It was interesting to hear their stories and see their different visions.

Next we went to the Mode Accessories Show, where Lisa was exhibiting. This show was much larger and much less interesting to us. Most of the accessories were imported from outside Canada and the US and the quality was from one end of the spectrum to the other. Only a few artists were featuring their handcrafted work, and of those, Lisa’s work stood waaaay out as the most beautifully constructed and displayed. She is a favorite at JOOLZ, and we continue to be her only US retail outlet. And soon those of you in the US will be able to buy her work at our

NEW JOOLZ ONLINE SHOP
Yes, we’re going to take the plunge and open an online shop through our website. I’m working with my web guy to get this up and running and am even taking a photography course to better help me take photos of the joolz. There’s still a lot of work to do to get ready, so we won’t go live with this until sometime after March, but I wanted you to know it’s in the works. So many customers have asked if we sell online that we think there will be a market for it. We’ll keep you in the loop.

Meanwhile, we’re getting ready for

VALENTINES DAY
The store is decorated for Valentines Day with little heart candies in the cases and lots of hearts in the window. But most importantly, there are joolz of every type and price waiting to become someone’s special Valentines Day gift. We have a good selection of sparkly bling and also more conservative, understated joolz. Do come in and see.

CLOSING FOR VACATION
We’ll be closing for vacation right after Valentines Day and will reopen on April 1st. We’ve learned that our local customers are often traveling to warmer climates then and we’re ready to join them! We’ll also be tweaking the online store during that time, so while we won’t be snowbound, we’ll still be working. In retail, there’s really no rest for the weary….but the weary look forward to some time away and warmer temperatures.

We look forward to seeing you before then and wish you all a Happy 2009! Let’s hope it brings us all health and happiness.

All the best,
Francie