Hit up the East Coast Gem Show in Springfield MA this past weekend and woweeeee.... traffic was VERY light even on Saturday which is supposed to be the busiest day.   Never have we ever had the issue where it was HARD for us to BUY (typically it's the other way- hard for us to NOT buy).   These shows are cash & carry- meaning you're taking immediates, not placing orders for future items.   Most of what was shown was old stock & picked over- it looked like the inventory on the wholesale side was left over from prior shows.   I'm not sure if this is because wholesalers are having a difficult time importing into the country (my Moroccan dealer told us it took 3 months for his most recent shipment to clear customs), or if it's the fact that sales are down and people don't have the liquidity to bring in new inventory.... or that shipping costs are thru the roof- or some combo of the 3.   I'll be headed to the 2nd largest show in the World in 3 weeks- we'll see what that show has to offer- but I'm a little scared. It's a lot of time & expensive to shop these shows, and the inventory purchase needs to make it worth our while. The upcoming Denver show is our crystal inventory now through January! Yikes!   The show's retail side looked better for those that deal primarily in specimens and 1s and 2s (that's not our market).   how are y'all seeing your markets fare? ... View more

Some days in retail are much slower than others, and I’m always looking for productive ways to use the downtime.   What tasks do you give your employees when the store is empty? Do they focus on cleaning, reorganizing displays, updating inventory, creating social media content, contacting customers, or something else?   I’d especially love to hear about tasks that have helped improve future sales or the overall customer experience. ... View more

Yesterday we were cleaning out a closet in our shop and found 5 "gratitude' candles with a burn by date of 11/2021.... whellppppp...    There goes that inventory.   This is just a real world example of how difficult it is to manage overstock location with square items/inventory. There is no place for us retailers to memorialize where items are located within the store and where overstock is. I understand we can create a spreadsheet with that information.. and I know many retailers on here that are incredibly tech proficient that have done that.   However, if Square is to be a robust retail ecosystem- they MUST solve for this.      ... View more

Hi all! I’m hoping someone might know if there’s a way to set up a promotion where a customer receives a coupon after they spend a certain amount. I’m thinking of doing a Christmas in July promotion where customers earn a coupon based on how much they spend in July, which they can then redeem during August. For example: 🎄 Spend $50 → Get a $5 coupon 🎄 Spend $100 → Get a $15 coupon 🎄 Spend $150 → Get a $25 coupon Ideally, I’d love for the coupon to be automatically issued after the qualifying purchase and only be valid during August. Has anyone set up something like this before, or know if there’s a way to do it through Square? ... View more

From article:   Under the Common Cents Act, businesses would be allowed the option to round cash transactions to the nearest nickel. A $19.82 purchase becomes $19.80 while $19.83 becomes $19.85, for example.   Canada took this approach when it phased out its penny in the early 2010s.   This would only impact cash transactions, not those in which you’re paying with a check, mobile payment, or card.   US Sellers: Have you started rounding in your business?  ... View more