CASE DESCRIPTION
The primary subject matter of this case is differentiation of products and services in a relatively competitive market during challenging economic periods. In particular, this case highlights how business owners identified a specific market segment on which to focus their efforts without incurring additional marketing costs in traditional media channels. This case has a difficulty level of three and up, appropriate for junior level and beyond. The case is designed to be taught in two to three class hours in a management, strategic marketing management, or an entrepreneurship course, and is expected to require about three hours of outside preparation for students, consisting mainly of reading the case and familiarizing themselves with the business environments on the U.S. territory of Guam in the Western Pacific region. CASE SYNOPSIS The case is about Diana's Floral Studio, a small family-owned business on Guam that today provides floral arrangements and consulting services for the island's functions and events. The case traces the business through the early years of Diana's Floral Studio as a small flower shop to a business that specializes in floral design services. The business had undergone a transformation in focus and strategy in response to trends in the marketplace resulting from macroeconomic conditions affecting Guam's tourism dependent economy. This reorientation of its business operation also resulted in a change from originally serving mainly a clientele of individuals to entering into contractual agreements for business services with larger clients like the island's major hotels. As such, Diana's Floral Studio has changed its marketing strategy from utilizing traditional media channels to reach individual customers to one that relies on word of mouth advertising from existing large clients. With Guam's highly transient population and the impending military build-up, the business owners must continue exploring new marketing strategies to maintain its position as one of the island's leading floral design studios. BACKGROUND Diana's Floral Studio, also known as Diana's Florists, began as a small flower shop retailing fresh flowers and floral accessories on Guam. They catered to a limited customer base with average annual revenues of approximately $18,000. The business began operating in 1991 at its first location, which was out of a retail store with a small window space totaling approximately 1100 square feet. Slowly, the small studio blossomed and made a name for itself among its competitors, many of which were much larger in size of operation and volume of business. The business eventually moved to a second location consisting of a space where there was a large store front studio section displaying various floral arrangements, accessories, and props, staged for prospective clients to preview. In the new location, Diana's had a very retail-like atmosphere in the early years of operation. In the early 2000s, the floral studio moved to a third location where it currently operates, and along the way adopted a new business strategy. This new business strategy led to a change in their marketing strategy, from one that mainly targeted retail sales with individual customers to one that focused on selling floral design services to large clients like the island's well-known hotels. At this location Diana's Floral Studio utilizes 2,500 sq ft, which is one-third of a shared warehouse building located in an industrial area in the central Guam village of Tamuning. These changes were made in response to changes in Guam's economy. From the early 1990's, Guam experienced severe hardships in the economy. Some of these came in the form of disasters, such as Typhoon Chata'an in July 2002 and Typhoon Pongsana in December 2002, which was recorded as the strongest typhoon to hit Guam in the past century. Even before these two major typhoons, Guam was just in the process of rebuilding and recovering after being devastated by Typhoon Paka in 1997. In addition, regional and global economic and financial problems dating back to the Asian financial crises of 1997-98 plagued the island's recovery from the bursting of the Japanese bubble economy in the early 1990's. Just when signs of recovery were appearing with many of Guam's retailers hitting record sales in August 2001, the September 11 attacks and SARS came along and dropped tourist traffic, from Guam's tourist dependent economy, as much as 60 percent. The rollercoaster ride that Guam's economy has taken made Diana's Florists change from one type of business to another. The adjustments made to the business may not have been obvious, but the family owned flower shop began to make subtle changes. Diana's Floral Studio is owned by Guam's Yang family. Diana Yang, the principal owner and president took the shop from a small window front store to a large design studio and retail flower shop and transformed the business to what it is today. With the help and guidance over the years of her three daughters, Diana's Floral Studio has survived the economic turmoil of Guam's past decades. Daughter Wennie was the first to assist her mother run the family business, using her University of Guam education. Annie, a University of California-Berkley graduate, then took her place. Today, Jennie, a graduate of University of California at Los Angeles now runs business operations for the studio. Her mother, Diana, focuses on the floral design and now plays less of a role in the office. The business has substantially grown