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  1. News from Us
  2. News from Members
  3. Events
  4. Press
  5. Dollars & Sense
  6. Profile Stories
  7. Updates
  8. Training Calendar
  9. Training Videos
  10. Jobs
+ Bridge in the News - Bridge in the News

363 Results:

April 23, 2024 Introducing Our Source & Story Collection: Capturing the Spirit of Artisans & the Places They Call Home
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Introducing Our Source & Story Collection: Capturing the Spirit of Artisans & the Places They Call Home
April 23, 2024
Over the past three decades, LAFCO has honored a commitment to quality and honesty.

Each home fragrance and personal care creation is not merely a product, but a testament to the artisanal excellence derived from the earth’s most generous offerings. These ingredients, curated from every corner of the globe, come with stories as rich and complex as their scents.

The Source & Story Collection represents the evolution of LAFCO’s Pure Promise.
With meticulous care, we have ...
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April 20, 2024 17 Wedding Registry Features That Are Unique to Shop Local
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17 Wedding Registry Features That Are Unique to Shop Local
April 20, 2024
When we compared our registry service to other registry software, we found 17 unique ways that our registry service helps gift givers, registrants, & merchants. Many other registry services don’t offer these 17 features below.

6 Ways Our Service Helps Gift Givers in Ways That Other Services Do Not

Gift Giver’s Experience (E.g. Friend or family member giving a gift)
  1. The gift giver can easily find the registrant’s gift list because the service helps merchants rank
...
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April 15, 2024 Exponentially Better: The Math Behind Our Shopping Platform 🔢
How a drawing on a bar napkin led to a software platform that processes trillions of calculations
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Exponentially Better: The Math Behind Our Shopping Platform 🔢
How a drawing on a bar napkin led to a software platform that processes trillions of calculations
April 15, 2024
In 2007, while sitting at the pub Moran’s with a beer, I drew a sketch on a napkin that would change our business. I drew a software model that would allow an indie store to instantly show (and sell) thousands of products online—without any labor. (The secret sauce: The respective brand would do the product update work for the merchants.) The immediate goal was to help my two retailers more efficiently load products onto their websites (and save me the boredom of doing it). 

...
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April 13, 2024 Taco Bell-wether 🌮
How Taco Ball is going digital first--and others would be wise to follow
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Taco Bell-wether 🌮
How Taco Ball is going digital first--and others would be wise to follow
April 13, 2024
Fast food is stuffing itself with software. Yum Brands, which owns Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, is embracing a few strategies we’ve chatted about, including software bundles and membership programs. It’s even investing in AI. Its budget: $21m last year. That’s a lot of lettuce. 

Does the market merit it? Well, 45% of Yum’s sales are digital. Likewise, we’re hearing website sales make up about half of our merchants' sales. Note: We’re not half of every ...
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April 5, 2024 Wicker Charger Plates!
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Wicker Charger Plates!
April 5, 2024
Wicker is one of our most popular collections. It has an intricate woven design, replicating the technique you see on wickered products.

We are thrilled to introduce matching charger plates, they are perfect for all your indoor and outdoor soirees any season!

Available in 3 fun colors! View Post
April 3, 2024 Software Review: Gift Reggie
21 ways Gift Reggie is making it difficult for gift givers, registrants, and merchants
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Software Review: Gift Reggie
21 ways Gift Reggie is making it difficult for gift givers, registrants, and merchants
April 3, 2024
Our registry service handles 80,000 gift and wedding registries. We often come across other registry software and can see how it's affecting  the merchant that is using it. 

While eating breakfast and browsing the web via my phone, I recently came across RFD, a merchant in Albany, NY, that uses Gift Reggie (an app that is added to a Shopify Store).

I observed 21 problems while reviewing the merchant's registry service.  I initially wrote the issues down on a paper tablecloth...
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April 1, 2024 Alternatives to MyRegistry.com
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Alternatives to MyRegistry.com
April 1, 2024
As a store owner, you know how important it is to choose a registry service that works well for you, your employees, your registrants, and gift-givers (family and friends). In addition to working well, the registry service should offer your store good value (price vs. results).

