Snacking!!

The truthiness is out.  Snacking, especially by millennials is IN and by IN I mean that according to some statistics more than 80% of millennials are willing to drop a few extra coins in specialty stores selling upscale and a tad-more-expensive-than-a-Hershey-bar snacks and chocolates.

Of course that kind of attitude warms our hearts.  We enjoy hearing that people value quality over quantity (or cost) and are more selective in their choices for consumption.

Yes, we know that healthy food is in.  So is healthy recipes for chocolates and snacks.  We are hearing more often the importance of organic chocolates, natural chocolates, as well snacks which are full of healthy ingredients.

Sweet Tooth is researching new brands of candies and chocolates in order to fill the request for these sorts of snacks.  We are adding new items and eliminating most candies which are simply sugary.  We normally avoid snacks and candies which are sold in groceries and in/out stores.  We know that those stores do not make certain that the temperature, the light and moisture which destroy the quality of the candy and snacks are kept within the bounds of what is recommended for freshness.

Often those stores do not rotate their candy and snacks.  Therefore the customer cannot be certain that the candy and snacks are as fresh as they should be.

"Blooming" on chocolate is often mistaken for mold.  However blooming is not mold....it is the separation of the cream, butter and chocolate which naturally occurs if the candy is aged or not kept in the correct environment.

Do I cringe when I see people dispensing their own candy in a grocery store?  Do I want to run away from those barrels of candy when I see a store employee loading candy on top of what is in the barrel, rather than rotate the candy?

Yes.  I have to admit that after 24 years these things make me a little annoyed.  No matter the cost, the truth is that the savings isn't worth the possibility that these precious chocolates and snacks are not worth eating .

What Sidewalk Sales Are All About

It is probably 110 Heat Index outside right now.   And we are preparing for our Annual Sidewalk Sale.  Let me say, that years ago we smartened up and put our Sidewalk Sale indoors where the cool a/c made all the difference in the world.

We started Sidewalk Sales when we were in our first location at the Farm Shopping Center.  We joined in with other retailers to take the mid-summer opportunity to offer left over merchandise at 50% or 75% off the retail price.  Everyone liked it so much, that even when we moved to the Harvard address where we are now, we continued the Sidewalk Sale.

Jeff was especially enthusiastic.  He bought 2 canvas awnings, set them up outside, got out the old boom box and a bunch of Christmas CDS (probably cassette tapes when we first started), pulled out 2 box fans and a canvas Director's chair and he was set to go.

Of course over 23 years, we have had all sorts of weather, from blistering hot to rain, wind and cool temps. 

We all took turns sitting outside with our merchandise and we just didn't know better.

Fast forward to our Harvard store where we first realized (DUH!) that we could do all of this inside and wouldn't have to sparkle (sweat) anymore.

Sidewalk Sales are full of bargains.  Holiday merchandise and everyday items at deeply discounted prices.  Most retailers love Sidewalk Sales because those days help us to send lots of good merchandise home with folks, clear out space for 4th quarter goodies, gives us the opportunity to see that "once a year shopper" who is probably also hitting garage sales on the same weekend.

Jeff's theory is that people like to rummage through boxes and crowded tables.  I was not convinced at first but have since seen evidence that Jeff was right on target.  There is always a surprise or 2 at the bottom of the box.

There is definitely a psychology to shoppers who enjoy Sidewalk Sales and we really depend on that psychology to help us through the dog days of summer.

What do we do with any leftover Sidewalk Sale items?  We box them up and donate them to schools and other organizations in town which can benefit from getting free stuff to use for their programming.

Hope to see you at Sweet Tooth July 8 and 9...this year we'll dress up the Sale with a snack table and our own fun personalities.

On to ordering for the 4th quarter.  We'll talk about that later.

The Happy Place Is Being Reinvented

After 23-1/2 years of owning Sweet Tooth Candy & Gift Co. we have to take a serious look at our store, its presentation, its inventory, its marketing and its staffing.

You know how hard it is to do that?  It is almost impossible to extract our own attitudes, opinions and love of  certain inventory and just say to ourselves, "This and that just aren't working anymore."

We have to reinvent ourselves and in doing so, we know that some of our customers will be disappointed when their favorite candy or gift item is no longer available. We also take the chance that people will think we are "going out of business" when in reality we are simply reinventing ourselves just a bit to keep up with the times, with people's tastes, with what is "trending", etc.

Summer is actually the most opportune part of the year to do just that.  People are out on vacation, or working in their gardens, or hibernating from the heat and humidity.  It takes a great deal of motivation to get out of the house and go shopping.

With less customers, we can begin to move things around, to plan our annual Sidewalk Sale, to take time to order fall gifts and candy.  Some days are a little lonely...so don't forget about us at Sweet Tooth.

There is only so much space in the store.  When research shows that a certain gift line is no longer popular or that people are not thrilled with honeycomb chips (one of my favorites), then it is time to  let it go, let it go.

Therefore I just want you to know that we are beginning this process of deciding what we will no longer carry. We are hot on the trail of new candy, new gift items and a new approach for the store.