its annual gross sales with the majority of the revenue generated from floral design services. Jennie Yang credits the success of the studio mainly on her mother's desire and the drive to work hard to be one of the best floral designers on Guam. However, the three sisters' business degrees have also had a large impact on their decision-making. The input from the daughters was crucial in the decision-making when the family decided to give up being a flower distributor, which involved selling flowers to other retail stores for resale. This decision helped to minimize costs associated with ordering and storing flowers that would not be used for services provided by Diana's Floral Studio. The family also decided to remove the storefront to cut operating costs. In addition, Wennie and Annie, being a few years older than Jennie, had moved on with their careers, leaving their mother to run the business by herself. Streamlining the business was a necessity due to the downturn in the economy. At the time the decision was made, Jennie was still finishing up her education at UCLA. Now, with the youngest daughter handling business operations, Diana's Floral Studio is beginning to pursue new ways of growing their business. MARKETING STRATEGY ANALYSIS After selling their share of an established partnership as a flower distributor in 2000, the Yang's shifted gears to being a service provider, contracting with larger customers in the tourism industry while continuing special event services. Though they still provide retail and small custom order services to a small degree, the warehouse location's layout truly reflects their new strategy. Diana's Floral Studio is now likened to a consulting firm or contractor that is paid for recommendations based on expertise in their field. Diana's Floral Studio provides services that include the coordination, design, and placement of floral arrangements for special events such as weddings, funerals, birthday parties, and corporate functions. The business does this with a personal approach. This shift in their marketing strategy can be described as a down-shift in their marketing strategy. Diana's Floral Studio relies heavily upon its reputation in the small island community to generate new business and positive first experiences encourage repeat business. Their pricing strategy is a large part of their marketing strategy. Commenting on Diana's Floral Studio's marketing strategy and direction, Jennie Yang states, "We want to charge a bit higher than market to convey we provide customized designs for the average customer. Each design is made specifically for the individual thus providing the customer with individualized service" (J. Yang, personal communication, September 10, 2009). In discussing their customized approach, even their large corporate customers, like Guam's Hyatt Regency Hotel, are described and handled as "individuals" symbolizing the personalized approach to the services they provide to them. As in most cases, pricing above competition works only when the product is distinctive or when the seller has acquired prestige in its field (Etzel et al. 2007: 339). This is the case with Diana's Floral Studio. The business owners accept being known as a pricier option for floral services only because they maintain that the quality and creativity behind their arrangements and services are deserving of the price. It is not within their marketing strategy to be known as a cheap alternative. In fact, that is counter to their goal. They aim to set the bar for floral design services on the island and be the best in their industry. Diana's Floral Studio is arguably one of the best in its field, having won the designation for "best design" in recent years at Guam's annual Bridal Show. With the prestige that comes with design awards often results in a competitive advantage over competition. However, a business cannot rely only on seeking a competitive advantage but it must also sustain this advantage over the long haul. Sustaining competitive advantage requires erecting barriers against the competition (Jain 1999: 100). For Diana's Floral Studio, one of the key barriers against the competition is the inventory of design skills of the studio's designers. However, this barrier may not be sustainable over the long run unless turnover of designers is controlled and that competitive intelligence, (i.e., the design skills) is not transferred to the competition. Diana's Floral Studio does little to no advertising via the island's traditional media channels. They rely on the business' reputation and the satisfaction expressed by their clients to other prospective clients. Being one of the longest running floral studios on Guam is a major strength. They are almost at the level of being iconic for their industry. Because of this status, the business owners find little benefit with costly mass media advertising, which would not be most effective in advertising its services to its target market. This conclusion is also based on their newly established focus on being a service provider to a customer base of larger, repeat clients. SUMMARY OF SUCCESS The image that Diana's Floral Studio established has clearly positioned them as an above-market priced, high quality service provider similar to quality hotel chains that have used this approach effectively. In this regard, their marketing strategy is a clear-cut success. As a retail store and distributor, the business was successful during the 1990's, which was when they relied on traditional advertising