The crowd is always shoulder to shoulder. On the first days, you walk down each aisle sideways, and there’s a line waiting for the ladies room. This doesn’t happen anywhere except New York.

Toile is still a big favorite, decorating chests, waste paper cans, pillows and lampshades. Moss green, orange and lemon yellow were colors shown most often.

My first stop is always the main building’s lower level. That’s where the smaller, friendly wholesalers gather. Not that there’s something wrong with the upper floor, but I know there are start-up companies waiting to be discovered down below.

I saw a jelly-like octopus massager at the Present Natural House & Company booth, so I made it my first stop. What great bath accessories items.

Natural-colored wood soap holders ($1.45-$1.85) in purple, blue and pink. Green-colored foot pumice stones ($1.25) in the shape of a foot. Sponges ($1.95) that resembled a crab, star, duck, octopus, or ladybug packaged in a clear bag, and cotton gloves ($2.95) to moisturize hands.

There were also sets with nail and toe separators, two cuticle pushers, and nail brush in a clear holder ($2.85) as well as spa sets in round, wooden containers ($6.95-$8.95). The octopus massager that previously had my attention also came in the shape of a turtle, gorilla, and penguin and in transparent colors of red, blue or green ($3.25).

Alex, the company rep, was very accommodating, allowing me to look around without following my every footstep.

What I saw doesn’t begin to scratch the surface on what’s available. This company sells every accessory you can imagine. And the prices are great.

If you’re interested in bath accessories, you have to stop and see bath and body products, so into the Botanicus booth I stepped.

I first noticed the home sachets ($3.50), small pellets of beautifully-scented room fresheners packaged in a small, silver rectangular tin with matching lid. Each tin is mesh so that the fragrance comes through without removing the lid. The Fig scent was light and dazzling. I never knew fig could smell so good. The Green Tea scent was as aromatic, Linden was reminiscent of cloves (great for men), and Champagne? Well, if it was a drink, I would have finished the bottle. Delightful.

Scott, the rep, said when you buy 12 in a pack, the 13^th is free. He and another rep mentioned that they are a small company, and everything is made by hand.

The packaging on this line was exceptional. They use frosted, unusual containers for the large and small candles. The smaller is a votive held in a container that’s rounded on the bottom, then expands upward into a circular shape on top. A bit hard to explain, but beautiful. Also, the votives are packaged in 2 for $10.00. Scott said that they will sell one at a time to gift basket designers.

The larger candles ($12.50), in a frosted jar with silver lid, should also please customers. Fragrances include Sugar Pear, Guava, Apple Cake, Oak Leaf, and much more separated by holiday, food and floral scents.

Home Fragrance Mists ($9.00) and Soaps ($8.00 for 3) round out the line.

Buyers were taking liberties at the Poppie’s Cookies’ booth. Workers were busily filling up the cookie sample bowls as quickly as cookies disappeared.

Their Easter line of decorated cookies was pretty. You can choose from a large single cookie ($30 for 12) or a many small ones ($$4.25 each), both packaged in a cellophane bag with ribbon atop. Each large cookie is hand decorated with a yellow chick in a half egg shell.

The same type of cookies is also available for St. Patrick’s Day, except the hand decoration is green shamrocks.

Provender is a gourmet product distributor that’s always at the show. I like seeing what they represent and especially like to speak with a company owner whose product is being shown under the Provender umbrella. That’s what happened when I tasted a chocolate from Saxon Chocolates.

I tried a truffle and loved the rich, chocolate flavor. Johan (yo-han), the owner, was happy to show me his extensive line of confections packaged as bars ($1.35), in boxes ($1.85-$4.00), in tubes ($1.25-$6.00) and bags ($2.25-$4.25). There are also chocolate pops on sticks ($3.00) in animal shapes (bears, bunnies), something to consider for Easter in white, milk or dark chocolate.

The chocolates are delicious, and there’s enough in the line to order a wide assortment for holidays and every day baskets.

Elegant Gourmet’s spring packaging is decorated with pastel ribbon tied around boxes and cello bags filled with toffee, bunnies and chicks.

The toffee ($5.00 for 5 oz.) is contained in a white box decorated with a single rose tied on with a white, organza ribbon. Elegant indeed. White chocolate-covered Bing Cherries has the same decoration tied on a 7 oz. cello bag ($5.00). These two items were displayed for Valentine’s Day, but they easily fit into spring baskets.

If you’re looking for a single item to offer outside of your baskets, order the Butter Cookies ($6.00) in a round, 6 oz. box, half decorated with white dots on a yellow background on top and blue and white checked fabric on the bottom. The lid is blue and white checked with a blue bow and daisy enhancement on top. An exceptional stand-alone gift with a buttery taste to die for.

Raspberry Dreams and Key Lime Dreams ($3.25 for 5 oz.), two cookie flavors in tall, striped cans, are still yummy and continue to be gift basket standards, as are the lemon or raspberry drops in 10 oz. bags ($3.25).

I saw Harbor Sweets last year at the Boston Gift Show. Could they have anything new in the line? Doug and Justin said “no” to my question, but they were quick to show me how their product was decorated up for the spring. The Perennial Sweets, the formal name for their traditional chocolates (round, oval and shell shapes), was packaged in cello and topped with a purple ribbon ($4.25).

Sweet Sloops, the chocolate that’s shaped like a sailboat, is white chocolate on top dipped on the bottom with milk chocolate and topped with nuts. Doug said this sells very well in gift baskets. It’s packaged in a red box with just two Sloops ($1.10). I must admit, the taste is addictive.

There are also flat boxes and tall, corrugated bag assortments in attractive colors (these are 8 oz. bags we use most often in gift baskets).

The next day, I took a break from the main building and went to one of the piers, the one labeled New York’s Newest. That’s where new companies showing for the first time can showcase their wares.

Much of the pier resembled an open market with displays that took you from the bedroom to the kitchen to the garden. A beautiful collection of clothes, home décor (pillows, lamps) candles, and kitchen items (dishes, glassware) were shown in rich, bright burgundy, lemon yellow, reds, oranges, creams, and dark citrus.

Distressed and modern furniture were mixed together in many booths, and lots of hand-painted kitchen items were studded with jewels.

Wild Eye Designs showed an ice cream holder that works well as a container or as part of a high-priced basket.

The container is made from polished silver aluminum. The side of the container has a loop that holds the matching scooper, and the lid is etched with the words “ice cream” in a scroll design on the top and bottom edges. The middle of the lid has a circular pattern with a raised jewel bead on top. The beads are blue, green, red, or amber, or you can request a lid without the jewel.

At $14.95, it’s definitely for your pricey baskets, but what a product to set you apart from other designers.

They had much more, including a coaster ($9.50) with raised aluminum sides dotted in jewel beads within a flower pattern. The center was covered in black felt on the inside and bottom. Again, not for your standard basket, but to be considered when your customer wants to be dazzled and is ready to pay the price. Compared to some wholesalers, the minimum’s not bad.

New York Show Report Continues -- Page 2 | Page 3

NOTE:
Information in each Show Report provides details on products displayed at trade shows. It does not constitute 1) company or product endorsements or 2) prevailing products or prices.

Read the intro