When looking for registry software, some retailers consider MyRegistry.com for their registry service. MyRegistry.com offers gift registry creation and management features that integrate with a retailer's Shopify ...
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March 27, 2024 Tableware Today Interview - Jim Shreve, Tim DeVine, Mark Brashear, & Sally Burnside
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Tableware Today Interview - Jim Shreve, Tim DeVine, Mark Brashear, & Sally Burnside
March 27, 2024
Jim Shreve made Baccarat hip. Now, he and his longtime partner, Mark Brashear, along with Sally Burnside, the former Baccarat sales V.P., intend to do the same for DeVine Corp., the 32-year-old distributor of elite European brands. You're invited to the opening!
................................

Congrats to you all. This is very exciting. Tim, we’ve known each other since before you started DeVine Corp., 32 years ago. You’ve been looking for the right opportunity to retire.
TIM ...
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March 14, 2024 Alternatives to Gift Reggie
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Alternatives to Gift Reggie
March 14, 2024
As a store owner, you know how important it is to choose a registry service that works well for you, your employees, your registrants, and gift-givers (family and friends). In addition to working well, the registry service should offer your store good value (price vs. results).

When looking for registry software, some retailers consider Gift Reggie for their registry service. Gift Reggie offers gift registry creation and management features that integrate with a retailer's Shopify ...
Read More
March 10, 2024 Drive Local: Join Shop Local and Get a Free Tesla 🚗
How Store Owners Can Trade Wasted Labor Costs For a New Tesla Car
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Drive Local: Join Shop Local and Get a Free Tesla 🚗
How Store Owners Can Trade Wasted Labor Costs For a New Tesla Car
March 10, 2024
No one likes to pay for gas—just ask Tesla drivers. Chris Kornelis, a reporter for The Wall St. Journal, shares this week how he switched to a Tesla to save $100 a month ($1,200 a year!) on gas. 

This story is important to us because if someone will pick a car to save $1,200 a year, we should be able to find what they need to save in order to pick Shop Local’s Online Store. Let’s learn from Chris and his Tesla choice.

Making Replacement Savings Easy to See
The new ...
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February 28, 2024 BACCARAT’S TALE OF WATER
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BACCARAT’S TALE OF WATER
February 28, 2024
In harmony with the serene embrace of water sculpting radiance, the wavy design of the Baccarat Eye Rectangular Vase unveils an extraordinary technique. Exterior horizontal cuts and interior vertical cuts combine to produce a magical visual effect, creating a perpetual movement within the spiral of light.

A mesmerizing dance of shades and shapes, offering an infinite canvas for compositions that suit every taste and color preference.

Baccarat, shaping timeless beauty.
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February 5, 2024 Facebook Turns 20
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Facebook Turns 20
February 5, 2024
Facebook was founded 20 years ago in a college dorm and has since become a $1 trillion company, shares today’s The Wall St. Journal.

Read the full article: 
https://www.wsj.com/tech/facebook-turns-20-from-mark-zuckerbergs-harvard-dorm-room-to-the-metaverse-817a73da
  View Post
January 29, 2024 Spotlight Pattern: Mepra Fantasia
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Spotlight Pattern: Mepra Fantasia
January 29, 2024
It’s hard to believe that MEPRA’s sophisticated technicolor collection FANTASIA is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year because its incandescent chromatic complexion is as fresh today as its 1989 debut.
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The brilliantly-hued fantasia comes from the Italian silversmiths Mepra, post-war business founded in 1947 by the Prandelli family, four generations fashioning flatware in the industrial Lumezzane Valley, about 90 minutes east of Milan. ...
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January 9, 2024 A Haunting Beauty
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A Haunting Beauty
January 9, 2024
As with most creatives, Herend's artists have an inherent restlessness to perpetually innovate in the pursuit their craft. With this achingly elegant swan, they have employed a striking, new painting technique to capture the airy, delicate composition of a bird's feather. To heighten the swan's allure further, the face has been painted in a natural coloration which gives full expression to the haunting beauty of this figurine. View Post
December 17, 2023 The new threat: Chinese apps backed with Chinese factories
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The new threat: Chinese apps backed with Chinese factories
December 17, 2023
The Atlantic shares how Chinese factories have found a new way around U.S. retailers and into our homes: Chinese apps. SHEIN and other Chinese apps are bypassing Amazon to be a new leader in Chinese goods.  In addition to Amazon, Target, Walmart, and indie shops now have a new group of digital competitors embedded in customers’ pockets. 