media, such as Guam's Pacific Daily News newspaper, radio, local magazines, as well as word of mouth advertising. Today, the shift to being a service-providing firm has proven to be a success as well. The new marketing strategy has made the business known throughout the island community as a very reliable special event services provider. This result has been in no small part due to being less focused on individual sales and more aggressive in working with Guam's well-known clientele such as the island's large hotels, which in turn has led to greater exposure. SUMMARY OF FAILURES Diana's Floral Studio is constantly losing its individual retail customer base because of the change in strategy. The business owners knew there would be a drop in retail sales to individual customers, but it is nearly non-existent today. According to Jennie Yang, the business only receives a few calls per day for orders and deliveries to individual customers. This was previously a major source of revenue for the business, accounting for well over 50 percent of annual gross revenues. Additionally, they are also losing business to smaller shops and studios that are physically located in more visible and highly trafficked locations. Though the business' reputation precedes them, Guam's relatively small population of 170,000 is growing with the impending military build-up involving the relocation of U.S. Marines from Okinawa, Japan. The relocation is to involve the movement of 8,600 Marines and 9,000 dependents as well as nonmilitary support staff, and an additional 600 Army personnel and their 900 dependents (Joint Guam Program Office 2009). The movement of people is scheduled to happen between 2010 and 2014, with parts of the move already underway. This market segment will be made up of new entrants who have never heard about Diana's Floral Studio or they may hear about them when it is too late, resulting in missed opportunity and loss of revenue. SWOT ANALYSIS Strengths Diana's Floral Studio has a loyal existing customer base. Hyatt Regency Guam, their largest customer, has used their services for over 3 years and even before this period, had conducted business with Diana's Floral Studio on an event-by-event basis. Among its customer base are the local high schools. For over a decade, Diana's Floral Studio has been utilized by Guam's John F. Kennedy High School students for their special events like proms, balls, and graduations. This relationship was well established during the high school years of the Yang sisters. Each graduated from JFK and has continued to support the school with special pricing when asked. This reputation for the business' flexibility with pricing has been conveyed to the rest of the community's high schools. It is also commonplace for subsequent generations within large families to return to Diana's Floral Studio for the commemoration of life events, such as weddings, funerals, birthdays, and graduations. This is due in part to their reputation and the emphasis on quality, personalized service. Also, their current workspace is organized to fulfill this personalized service. Over 80% of their workspace is a dedicated design workspace. There is very little space used for displays. Additionally, the business' prices, reputation, and quality are well defined. They can all be described as being above market. Their steeper prices go with a highly regarded reputation of having an elevated degree of quality in their product. Weaknesses For the purpose of branding themselves as high quality designers with higher than market pricing, Diana's Floral Studio does very well. However, this strength can also be a major weakness. It leaves the door open for other shops to undercut their prices, but it is simply a risk that the business is willing to take to maintain their image. Another weakness is that despite the layout of one dozen pink roses their workspace being perfectly geared towards their current strategy, the physical location puts them at a disadvantage. The location is not in a heavily trafficked area. The studio is located amidst other warehouses in an industrial area and their signage is not clearly visible. One other disadvantage with their current location is that it has very little room for displays. The display/welcoming area is roughly the size of a medium-sized living room or family room. An additional weakness not related to their workspace is that there is no tangible way to "brand" their product. Branding is limited to their business name being announced or publicized for acknowledgement associated with various events. Placing a logo on every arrangement or flower is not only challenging, but is also not an acceptable way of doing business in the floral design business. In floral sales, however, logo placement is less challenging. In most occasions people give a bunch of flowers--not just one, wrapped in some paper, plastic or other form of packaging, and where there is packaging, there is scope for branding. Opportunities Diana's Floral Studio still has a number of potential clients in hotels that have not yet signed a contractual agreement for their business. An additional contract or two with any of the larger (100-room plus) hotels with food and beverage facilities on island would greatly increase their revenues and allow for expansion. Also, with becoming a sole source for a hotel, negotiated pricing for floral services could be included in packages for special events such as wedding receptions and other functions being held in the hotel ballrooms and