This Little Piggy Goes to Market

Summer is here and the New York International Gift Fair bekons. This Fair is pure pandemonium with aisle upon aisle of merchandise --- some of which is divine and good amount of which isn't. It's a test of endurance and courage to wade through all the stuff looking for the right combination of goods for Fete.

So what do I look for? How do I know it when I see it?

I am a wayward heir of William Morris. Morris is attributed with the Arts & Crafts movement which really kicked off the Modernism. His driving philosophy was "good design for all" and that is cornerstone of my belief and one of the reasons I opened Fete. I believe that beauty is the 5th food group and something as nourishing to the soul as the 4th food group - chocolate. In all seriousness, it is just as easy to live with beauty as it is to live with shlock, so why not choose the former?

Of course, good design can be expensive but it doesn't always need to be. Thus my guiding principle for merchandise is whether or not the item is beautiful and tactile. Do I want to touch it? Is it well made? Does the design support the function ? Is there balance and proportionality? How is color used? Finally, is it something I would buy for myself ? If yes, then would I pay what I'm asking my customers to pay? If the answer is yes, then it gets on the short list.

I further winnow from the short list to make sure the items selected fit within the overall context of the store's theme: entertaining. The item must adhere to something that can be used as a party theme -- like pajamas or gardening; be a delightful hostess gift, provide a finishing touch or flourish for the at-home entertainer; or finally, serve to make one more "entertaining" through witty, ribald, well-informed conversation.

At the end of the day and what I hope for most is that every item selected is something that is timeless, beautiful and functional and will delight others as much as it does me.