Off to Miami & Other Thoughts

Kyla and I will be leaving Sunday for the National Community Action Partnership Winter Conference in Miami.  I will have committee and board meetings to attend as well as the conference.  Kyla will set up tables with our jewelry.  We have enjoyed support from our Community Action family, who stop by to check our jewelry and find a few things for themselves, family, and friends.  We appreciate the support of our network as we continue to build our jewelry business. 

2010 was a good year for Beads in a Box and SFE Jewelry.  We increased our sales, traveled to more conventions and conferences, and met so many people to tell our story.  We were able to hire two staff to help with our jewelry business.  Janice remains with us and has created two incredible websites; www.beadsinbox.com and www.sfejewelry.com  We hope that our websites will grow with increased sales this year; while we continue to discuss ways to promote and expand.

One of the decisions this year came and went within a few months.  We decided to purchase handbags to add to our product line.  It gave us another venue to expand our business.  After a few months we realized that we did not have the space to display or store a large variety of handbags; so we decided to no longer carry an inventory.  We may consider purchasing small number of handbags for special events in the future.

2011 is filled with opportunities and challenges.  We leave for the Tucson Gem & Mineral Show in late January to discover new stones and shapes to create one-of-a-kind heirloom quality pieces for Beads in a Box.  We will also check out new vendors for our Something for Everyone (sfejewelry) jewelry.  We plan to establish an advisory group to provide guidance, support, and opportunities for our jewelry.

We want to thank all those who seek out and wear our jewelry.  Your purchases help us move forward in our plans to expand to include a wholesale business that will train and hire single heads of households working two or more jobs to support their families.  We are looking forward to developing our Untapped Potential line of jewelry; that will be sold to gift stores, museums, and small businesses.

As we continue our journey we hope that you continue to support us through your purchases of our jewelry, your promotion to others, and your suggestions for new venues to showcase our jewelry.

Wishing you all a Happy 2011,
             For Now,
                           Karen