restaurants. This sort of joint venturing would create better access to special event opportunities. Another type of joint-venturing or partnership could be made possible with the island's large retailers like K-mart that do not yet sell floral arrangements. Travel agencies make up another type of clientele that Diana's Floral Studio has yet to approach. The business may provide discounted pricing for the large amount of leis used to greet tourists as they arrive at the Guam International Airport. Threats There are approximately twenty to thirty floral businesses that are currently operating on Guam, mainly in the retail sector. Though the actual size of the floral market for Guam is undefined, the number of competitors in business still inherently translates into a great degree of competition for a small geographic area. Guam has 20 hotels that have over 100 rooms (Guam Hotel and Restaurant Association 2009), thus providing the small number of hotels many options that could potentially undersell Diana's Floral Studio in services as they package these with their products. Another issue that is actually common to almost any industry on Guam is shipping delays. With unpredictable weather (i.e. frequent tropical storms) and increased flow of products landing at the Guam Commercial Port due to Guam's military build-up, interruptions in business due to delays in receiving flowers from the port are even more of a possibility. There is very little that can be done to remedy this due to the limited lifespan of flowers. Increasing the volume of orders will not solve the supply issue, as the flowers kept longer in inventory are likely to wither away before they can be used. CONCLUSION Retail firms must identify and respond to significant trends that affect retailing. In particular, companies in the retail arena will have to provide consumers with substantial value that takes into account not just price, but also the quality of products and the shopping experience (Etzel et al., 2007: 429). In the case of Diana's Floral Studio, the business owners have proven to be successful not by underselling the competition, but by providing high quality service in the form of delivering customized floral designs for each client. They recognized the trend for this demand while experiencing the challenges of Guam's fragile, tourist-dependent economy. There are still various ways for Diana's Floral Studio to re-establish itself as a more formidable front-runner in the floral services industry on Guam. There are business opportunities waiting to be taken advantage of, but these will require changes in strategy. These changes may appear to be more operational, but they would actually require a re-tooling of the business marketing strategy. Re-imaging would be required to again be seen as a customer-friendly storefront that can create potential special event services. This re-imaging will best be done through traditional advertising, teaming with other retail venues, participating in special venues like fashion shows and bridal shows, and receiving positive media exposure in news articles and magazines. It would introduce the business to the new customers entering the market like teens, young adults, and transplants to the island via military build-up or other activity. Reaching these new customers before any other competitor does can ensure Diana's long term capacity to generate revenue in addition to their contracted tourism-related services. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. The Yang's of Diana's Floral Studio shifted gears from being a small flower shop and flower distributor to being a service provider, contracting with larger customers in the tourism industry while continuing special event services. Explain what motivated this business decision. Expand on your answer by describing the risks associated with this or similar business decision(s). 2. How did the family contribute toward the success of Diana's Floral Studio? 3. What can be done by the business owners to maintain Diana's Floral Studio's competitive advantage over other flower shops? 4. Explain how the marketing strategy of Diana's Floral Studio changed over the years. What factors caused the change in marketing strategy? What are some recommended marketing strategies to capture new business with the impending military build-up? REFERENCES Etzel, M., B. Walker, and W. Stanton (2007). Marketing, 14th Edition, New York: McGraw-Hill/ Irwin Publishers. Guam Hotel and Restaurant Association (2009). Guam Hotel and Restaurant Association 2009 Directory. Tamuning: GHRA Publication. Jain, S. (1999) Marketing, Planning and Strategy. 6th Edition. New York: Southwestern Educational Publishing. Joint Guam Program Office (2009) Draft Environmental Impact Statement / Overseas Environmental Impact Statement, Guam and CNMI Military Relocation: Relocating Marines from Okinawa, Visiting Aircraft Carrier Berthing, and Army Air and Missile Defense Task Force, Executive Summary, November 2009, Pearl Harbor: Joint Guam Program Office Fred R. Schumann, University of Guam JayChrist Obusan, University of Guam
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Even de Blasio's assurance on Monday that he would attend the slain officers' funerals, normally an unquestioned mayoral duty, took on a political charge. Earlier this month, the city's largest police union said the mayor had abandoned the police and urged members to sign a letter insisting that the mayor stay away from their funeral should they be killed while on duty.