Watch for the NEW.  Watch for more events and parties.  Watch for the excitement that the NEW brings to our staff and hopefully to our customers.

Here a hint: Remember Trolls??  In September you will find a reinvention of those little guys that we used to sell a long time ago.  Watch for more theatrics and fun.  You know, we call Sweet Tooth our HAPPY PLACE.  We are working to make it even HAPPIER.

Pencil Shortage

The tremendous response to Adult Coloring books threatens a world wide pencil shortage!!

In 2014 the sales of Adult Coloring books reached 1 million copies.  2015 raised that bar by another 11 million books....a total of 12 million in books sold..

Pencil manufacturers like Staedtler, Stabilo and Faber-Castell are struggling to keep up with manufacturing pencils.

Wow!  in this age of online greeting cards and other substitutions for pencils, pens and paper, the fact that the world is running out of the finer coloring instruments is unbelieveable.

Buying a Gift For Mom

The National Retail Federation reports the following:

** Americans will spend $21.4 billion on Mother's Day
** the average amount spent by each consumer is $172

Let's see how that divides up.

** $4.2 billion on jewelry
** $4.1 billion on outings, like to restaurants or movies or theatre or ball games
** $2.4 billion on flowers
** $2.2 billion on gift cards....who buys their mom a gift card?
**$1.9 billion on clothes....who buys their mom clothes?
**$1.6 billion on personal services, like a spa
** $792 million on greeting cards

Here's where people are expected to spend their money for Mom.

** 33% will go to a department store  (I guess that is for the clothes, gift cards and perhaps jewelry)
** 28.7 will go to a specialty store....like Lowe's or Home Depot or maybe the flower shop??
** 23.1% will go to a local small business (LIKE SWEET TOOTH, WE HOPE AND PRAY)

And, of course, here is the killer for the local small business:  27.3% will go online to buy a gift.

Where will you be spending your $172 for MOM?

Update on The Beard and His Candy

For those who are following The Beard (James Harden) and his relationship with Trolli candy, here is the latest.

The marketing campaign for The Beard's candy is called "Beardly Awesome" and somewhere there are t.v. commercials featuring James Harden. 

There will be a launch of Trolli Sour Bite Weird Beards, which are shaped to resemble Harden's face
. 
It is suggested that Millennials (ages 18-24) will be especially interested in this new candy.

I think that anyone who watches professional basketball and follows The Beard, will think this whole campaign is a real funny deal.

If you come across the commercials or any other info, let me know.

Random Thoughts About The Candy World

Here's some random observations from where I sit.

More chewy candy is coming out from various manufacturers.  Do you think that might have something to do with the aging of Baby Boomers?  Could it be that candy manufacturers think that too many people over 60 years old don't have the teeth to bite into a hard candy? 

Usually customers don't want chewy candy for older folks.  The thinking is that older folks have dentures and other dental problems and chewy candy will pull out the dentures or fillings.  Just keep in mind the words chewy candy and how well it will do in the market place.

Packaging is getting more colorful and almost reaches off the shelf to snag a customer who is drawn to the beauty of the package.  Not only are the packages in brilliant colors, but the manufacturers are putting all sorts of certifications on the package.  No GMOs, Organic, Gluten Free, Free Market, Kosher Dairy, Nut Free, Not Nut Free .....on and on.  No doubt that candy manufacturers are being persuaded that consumers actually have brains and want to make sure that they are not going to have digestive problems or more serious reactions to a tasty candy treat.

More licensed products.  And licensed products means that the price of a candy bar is going to go up.  If you want to have Justice League on your package of candy, you better be ready to pay a little extra for that.  Who keeps wrappers?  Who keeps scrapbooks in which to put wrappers?  Computers have done away with scrapbooks (for the most part) and there is no way to save a real paper wrapper on a computer.

Craft sodas.  Ok, you know about craft beers but have you seen the vast variety of soda flavors in the market?  You name a flavor and I'll bet there is a bottle of soda out there in that flavor.

Dark Chocolate.  Every candy afficionado knows that dark chocolate will cure what ails you!!  And when Musketeers come out in dark mint chocolate bites, you gotta know that dark chocolate is the way of the candy world.

And finally, candy concession boxes are no longer limited to the snack bar in movie theatres.  If the box looks bigger, it MUST be better, right? 

I have to add a very peculiar bit of news we received recently.  Haribo, the name everyone associates with gummi candy, has discontinued some of it favorites.  And I mean, Frogs, Fruit Salad, Pink and White Grapefruit, Licorice Wheels (boy oh boy have we seen some backlash from that news!), Super Cola Bottles and more.  I heard some hot shot from Nestles came over to Haribo and told them they needed to package up all their gummis and discontinue a lot of the gummi products.  Tears have been shed over this crazy idea.  We are hoping other companies will take up the slake and produce those gummis real soon.

And by the way, do you think Kale Chips belong in a candy store?  One of our distributors added that item to their inventory.  We think it must be for some grocery somewhere which also sells candy.

Stay tuned.  There is always something interesting going on in the candy world.