The Jingle Bells Are Ringing!!

We can hear the Jingle Bells ringing.  It is that time of the year when the store is full of wonderful gifts and candies and the time goes by so fast we can hardly believe it when we close the door on December 24.

You might want to know what it takes to prepare for the Holiday season. In January, 2018 we began ordering Holiday items for the store.  At the January Gift Market we had the opportunity to see what companies were promising for the 4th quarter.  By June Gift Market, a great deal of those items were already committed.

We tell our customers that if the item or the candy is seasonal, it is best to buy it when you see it.  I have already had the experience of attempting to re-ordering some Holiday merchandise in August and found it was sold out.  This is definitely the case for food items.  No manufacturer wants to have left over holiday food items and no retailer wants that problem either.

This year we have a number of new things to offer.  For us, after 26 years, that is really a BIG DEAL.  Patience Brewster ornaments are back and we are the only Tulsa store carrying them.  Our new artisan hand-crafted silver and gold jewelry is also a wonderful new line for us and once again, we are the only store to have it.  EarthGrace is the name and beauty is the game!!  We are already ordering a second delivery for the 2nd week of December.

When new candy becomes available, we are over the moon with excitement.  Our Awesome Fudge, our Pumpkin shaped Truffles (already sold out), our cups filled with hot chocolate mix and marshmellows are just a few of the delightful new food items for our store.

Now what does it take to get all this going?  Keep marching and don't look back.  Realize that there will be little time for recreational activities, dinners out, family get togethers, etc.  However, we still love this work. 

Watch for the Exclusive Christmas Ornament created by the Tulsa Glassblowers Studio for Sweet Tooth. Only 25 will be available for sale, although we will carry many of the ornaments this very talented group is making as I am writing this piece.

Watch for our Open House, Photos with Santa, Christmas music with Gyan and Scott, 3 booksignings in December, Black Friday specials and so much more.

Watch this space.

Hey!! Good News!!

Here's something to brighten your day.

Spangler candy company has purchased the rights to manufacture NECCOS and those cute little Sweetheart candies we love at Valentines Day.  Now that ought to comfort those who were a little upset about NECCOS no longer available.

I don't know when the new company will begin production, but you can be certain that we will have them at Sweet Tooth.  In fact, we have some NECCOS right now....get over and get some.

Thursday evening October 11 from 5-7:30 pm we are hosting the Glasssblowers from the Tulsa Glassblowers Studio who are bringing approximately 300 glass pumpkins of all sizes and prices to sell.  Since this summer, the Glassblowers have been creating 1000 glass pumpkins and this is the final group now available.  If you can't make it to Sweet Tooth, be certain that we will have some of the pumpkins in our store through the end of October or until they sell out!!

That's good news, right?

We have also been able to re-order some of our Patience Brewster ornaments which have begun to sell out for the season.  The ornaments should be in the store very soon....check them out.

How about those people who annually wonder why they can't buy the Cinnamon Candy Corn by itself...why it has to be in an assortment instead of by itself?  Well, great news!!  This year the Cinnamon Candy Corn IS by itself and you can get it without having to have the chocolate and the regular candy corn in the assortment!!

Fudge!!  We now have Awesome Fudge in packages at Sweet Tooth....and there is Sugar Free Fudge as well.  Hey, we listen to our customers and really work hard to have what you are asking for.  We have peanut butter and chocolate, pumpkin and chocolate, as well as Sugar Free chocolate and walnut. 

I don't want to over do the good news., I will save some of that news for a later blog.

Hope to see you really soon at Sweet Tooth.

NECCO,-- Closed Its Doors and Gone!!

Here's what I know about the oldest American Candy Maker, known to all for manufacturing NECCO candies and those Sweetheart Hearts we have all consumed for Valentine's Day.

NECCO, founded in 1847, is now gone.  Doors shut, 400 employees laid off and no website to check out NECCO's products.  Although there are rumors about an unknown company buying NECCO, there is no real hope that the products we have loved will return to store shelves someday.

And there is no insider information as to what happened that caused the company to close its doors.

So, a brief pause for the passing of the oldest candy company in America.

However, Black Jack, Beeman's and Clove gum are returning in November.  As Mary Engelbreit says in her Engeldark cards: 

WHEN LIFE SHUTS A DOOR, OPEN IT AGAIN.  IT'S A DOOR...THAT'S HOW IT WORKS!!

Stay tuned.

Tariffs. What They Mean For You And Us.

National retail organizations are beginning to comment on the effect which President Trump's tariffs on goods coming into the U.S. will have on retail and its employees.

I have read that these tariffs, if enacted, will up the cost of goods and affect the employment of people who have retail jobs.  Naturally this is an area of concern for us as we continue to order for our store.

The products and candy which we have on order at this point were not effected by any future tariffs.  They were ordered, produced and shipped prior to the Administration's new policies on tariffs.  What we are looking for is the effect it might have on 2019 goods.

Retailers continually face the question of what to do about increasing costs both in product and in shipping costs.  These increases have to be added to the bottom line of what consumers are paying both at local stores and online, and retailers ability to hire staff.   I have written about this situation at least once before, hoping that we can all be prepared for any changes in pricing or ability to have goods arrive on time.

We will keep you posted as to these matters and what retailers will be able to do to adjust pricing as minimally as possible.

Stay tuned.

Get Ready! I Have a Few Thoughts I Want To Share

I want to say Happy Anniversary to Sweet Tooth Candy & Gift Co.