Rejecting the unions' arguments, de Blasio said the attack should not be tied to the recent protests, which in New York have been largely peaceful. But some protesters said the mayor sent the opposite message by using Brinsley's actions as a reason to temporarily stop protests. The Patrolmen's Benevolent Association and the Sergeant's Benevolent Association have accused de Blasio, a Democrat who ran for office on a platform of police reform, of helping incite a loathing of police through public remarks noting that he understood some of the protesters' grievances. Similar protests, some of them violent, have taken place across the United States, provoking a bitter debate about how American police forces treat non-white citizens that has drawn in President Barack Obama and his attorney general, Eric Holder. The men were shot as they sat in their patrol car in Brooklyn, and their deaths electrified tensions that had been coursing for months between City Hall, the police department and the reform-minded protesters who voted for de Blasio in large numbers. NEW YORK (This story corrects age of police officer Liu to 32 from 28, paragraph 3) (Additional reporting by Sebastien Malo in New York, Bill Trott, Susan Heavey and Ian Simpson in Washington and Richard Weizel in Milford, Connecticut; Writing by Scott Malone; Editing by Howard Goller, Grant McCool and Ken Wills) But the Rev. Al Sharpton, the civil rights activist representing the families of Garner and Brown, said de Blasio's call was too nebulous to heed. Sharpton, who joined Garner's relatives over the weekend to denounce the slaying of the officers, said he would not change planned prayer vigils at the scene of Garner's death and elsewhere over the coming days to mark the family's first Christmas without him. Police identified the killer as Ismaaiyl Brinsley, who wrote online that he planned to avenge the deaths of Garner and Brown, who were both unarmed black men killed by white officers. Brinsley killed himself with a shot to the head soon after. "Let's comfort these families, let's see them through these funerals," de Blasio said in his speech, hours after visiting the officers' grieving families with Bill Bratton, the police commissioner. "Then debate can begin again." New York Mayor Bill de Blasio implored protesters on Monday to wait until after the funerals of two policemen shot dead in an ambush before resuming rallies that have roiled the city and beyond over the deaths of black men at the hands of police. But de Blasio's plea was quickly dismissed by several activist groups that vowed to continue protests that have stirred the city daily after grand juries chose not to indict police officers who killed Eric Garner in New York and Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. De Blasio's remarks came two days after his tense relationship with the city's police unions and rank-and-file officers hit its lowest ebb when two union leaders said the mayor had "blood on his hands" for the officers' deaths. The Answer texas christmas gifts Coalition, an activist group, denounced the mayor's plea as an "outrageous" attempt to "chill" free expression. It said it had no intention of cancelling a long-planned protest march on Tuesday evening. At least one small candle-light vigil called for by a separate coalition of groups took place in Brooklyn on Monday evening, an organizer said. "It's a time for everyone to put aside political debates, put aside protests, put aside all of the things we will talk about in due time," de Blasio said in a speech to a charity with close ties to the New York Police Department, two days after Rafael Ramos, 40, and his partner, Wenjian Liu, 32, were killed. The grand juries that considered the killings of Brown and Garner decided the police officers involved broke no laws. On Monday, a Milwaukee prosecutor said a police officer there would not be charged for the fatal shooting of a black man in April. Investigators said a video on Brinsley's cell phone showed him filming a protest against excessive police force at New York's Union Square Park. The officer in the Milwaukee shooting, who was white, was fired in October for failing to follow police procedure. As in the Garner and Brown cases, the U.S. Justice Department is now considering whether civil rights laws were broken in that case. Even if protesters say they will not be quieted, the heads of the city's police unions had agreed to suspend any lobbying efforts tied to the protests until after both officers are buried, Bratton said. A "CHILL" ON SPEECH "Is a vigil a protest? Is a rally?" Sharpton said in a telephone interview, calling de Blasio's comments "an ill-defined request." A New vintage, classic appear never runs out of style.
