I just returned home from almost back-to-back gift shows (Atlanta then Dallas) and I was thrilled to hear exhibitors reporting increased sales over last year—some as much as 100% higher than last January. At both shows the energy level was noticeably high, as retailers and exhibitors smiled, bustled about and placed orders.

I've also been reading and hearing about overall positive holiday results from retailers on our forum and when chatting with them at the two shows.

This a great sign for the retail industry!

How did your holiday season go?

GIFT SHOP magazine and GLM have partnered to create the gift industry's first eco-awards program. This exciting program will give retailers the chance to vote on their favorite environmentally conscious and socially responsible products in three categories: Most Innovative, Most Sensitive Use Of Materials and Most Sellable.

The judging is taking place here at the New York Gift Show. Please stop by if you're here and cast your vote in the registration area on the north side of the Javitz.

The winners will be announced online and published in the fall issue of GREEN Retailer/GIFT SHOP magazine.

I just read an inspiring article about local businesses and residents in Kauai who decided to work together and fix a national park road in need of repair due to severe flooding. The government had told them it would take years and $4 million to get it done, but many businesses on the island would've been forced to shut down because the park is such a big tourist destination. So one local resident organized, got volunteers and they fixed the road in eight days—for free. This is a great reminder that one person and one community can work together to get something done.

If you're looking to make a difference in the amount of traffic you get in your store, I'm organizing a TweetChat (a group of people having a live conversation via Twitter.com) to discuss no cost or low-cost marketing ideas for your store. If you want to participate and you're unsure how it works, drop me an email at norins@giftshopmag.com, call me at 800.936.6297 ext. 11 or leave a comment below. I'm looking forward to your ideas!

A front page article in the Wall Street Journal today described how an increasing number of Israelis are entering the cart and kiosk industry. The article focused primarily on beauty product sales and I thought it was important to make two points I think the article failed to mention:

1. That the ease of entry into this niche market makes it ideal for small business entrepreneurs of any kind. In fact, many minorities and career-change individuals are getting a "bootstrap" fresh start by operating mall carts and kiosks selling all manner of products.

2. This style of selling (inviting customers to come over to sample the product) has been tremendously successful. As one of the readers posted on WSJ.com, this strategy of sales is no different than the strategies a successful broker, telemarketer or cosmetologist would employ.

The article also mentions one Israeli salesman, Rami Feinstein, who wrote a great song about his experience selling nail care products from a cart. Posted on YouTube, it describes his hesitation with learning the new sales practices at first, a glimpse into his sales pitch and his success.

The reports are in and many retailers reported higher sales this year (when compared to last year) on Black Friday. According to early figures released by ShopperTrak RCT Corp. (which monitors sales at more than 50,000 stores) day-after-Thanksgiving retail sales rose 3% over last year to $10.6 billion. And across the country more than 172 million shoppers visited stores or shopped online over the four day holiday weekend according to the National Retail Federation.

I decided to see for myself, so I posed a question on GIFT SHOP's Retail Forum and overall the reports were very positive.

Today the news of an official recession came out and stocks fell sharply, but I feel very optimistic about retail after seeing the numbers from black friday.

Every year on Thanksgiving my family has a long standing tradition of going around the table and verbally sharing what we are thankful for. For the last week I've been contemplating my list. In addition to family and health and friends, one of the perennial list-makers is our customers. Without them we wouldn't be in business, so I truly appreciate their patronage and support.

Perhaps this weekend, you too can take the opportunity to appreciate each and every customer. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving and super busy Black Friday and holiday season.

Three months ago, I blogged about the exciting news that we're launching a new magazine, GREEN Retailer, focused on providing eco-friendly resources for the gift and home furnishings industry.

Since announcing the launch, we've received hundreds of inquiries from retailers and wholesalers across the country, so I'm excited to say our premiere issue is debuting at the Atlanta (AmericasMart) Gift Show this week and the digital issue has been posted for free on our website.

Our first edition is loaded with green product resources, an in-depth feature on organic bath and body, and articles on how to 'green your store.'

Recently on our GIFT SHOP Forum there was an interesting debate about whether the green trend is a fleeting fad or here to stay. I feel confident that it's long-term and that it's only just beginning to gain momentum. If it's not here to stay, our planet will be in serious peril. We must start consuming more sustainable and recycled resources.

I hope you'll check out the premiere issue of GREEN Retailer today to find eco-friendly products and resources for your store. It's time to start thinking green!

We've been keeping a big secret, but I think we're finally ready to share the news..

This summer we're launching a bi-annual supplement to GIFT SHOP called GREEN Retailer, a magazine committed to the success of the eco-friendly gift store owner. Our mission is to be an essential business resource for gift store owners who are beginning to implement green strategies and for those who have already incorporated these sustainable practices.

I'm very excited about our new project! Eco-friendly products are growing by leaps and bounds in the consumer marketplace. Not only is this trend a great opportunity for you to provide your customers with what they want, it's also a chance to increase sales while helping to save our planet.

GREEN Retailer is coming this summer!

I'm a little behind on my email right now… OK, I'm very behind on my email. After going to three gift shows back-to-back it was easy to lapse, even with so much time sitting on planes and trains. I almost hate to admit it, but I have 400 unread emails in my bin.

Every day this past week I've promised myself, "Today is the day I'm going to get caught up."

Yesterday I mentioned my situation to a colleague over lunch and she chuckled and said, "You can always file for email bankruptcy." I laughed, but she was serious!

To file email bankruptcy, she said, you send an email to everyone in your address book and tell them you've gotten so far behind that you're cleaning out all your email, and ask them to resend anything urgent.

I feel confident that I can get caught up in the next few days, but I'm glad to know there's a viable solution if this ever happens again!

The verdict is in (unofficially) that the January Atlanta Gift Show was overwhelmingly successful for 99% of the exhibitors who we interviewed during, and after, the show.

Steve Rose, marketing coordinator for burton + Burton said, "Traffic in the halls may have looked like it was down, but we had over 30 reps writing orders at one time, and still had some who were waiting in line for the available sales rep! The show was non-stop for us."

Among the many companies we chatted with, Tom Zimmerman, VP of Sales & Marketing for Two's Company, also told us that the show was very successful for them, and that sales were up this year in comparison to last year.

And here's more! Yesterday I received survey results from a non-profit organization, the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. The institute recently concluded a survey of roughly 1,000 retailers in the gift sectors. These retailers were in cities with active "Buy Local" campaigns and the survey found that many retailers reported strong holiday sales. Also, 82% of survey respondents said that the fact that their businesses were independently owned mattered to most of their customers.

How does all this upbeat news square with the more sobering reports from Wall Street? It's simple: independent gift and home furnishing stores are finding new messages that work. They are playing up their strengths, superior service and a merchandise mix not found in mass merchandise stores and urging customers to buy local. There are opportunities out there for every shop owner; you just have to figure out how to tap into it.