Shopping is Education

I am a seasoned veteran in the world of shopping. It’s been my job as well as my hobby. So, I always find it refreshing when I can stop and shop with fellow independent retailers.
So, for those in South Texas, or considering a trip, here’s some highlights for you to remember:
East Bernard – Polak Petals has apparel and jewelry for the fashionista and tons of vintage finds for the refurbanista.

Then, head east to Rosenberg where antique shops abound. Prices are higher, but you never know what you’ll find.

Then head north, circle back toward Fulshear, Texas and find the best candy store I’ve ever found.
Keep heading back west and stop in Sealy, Texas for Bliss. Lots of fashions and for those in retail, great ideas for display abound.
Then, of course head HOME to us!

How A Product Sells a Retailer

Brighton Class of '11

How do you show a retailer you are behind them all the way? Advertise in big blockbuster magazines? That WILL attract brand recognition. Offer free freight? A nice added benefit, but probably won’t do it completely. Bring the retailer to your facility and SHOW them what makes your product the quality product it is. Now THAT is a novel approach. Trust me, it works. I was recently lucky enough to get to visit one of my newest product assortment’s home turf – Brighton Jewelry @ their Home! I love American-made products, and while Brighton is made all over the world, it is also made right here in the good old USA. The opportunity to talk to Beatriz who makes the handbags, and Amy who deals with the repair log-in calls, brought it all home to me – the little retailer in Columbus, Texas.

So, for three days I was shown the love – and the love that goes into their products. (Oh, I’d say my Coach bag has a lot of love in it too – mostly my hard earned cash I once loved – but there are lots of products that are painstakingly created.) No, what I mean by the Brighton love is how every employee there enjoys working for Brighton. Every employee takes pride in what they create. From Beatriz and her handbags, to Jerry Kohl, owner and creator of Brighton, it was the kind of place we would want to work if we didn’t work for ourselves. When you see the products and what goes in to creating each earring, bracelet, charm, handbag and more, it makes it that much more likely we’d go home and tell all of our customers about this wonderful company creating a wonderful product. Now THAT is how you sell a product! Thanks Brighton

Sound like an advertisement for Brighton? Probably, but The Silver Barn is all about selling a quality product that is unique and brings joy. Just take a look at The Silver Barn Facebook page and see some of the pics from my visit to the California factory. See if you don’t agree – there’s a lot of love in those products.

Dress for Success…baby style

Zutano $19.95

I was excited to finally get our new fall baby onesies, especially since I have some new babies in my life. I remember when my “baby” was little, those onesies made my life so much easier. But, 25 years ago they were all a basic white, pink, blue or yellow…YAWN! Now here we finally have some fabulous colors and patterns to choose from. So, this is dedicated to my precious new family members…Emily & Paxton. You deserve all these fun new colors! Hmm, Emily might be donning the Cottage Garden….or, Marigold…or Zoo. And, as for Paxton, I’m thinking It’s a Jungle…no, Monkeys….hmm, or Zoo Too! I can’t wait to see what I end up selecting for my two new family additions….Stay tuned.

Milestones…Keeping Track of Success

It was just one year ago today that The Silver Barn expanded to include the upstairs area of our century old building. In that last year I have made lots of new friends, thanks to Twitter and Facebook, and all the great new folks who’ve stopped in to see our little store in the country. In the last 12 months, The Velvet Frog as gained quite a following, we’ve expanded to include a comprehensive bridal assortment and begun adding a variety of antique pieces perfect for your city condo our country compound. We’ve added pets (thanks for your help Vegas & Wrigley), expanded baby to include apparel, more books and plush suitcases we’ve shipped all over the country. We all got another year older, but another year wiser in the way of retail (sort of), and now we are ready to get going with a new array of items to celebrate over the next 365 days.
Thank you for following us, thank you for buying from us….but most importantly, thank you for encouraging us to keep moving along in building the best little store in the best little town of Columbus. You now have 365 days to make plans to come see us in person. We’ll leave a light on for ‘ya and a cold one in the fridge. See you soon!!

Fall Into a Fluffy Robe!

$179.95

Today we had our first blush with fall weather. I say “blush” more because it still hit the mid-70’s so you could easily blush from too much exertion before you had a blush in your cheeks from the crisp fall air! But, I digress. With our first “blush” of cool weather it makes one want to dig out the sweaters, winter cords…and find that kooshy, fluffy robe for cool nights by the fire. Now, in Texas cozy nights by the fire usually involve the a.c. going full blast, but still…you get the idea. Well, as fall finally gets underway I saw this as a time to show the best reason to warm up to the season…the fluffy, fun, pet-able robe by Swankie Blankie. We love this robe for its sex appeal, its warm, furry leopard pattern and its satin interior, perfect for those Texas winter nights. We hope everyone enjoys this delightful fall and winter season and curls up in their favorite, fluffy robe and enjoys touring our store from the comfort of their sofa!