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by: Max McCarty Storing Silk Flower Stems for your Silk Flower Arrangements and other Crafts. For your crafters that like to work with silk flowers for all your many hobbies, if you are like me, it is hard to find a method of storage for all your silk flower supplies. I like making silk flower arrangements, artificial floral candle rings and wreaths, you usually like to keep supplies around since you find great deals when you're shopping. You probably have found that storing them by laying them down does nothing but ruin its posture. Or storing them in vases takes up a lot of floor or shelf space, and you also have to compensate for the size of each container. Today I wanted provide a quick how to article stepping you through the process of creating a platform that allows you to store your many different silk flower supplies with a small foot print. The premise for the design is to take advantage of height and shape of silk flower stems to "stack" your silk flowers in an organized and easily maintainable way. You can picture a pole to hang coats, but instead of hooks were going to use rings to hold the flowers at an angle. Items you will need: 6' long / 4" diameter PVC pipe 6' long / 5" diameter PVC pipe 1" woods screws (approx 30) 2' sq. piece of ¾" particle board 3 x L shaped bracket (should have at least a drilled whole in each in, two in each end would be even better. Make sure the holes are not larger than the head on the 1" wood screws.) Equipment you will need: Phillips Screwdriver (the neck of the screw driver -the metal part- will need to be most likely 5-6" long. power screwdriver if you have it) Power drill Approx 3/8 drill bit (must drill holes bigger than the head of your wood screws) Some type of power saw or hand saw to cut the PVC pipe. You can change the dimensions of this design to fit your needs easily. I am making this at 6' high, but could be at any height, but I probably wouldn't go below 3'. Once you get the hang of what you are accomplishing it will be a breeze to complete. The hardest part will be figuring out the layout of what you want. All the items I mentioned above can be obtained from your local hardware store. You are also not required to have exactly those dimensions. If your retailer carries 3" diameter PVC only, you can use that, it just won't hold as many silk flower stems as a 4" or 5" diameter pipe. The "L" shaped brackets are used for securing items like two boards perpendicular to each other. In our case, were going to use it to fasten the pole Let's start by picturing your standard pole for hanging coats on. We're going to https://www.evernote.com/pub/lindacgardner42/lindacgardner42 recreate this concept by fastening one of the poles to the 2' sq particle board we have. With the 2' particle board flat on the ground we will stand the 6' long, 4" diameter PVC pipe on end on top of, and in the middle of the board we have flat on the ground. (This is the only part an extra pair of hands would come in handy). If you are lucky to have someone hold the pipe the following will not be a problem. We are going to take the 3 "L" shaped brackets and place them equally around the pipe, with one end flush against the side of the pipe, while the other end of the bracket is flush with board. You will then use the 1" wooden screws to fasten one end of the bracket to the board, and the other end to the pole. As I mentioned above, if you can find brackets that have 2 holes on each end, if will be even more secure. (TIP) if don't have someone that can support the pole, you can opt to set the brackets around the pipe the way they will end up, mark the holes on the board (only), then remove the pipe. You can then proceed to fasten the brackets to the 2' sq particle board first. Then proceed to put the pipe back in-between all three brackets and finish off securing the top part of each bracket to the pipe - make sure the pipe is plumb (straight up and down). We will now proceed to take the second 6' long PVC pipe and cut it in segments of 4" long pieces. This should give you approximately 18 pieces. This might or might not be enough depending on how big you are making this or how much you want to cram in on this pole. If you need more, you'll need another pole PVC pipe to cut more 4" long pieces. We are now going to use our drill to drill "a" hole on one side of each of the 4" long pieces of PVC pipe we cut. Make sure to drill the hole in the dead middle of the ring. To be clearer, I mean the middle as in between the top and bottom of the ring. We are going to use this hole, to put our long neck Phillips screwdriver through in order to turn the screw that will fasten the opposite side to the pole (more on that in a minute). Once you are done drilling the hole through all the pieces, we are going to start at the bottom of the pole and work our way up. You must stop and understand that the intentions are not to set the holder so it is holding the group of silk flower stems perpendicular to the ground. Rather at a 90 degree angle. This is important as you will want to start high enough off the ground on the pole so that at 90 degrees the bottom of the stems is not touching the ground. You will probably have to put your stems through the ring (holder) and place against the pole to find the right starting point. This is where you would hold them at a 90 degree angle to get the right height. Holding the 4" pipe piece against the pipe, we are going to line up the side that is the very opposite side from the side you drilled the hole. It would be idea to have someone hold this piece so you can concentrate on fastening. Place the wooden screw inside the ring, using your other hand feed the screwdriver through the hole. And commence