Trends: staying on top of them

Those of us in the business of being creative have a sort of love-hate relationship with trends. The artist in us wants to ignore them completely, but the business person in us usually realizes that staying on trend is important to the survival of our business. By being observant, and simply by going out of the studio and living life, designers encounter and internalize trends. Sometimes there is a deliberate attention to a trend when designing a new product, but for the most part, successful designers are trendsetters, not followers. This means that sometimes our designs hit the market a little early and sit around for a season or two.

Mindy Gayer, owner of Cotton Idea Studio, a lovely stationery boutique in Laguna Beach, California, says “trends can be interpreted in so many ways, and found through numerous sources … in the observation of window displays, home décor, clothing design, event and wedding design, magazine spreads, branding efforts, and the use of color. It’s truly everywhere, and the best part is that everyone interprets trends in their own, unique way … so it has the potential to be translated in fresh, new ways each and every time.” And, of course, blogs are fantastic for keeping up with trends (thanks, Grace!!!).

Mindy thinks yellow and citrus tones will continue to be important colors this year, and she hopes that greys, “from lighter cement shades to deep charcoal,” are here to stay.

 

How shops find new vendors

Today I’m peeking inside shop owners and buyers’ bag of tricks to see how they shop for their stores and what they look for in a vendor.

Mindy says finding new products for her shoppe “comes down to finding lines that have impeccable, unique designs, clever copywriting, flawless craftsmanship and printing, and reasonable price points.” She looks for talented, customer-service oriented, communicative, reliable vendors. “We welcome and encourage vendors to approach us directly, particularly when they have taken the time to research our shop and the products that we carry. If they feel their products could be a good fit with our clientèle and current products offering, we love to hear from them.”