Except from The Atlantic article: 

MATERIAL WORLD
IS THIS HOW AMAZON ENDS?
An open embrace of cheap foreign products has helped ...
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December 8, 2023 Kate Spade New York @ 20
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Kate Spade New York @ 20
December 8, 2023
Kate Spade New York tableware and accessories has for two decades held a singular spot on retail shelves and on customers’ tables thanks to a timeless charm and chic stylings. Even after 20 years, the fun, fresh, playfully sophisticated, and refreshingly original collections from Lenox occupy a unique niche in the tableware pantheon. 

Kate Spade’s contribution to fashion cannot be understated. She became synonymous with fashionistas everywhere when she started her fashion ...
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November 14, 2023 SCAM ALERT: Don’t Click on Facebook Ads About AI
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SCAM ALERT: Don’t Click on Facebook Ads About AI
November 14, 2023
Small businesses are getting hacked via Facebook ads, shares Today’s The Wall St. Journal.  The ads purport to offer Google’s AI engine Bard, but instead steal the business’s social media account access. 

Read the full article: https://www.wsj.com/tech/google-sues-to-block-ai-ads-preying-on-small-businesses-5e9c01d5?st=0t2f67ii9ekpuyd&reflink=mobilewebshare_permalink
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November 8, 2023 North American Beauty
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North American Beauty
November 8, 2023
It is immediately identifiable by its glamorous plumage; however, even if presented only in silhouette, the wood duck would still be recognizable by its unique shape consisting of a famously boxy, crested head and long, broad tail. Luckily, Herend's figurine features all dimensions and kaleidoscopic colors of this perching waterfowl and combines multiple patterns and painting techniques to expertly capture this North American beauty. View Post
October 26, 2023 Affiliate Marketing: TikTok, Amazon, and Your Indie Shop
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Affiliate Marketing: TikTok, Amazon, and Your Indie Shop
October 26, 2023
TikTok and Amazon are battling in the retail space. TikTok wants to be a retailer, and Amazon wants to be more of an influencer platform.  These two share the same goal: get users to share a product link, recommend the product, and get a cut of the sale, shares The Wall St. Journal.

This article and these companies speak to the power of affiliate marketing. One of Amazon’s long-standing secret growth weapons has been affiliate commissions, and influencers are a well-known ...
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October 11, 2023 Loyalty Programs
How restaurants, hotels, and tableware brands are using loyalty programs--and what indie stores can learn from this.
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Loyalty Programs
How restaurants, hotels, and tableware brands are using loyalty programs--and what indie stores can learn from this.
October 11, 2023
Perk-y
I recently read about a new loyalty program and wondered what we could learn from it. The founder of Eater and Resy, Ben Leventhal, has started Blackbird, a loyalty program service designed for indie restaurants, reports The New York Times (Read the article). Using the Blackbird app, a diner receives a perk for eating at a restaurant. The retailer sets tiers for which the user qualifies for the perk. For example, a restaurant, Nat’s on Bank in New York City, gives tier 1 customers ...
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Next page

Press: Shop Local & Bridge in the News
Tableware Today Column: Saying I Do To Registries
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October 2024

Tableware Today: New Leaderboard Column from Shop Local
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August 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Florida Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Florida Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
April 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Tennessee Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Tennessee Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
April 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Louisiana Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Louisiana Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
April 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Delaware Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Delaware Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
April 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Pennsylvania Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants in Pennsylvania Get Google Sales Leads 🔍
March 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants Get Sales Leads in Mississippi
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants Get Sales Leads in Mississippi
March 2024

Shop Local Merchants Are 60% of Google Page 1 Results in South Carolina
Shop Local Merchants Are 60% of Google Page 1 Results in South Carolina
March 2024

Shop Local Merchants Are 50% of Google Page 1 Results in Georgia
Shop Local Merchants Are 50% of Google Page 1 Results in Georgia
March 2024

Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants Get More Sales Leads than Big-Box Stores Using Google
Shop Local Helps Indie Merchants Get More Sales Leads than Big-Box Stores Using Google
February 2024

Shop Local Retailers Rank on Page 1 of Google in 60% of States
Shop Local Retailers Rank on Page 1 of Google in 60% of States
February 2024

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