with fastening the screw through the ring into the pole. With a tight fit, you should find that you can swivel the ring around. We will want to put it at 90 degree angle to figure out where the next one will go. Now that we have one on, we can figure out how we are going to position the rest. You can definitely experiment with this depending on the length of your silk flower stems, but in most cases I found two idea methods: Staggering the rings around the pole as you work your way up or Picture a candy cane strip as it works its way up the pole. Once you have proceeded to fasten each of your 4" rings to the pole, you should find that you can easily adjust their angle to accommodate the different lengths of stems and what is beneath and below each ring. Once completed, you can then fill each ring with your silk flower stems. You should now find that you have assembled a 6' pole, aligned with holders for silk flower stems. You can group them by project, or by type. What I have found is setting them into the holder, then taking the stems and giving them a very slight tub to snug them in place helps. There are a ton of other bells and whistles that am a not exploring in this article that you can add or change about your setup. I have included a few of those ideas in the below additional tip section. Enjoy. Below are a couple additional tips: When placing the bunches of stems in each ring, be careful not to overcrowd Other great ideas is taking small 2"-3" pipe and cutting into 5" lengths In open areas where you can't place the large 4" pipe pieces, you can then place these small pieces perpendicular with the ground against the pole to hold additional small silk flower supplies (close against the pole) out of the way of the larger holders. You could leave an area for hanging silk flower wreaths or silk flower candle rings. Based on the diameter of your wreaths or candle rings, you would leave this much room on the pole before your holders start. Then taking a 1" PVC pipe (length is up to you) and by drilling a slightly bigger hole through the middle of the main pole, slide your 1" pipe through and create a place to 'hang' your wreaths and candle rings. Celebrities with home decor collections
Many of the most popular interior designers from televison like Ty Pennington and Vern Yip have parlayed their success from the small screen into big-time endevors into the home furnishings business. Interior designers aren't the only ones launching home goods collections. Celebrities from other industries like Cindy Crawford are crossing over to create their own interior decor collections. Here is a handful of celebrites that now have home decor collections. Vern Yip Designer Vern Yip who first became popoular on the TLC series, Trading Spaces where he was known for always incorporating feng shui techniques into his design plan. He now has a collection of home fashion items available exclusively through HSN since June 2011 called The Vern Yip Home Collection. The Vern Yip Home Collection includes items to give your home a warm and eccecltic feel. The collection offers everything you need to decorate your bedroom and more including tufted headboards , comforter sets and quilts, to throw pillows and drapery panels. Items from this collection can be purchased from the HSN website. Ty Pennington Ty Pennington is another famous name in interior design who got his start on TLC's Trading Spaces. His career skyrocketed when he became the host of ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Because of the massive success of the show Ty was able to partner up with Sears, one of the shows sponsors to design an extensive line of home goods called Ty Pennington Style. Pennington's line of home furnishings includes items for everyroom in the house. Ty Pennington Style is available exclusively at Sears. Martha Stewart The Queen of all things domestic, Martha Stewart has teamed up with Macy's to offer her own exclusive line of home goods simply titled the Martha Stewart Collection. The collection includes home essintials including, pots and pans, bedding and bath items. Not only does the Martha Stewart collection include home decor items; it also includes a line of mattress available in conjuction with SERTA. All of these items are available in store at Macy's or through the Macy's website. Cindy Crawford Retired model Cindy Crawford took her love of interior design and launched a line of furniture called Cindy Crawford Home Collection in 2005. Her line of furniture is available at many major furniture retailers, most notably Rooms To Go. My sister would love to learn how to create flower bouquets.In 2009 she launged another home decor line with the department store J.C. Penny. This line of home goods includes home accents, and draperies, just name a few items. Nate Berkus Interior desinger whose intial claim to fame was being a regular guest on the Oprah Winfrey show has followed in the footsteps of other interior designers, namely Vern Yip and created his own line of interior decor items exclusively for HSN. Berkus's line, which is self titled includes furniture as well as accent pieces and bedding. With the popluar of interior design shows and interior decorating many of these celebrities have decided to make it easier on the consumer to re-create that designer feel in their own homes. No matter what your taste there is sure im sorry flowers to be a celebrity inspired interior decor line that meets your design needs. Valentine's Day is just around the corner and flower shops across the country are gearing up for the annual mad scramble of Casanovas looking to land a bouquet of red roses. But why not play it smart this year, gents, and get your gal a gift that's a little more thoughtful and a lot less cliché?
