Ten more days until I get the space!!!!!!!

June first I will get the keys to my new store. This is mind-boggling at this point! I still have so much to do at home (like make a bunch of product to sell in the store) before I start working over there. I really won't know how much I need to do over there until Janet is out--there will be some lighting issues, some painting, and some windowscaping to do, and then it's move in all my display fixtures and fill 'em up and get inspected, and then open for business. Oh yeah, and I have tons more product to order, and consignments to get together. I keep learning of local artists that are a good fit with my vision, so that's encouraging. Most of them are willing to do consignment--that's a win/win for me. The ones who aren't willing to do consignment probably won't make the cut, at least not until I get a better feel for what people around here are looking for.

I met with my accountant today. That sentence barely makes sense to me--MY accountant? I have an accountant. Wow. He said it sounds like I'm on the right track. Bear in mind he's an accountant and not a retail expert, but it made me feel good to hear him say it. I've known him for years, and it's good to have a professional relationship with someone who "gets" me. The other professional relationships I have so far didn't seem like such a good comfortable fit.

There's a great craft show taking place on Sunday at Fitzgerald's. It's a lot of local artists and craftspeople--a lot of whom will be in my store, and maybe a lot who will be that I haven't even discovered yet! I'll have to print up a little synopsis of my store to give them--I don't want to monopolize their time when they could be selling stuff. I'll come back and add the details about the show soon. Right now I'm going to bed.

Surprising Finds at Aldi

For those of you who know me well, it will come as no surprise that I am an Aldi shopper. It's cheap and it's near my house. And Aldi is one of the greenest stores I can think of--they don't throw away their boxes, they give them to customers to carry their food in. They encourage the reusing of their bags (or the bringing of your own) by charging you for them (they're quite high quality, too, so you would definitely not throw them out). They don't spend money on trendy displays or energy-hogging light fixtures.

Their food is very high quality, and they have a double guarantee--if you're not satisfied, they will refund your money, and replace your product. They have organic blue corn tortilla chips (the Fit and Active brand) that are low fat and delicious. Their higher-end pasta sauces have no weird ingredients or high fructose corn syrup. They have recently started carrying green tea in tea bags that have no metal--so you can just throw them on the compost pile without stabbing yourself trying to pry open the staples. They have whole grain breads. Their butter is cheap, and its ingredients are cream and salt. The cheese isn't bad either--they have a delightful Dill Havarti. It's really not that hard to find almost everything you need there, and they've recently increased their produce section to include a lot more fresh vegetables and fruits (mostly conventionally grown).

Other things to love:
Your car (or bike)is safe from wayward carts, because you "rent" a cart for a quarter, ensuring that people will return their carts to get their two bits back. It really is a model of a well-run store. They don't have nearly as many employees as most grocery stores, because they don't need them to wrangle carts, break down boxes, or straighten the displays. It takes a little getting used to, but the money you can save makes up for having to bag your own groceries--and let's face it. Sometimes it's better that way.