YES.  September 1, 1992 Shirley and Willie Burger and our friend Richard Borg went with Jeff and me to Sweet Tooth in The Farm Shopping Center to sign the papers purchasing Sweet Tooth.  Along with us were my parents, who seemed pretty fascinated by their daughters going into retail without any past experience in that business.

My parents aren't with me any more.  However I want to say that they never complained about our choice and always supported what we were doing.  Occasionally we had to ask for a little help and they gave it willingly and without hesitation. 

Some may remember my Dad who often came to the store to chat with customers, to see what we were up to and to always buy some chocolate bars which he gave to the staff at Zarrow Point where my Mom lived for 7 years.

Eventually we bought a bench for him to sit on.  The year we opened a small shop by the Food Court in Woodland Hills, Dad could be found sitting on the bench across from our shop, watching folks walking by.  When he was ready to go home, he would sometimes forget where he had parked.  Dad always made it home, though!!

October is the month I most remember my parents and how much I do miss them.

Our daughter Sabrina has been with us every step of the way.  Even when she didn't live near, she was still the Voice of our t.v. ads, recording those CDs in New Jersey, Tennessee and at OSU.  Sabrina is the best daughter ever...o.k. I know most parents think that of their children...but my One and Only is still the most precious, wise person whom I know.

October is also the month when we really dig in and prepare for the 4th Quarter, that time of year when retailers get very busy, have lots of merchandise, plan events for their stores and look forward to the shoppers who still shop locally and value the customer service they receive in a physical store.

26 years of meeting, greeting, helping, admiring, talking to people and feeling really good about all the contacts and friends we have made over the years.  Even some folks who I actually never met in person:  Kristen at Kristofer's and her mom, Connie; Michelle and others at Kameleon; people answering questions on the phone when I called their business.  If I had stayed in the profession I started out to do, teaching English, I would have loved all my students but I would never have made all the friends I have made at Sweet Tooth.

So Happy Anniversary to all of us...those who are gone and those who are here with us now.  See you at "The Tooth" as our friend John Klein calls us.

Patience Brewster is Back! And boy, is she great!!

Patience Brewster is back!! 

We are very excited to be the Exclusive Retailer in Tulsa for Patience Brewster.  We have focused on her mini-ornaments for this year and just put them out in the store yesterday.

If you don't know Patience Brewster, then you are really missing one of the most creative, eclectic, clever, colorful and just totally fun artists in the U.S.

A few years ago we were able to carry some of her pieces in our store.  They were very popular and we were simply delighted to meet Patience at the Gift Market where we chatted with her and she signed several of her drawings for me and Sabrina.

At some point around that time, Patience decided to withdraw her art pieces from stores and basically go online or in special boutiques.  We were unhappy to see her go, however situations like that have happened to us before.  Remember Mismatched Sox??  We simply loved those as well.

A few months ago I received a postcard with the most fabulous Great Dane ornament on the card, which told me that Patience Brewster was opening her art pieces to stores once again.  I jumped on the opportunity to apply for Sweet Tooth to carry her work and we got it!!

So now I am encouraging you to drop by Sweet Tooth as soon as you can to preview these pieces.  We have dogs, flamingos, skunks, porcupines, elephant, lion, Santas, fairies and so much more, but all are in limited numbers.  We had to adhere to a deadline for ordering and there is no re-ordering this year.  Once we sell out of the pieces, we will have to wait until 2019 to see what Patience offers at that time.

The ornaments are "minis" and are all priced at $25.00.

Don't miss out on Patience Brewster.  You will come to cherish her beauty and her eclectic style.

Goodbye to Kameleon. We Will Miss You!!

On Friday we received the news that Kameleon Jewelry is not going forward with their jewelry line.  Wow!!  What a surprise that was for all of us at Sweet Tooth.

Kameleon was introduced to us by one of our very best sales reps and friend, Susan Beeson in 2007.  This sterling silver line was the creation of Bob...yes, there really is a Bob in the world!!  Bob attended Gift Markets and we were able to meet him and to work for several years with Susan. Bob introduced a concept which has never been matched by any other interchangeable jewelry line.

We began to build the line and soon it became one of the strongest selling lines in our store.

If you don't know Kameleon, it is one of the best, if not the best, interchangeable jewelry.  Made of sterling silver, it has interchangeable jewel pops which fit in all the core pieces....earrings, pendants, rings and bracelets.  It is,in reality, a collectible which has grown in value over the years.

We are going to miss Kameleon.  However the Clearance Sale which we are now having for this line will be a real bonus for those who want to complete their collection or for someone who would like to partake of some of the core pieces with jewel pops...a jewelry style which will be popular for years to come.

We have settled on a 50% discount on the jewel pops and a 60% discount on the core pieces.  It is always important to go out with a BANG and we are doing just that.

Over the years, Kameleon has introduced us to many of our loyal and favorite customers, often people who we know well and have had meaningful conversations.  We are so very proud of what we have accomplished with Kameleon.  Selling this jewelry has taught all of us at Sweet Tooth a great deal about maintaining relationships with our customers, about the loyalty that develops between staff and customers, and the beauty of a jewelry line which has set the standard for many other lines.

I also want to say GOODBYE to my friends in Nova Scotia, home office of Kameleon.  I will really miss talking to Michelle, who has become my soul sister.  I wish the best to the professional staff at Kameleon and hope we meet again.