Say It With Flowers Roses aren't the only bouquet you can give to a woman to demonstrate your love. Floriography is a Victorian-era language of flowers, attaching meaning to nearly every bloom and bud under the sun. For instance, forget-me-nots symbolize true love, while an orange lilly stands for desire. And a lime blossom? Well, a lime blossom means you are looking to, ahem, get a little action tonight. Figure out what you want to say to your beloved, and then do a little research. Not only will your gift be an improvement on the standard rose, but you'll also have a backstory to give her. She'll be sure to thank you for your thoughtfulness, maybe even with a lime blossom in return. Fruit Trees A bouquet of cut flowers is certainly a romantic gesture, but it will wither and die in a matter of days. If you really want to prove that your love is enduring, why not purchase a tree that will bear fruit for years to come? In warmer parts of the county, mid-February is fine time to plant an apple tree. Even if you live in a chillier region, you can keep a potted sapling going in the house or garage until the final frost has passed in the spring. If you're too impatient to plant a sapling and wait a few years for it to bear fruit, go with an indoor citrus tree. Sometimes these miniature versions of full-sized lemon, orange and lime trees come with fruit already on the branches. And if you treat the tree right, giving it ample light and plenty of water, it will produce fruit for years to come. The Birds and the Bees Since Valentine's Day is really all about the birds and the bees, why not give her birds and bees? For instance, you can purchase a handsome handmade birdhouse or birdbath from Etsy, an online shop that allows artisans to hawk their wares. Not only will you be giving a one-of-a-kind gift, but you'll be buying directly from a budding entrepreneur, which is a great way to help out a small business in this tough economy. To lure the bees to your doorstep, give the gift of seeds or potted flowers, which will long outlast any bouquet. Do a little digging around (or maybe just ask her mother) to find out which are her favorites. Whatever you get for her, the key is to be creative and show that you put some thought into the gift. And if you end up saving a little money by skipping those overpriced roses, all the better for you. http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2011/02/02/botany-desire/ SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - A U.S. company is infusing sunflower seeds with caffeine and other boosters commonly found in energy drinks to offer customers a two-in-one product.
Dakota Valley Products Inc. has been developing the product, called Sumseeds, for about a year. "A lot of people chew sunflower seeds to stay awake and give them energy, and we just thought we'd combine the two of them," company president Tim Walter said. The seeds are grown in North Dakota and Kansas, and then shipped to the Carpenter-based company's plant in Willow Lake, South Dakota, where caffeine, taurine, lysine and ginseng are added. A 3.5-ounce bag was being sold for $1.99 -- about twice the price of normal sunflower seeds -- at a Sioux Falls drug store chain. They should soon appear on shelves in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the U.S. Southeast, and a major convenience store chain was testing the snack in 10 of its stores. Dakota Valley Products was working to get the product into nationwide distribution, and was getting international interest from as far away as New Zealand, Walter said. Sunflower seeds have long been touted as a healthy snack that is high in protein and fiber and contains vitamins and minerals. But while energy drinks pack in sugar, a bag of Sumseeds contains just 5 grams to give snackers a longer-lasting boost in lieu of a high carbohydrate rush, Walter said. "Our angle is that you can't consume a sunflower seed as fast as say you could guzzle a 10-ounce or a 12-ounce can of a beverage, and you also don't have that sugar," he said. "So it will be more of a sustained energy boost." Eighteen- to 30-year-old men make up the largest market for in-shell sunflower seeds, with many chewing and spitting while playing outdoor activities or watching television, he said. Sunflower seeds are also a favorite of truckers, who eat them during long trips. Dakota Valley Products has two patents pending, one for the way it roasts and cools the seeds, and another for its method of getting the ingredients through the shell and into the kernel, which helps avoid the bitter taste caffeine can add, Walter said. The National Sunflower Association said Sumseeds would give a boost not just to customers, but also to the industry. "Any way that there's more products on the market, obviously that's a plus for us and for farmers," the association's international marketing director, John Sandbakken, said. http://www.foxnews.com/story/2007/05/18/company-markets-sunflower-seeds-supercharged-with-caffeine.html |
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