Plush and Toys
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You can’t go wrong with children’s books and plush.
Trends in Toys (From page 82) sponse to that.” Currently, Tanner sees an “explosion for Easter baskets. We do custom baskets and we have an Easter basket buffet table, where parents can grab a shopping basket and start picking things like little Jellycat bunnies. I think the talk of running out of toys because of issues at the port scares people, and they’re more inclined to stock up when we honestly don’t know when the next shipment of an item is going to come in.” To preclude some port issues, Tanner is storing items in anticipation of shortages at the end of the month in Easter items. Other popular gift items include baby clothing. “That has hit in the last 30 days. Coming out of the holidays I was pretty nervous because baby clothing was getting crushed by COVID-19, but it has come back.” She added, “For us, the idea of shop local really helps us to sell all of these things. We had some magazine articles written on us that we are still here, which also helped, and the shop-local love has been huge. People want that expert customer service, they want our recommendations.” Tanner encourages add-ons of gift items simply by the items she carries in her 3,500-square-foot store. “We really don’t have to do anything. Our store has become known as having gifts and fun for all ages. We even have a gift section in the store. That includes some fun adult items, like a Chirpy Top that you put on top of wine bottles, and they were the biggest hit here in December. We have giraffe blankets for
Using Social Media to Increase Sales
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wners of baby and children’s shops are ready to offer some savvy insight into using social media to increase sales. At Cookie Pot Children’s Boutique, in Gladstone, Ore., Owner Liz Banta described her technique as “posting new items that come in and doing that three posts a day. We also try to respond to people in a timely fashion and interact with our customers via social media sites. People can put things on hold, and we can invoice them online, and that often brings them into the store which leads to more sales,” she reported. In Tucson, Ariz., at Lil’ Chic
Baby Bug Boutique, Owner Darrial Hellpao said, “I use Facebook and Instagram, but to be honest, I wasn’t really seeing a lot of traffic there. So I mostly focus on google on Google Ads. I have seen more traffic based on shoppers finding me there, and basing purchases based on those ads.” In Scottsdale, Ariz., at Kidstop, Owner Kate Tanner said, “We did an Instagram video last night about a new gel blaster, a $60 toy, and we sold eight today plus accessories. People will come in and they will come in for those Instagram live items, they’ll share the video with each other there, or they saw us on Facebook. It
Souvenirs, Gifts & Novelties | May 2021 | www.sgnmag.com
works for us.” In Laguna Beach, Calif., Allie Bennett, owner of the 550-square-foot Little Freebirds, posts a variety of new items on Facebook and Instagram, as well as offering the option to Facetime the store for personalized shopping without a visit in-store to browse. While social media doesn’t translate into a large increase in purchases for every baby and children’s shop, in a number of cases, it does, and also serves to supplement other efforts to reach out to customers in this category. ❖