Tag Archives: Shopping

What Can You Expect To Find In A Shopping Village

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A village can be described as a small community with a clustered population that is up to no more than a few tens of thousands. There are normally a few activities available in the community, and it was originally used to denote inhabitants of rural areas. In recent times the terminology has been used applied to urban areas to depict the benefits and harmony that come from living in smaller communities, as opposed to the isolation that can be prevalent in urban areas. As far as shopping is concerned, do not expect to find the large chain department stores in a shopping village, as it is anathema, and goes against the grain of the concept of a shopping village.

In a typical shopping village you may find a collection of outlets of the larger department stores, but the cozy village atmosphere is used to create the communal atmosphere. Your are more than likely to find an eclectic mix of privately owned stores, along with family owned services such as restaurants, and coffee shops, or snack bars. A large number of the facilities within the shopping village may be dedicated to communal activities, however despite being close-knit; there are still very little signs of exclusivity.

Although the scale of commercial activity is limited, your are sure to find classic boutiques in almost every shopping village. The boutique offer specials merchandise to select client and it is this aspect that creates interesting mix of shopping experiences. There will be limited opportunities for one-stop shopping, and visitors will need to visit different types of stores for different items.

The villages can be located almost anywhere. You may find them in rural areas, but current city planning methods now point to the development of villages that cater to shoppers, on the outskirts or border of larger metropolitan areas. Although shopping may appear to be the main attraction, you may also find attractions, and it is close to the metropolitan area, you may also find some nightlife. You can also have access to the nightlife with short travel to nearby urban areas.

With close proximity to nearby metropolitan areas, the village is easily accessible to local residents, as well as those who may be interested in shopping trips. Without the infrastructure for heavy industrialization, which is not needed in rural areas, visitors will find lower cost operations such as Antique shops that seem to be a perfect fit for the surroundings. Antique collectors; appear to enjoy the experience involved in collecting pieces in less-traveled places.

No village is complete without a favorite family owned restaurant, where the owner may also be the chef, whom you can get to know personally. You can have meals prepared just as you like it. It is almost as having your own personal chef.

Craft shops and bake shops are popular outlets in many villages, as well as shops that offer personally crafted care products, such as soap and lotions. The lure of the shopping village, is that shoppers can readily receive personalized attention and services as there is less need for mass production or quicker turnover.

Woven Reusable Shopping Bags As A Marketing Tool

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For decades businesses have used the grocery bag as a means for branding, raising product awareness and other marketing purposes. In the past we could see this marketing tool in action on a daily basis at the supermarket, where every bag had a logo of the store printed on it. This in turn makes for great advertising for this store, and it is a common practice we still see every day, but the medium itself; the shopping bag has changed. With more and more stores making the transition from disposable to reusable shopping bags, the opportunities for shopping totes as a marketing tool have increased dramatically.

Where marketing through other channels like Television, Radio or even the Internet, can costs thousands if not millions of dollars, using shopping bags is a relative cost effective means to reach that same target audience at a far lesser expense.

With the introduction of the reusable woven polypropylene (PP) bag, this concept just became a lot cheaper, while remaining just as effective, if not more effective as a marketing tool. The keyword in this concept is durability. Because people can use reusable shopping bags over and over again, the same audience is reached for the branding and marketing purposes as with the disposable shopping bags, only using far less shopping bags, which cuts down in expenses for printing the logos, product names or brand names on the woven bags.

Another advantage of reusable woven polypropylene grocery bags is the fact that they are actually cheaper to manufacture, so companies are looking at double savings. They save on costs when purchasing wholesale reusable bags and the save on expenses again, because they need fewer of them then if they were purchasing the classic disposable grocery bags.

Every woven shopping bag manufacturer can testify that woven polypropylene shopping totes are every bit as flexible as the regular kind of disposable grocery bag. They can be manufactured in just about any shape, size or color, and just like the disposable variety, the material is suitable to print on.

When it is taken into account that woven polypropylene shopping totes are also more environmentally friendly, there really is no reason at all, not to make the switch and replace all the disposable shopping bags and grocery bags for this more durable and more cost effective version.

With all advantages as mentioned above in mind, and no real disadvantages to speak off, it is hard to believe that there still are stores out there offering the polluting disposable shopping tote. Fortunately governments have recognized this as well, and many countries are now implementing programs to sponsor and promote the use of woven polypropylene shopping bags, in order to motivate store owners to make the switch.

That governmental involvement works can be seen by looking at the increased demand for woven polypropylene shopping bags on a yearly basis. Ever since this type of reusable shopping bag was introduced, production and demand for the product has been increasing and for now it looks like this trend is here to stay at least for a few more years to come.

Woven Reusable Shopping Bags As A Marketing Tool

Posted on by

For decades businesses have used the grocery bag as a means for branding, raising product awareness and other marketing purposes. In the past we could see this marketing tool in action on a daily basis at the supermarket, where every bag had a logo of the store printed on it. This in turn makes for great advertising for this store, and it is a common practice we still see every day, but the medium itself; the shopping bag has changed. With more and more stores making the transition from disposable to reusable shopping bags, the opportunities for shopping totes as a marketing tool have increased dramatically.

Where marketing through other channels like Television, Radio or even the Internet, can costs thousands if not millions of dollars, using shopping bags is a relative cost effective means to reach that same target audience at a far lesser expense.

With the introduction of the reusable woven polypropylene (PP) bag, this concept just became a lot cheaper, while remaining just as effective, if not more effective as a marketing tool. The keyword in this concept is durability. Because people can use reusable shopping bags over and over again, the same audience is reached for the branding and marketing purposes as with the disposable shopping bags, only using far less shopping bags, which cuts down in expenses for printing the logos, product names or brand names on the woven bags.

Another advantage of reusable woven polypropylene grocery bags is the fact that they are actually cheaper to manufacture, so companies are looking at double savings. They save on costs when purchasing wholesale reusable bags and the save on expenses again, because they need fewer of them then if they were purchasing the classic disposable grocery bags.

Every woven shopping bag manufacturer can testify that woven polypropylene shopping totes are every bit as flexible as the regular kind of disposable grocery bag. They can be manufactured in just about any shape, size or color, and just like the disposable variety, the material is suitable to print on.

When it is taken into account that woven polypropylene shopping totes are also more environmentally friendly, there really is no reason at all, not to make the switch and replace all the disposable shopping bags and grocery bags for this more durable and more cost effective version.

With all advantages as mentioned above in mind, and no real disadvantages to speak off, it is hard to believe that there still are stores out there offering the polluting disposable shopping tote. Fortunately governments have recognized this as well, and many countries are now implementing programs to sponsor and promote the use of woven polypropylene shopping bags, in order to motivate store owners to make the switch.

That governmental involvement works can be seen by looking at the increased demand for woven polypropylene shopping bags on a yearly basis. Ever since this type of reusable shopping bag was introduced, production and demand for the product has been increasing and for now it looks like this trend is here to stay at least for a few more years to come.

Advice for Online Christmas Shopping

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Let us face it! The stores’ customers are getting way too negative when it comes to the so-called “Christmas Spirit.” I have seen fights break out over the popular, low stocked and under distributed video game system.

Now, stores are virtual and on your desktop, laptop, touch-screen, mobile phone, etc. Wherever your are, you can shop. When an idea hits you, you can search for it without having to call from store to store or drive all over town. If these guys fighting over the video game ordered or even pre-ordered their system online, they would not have had to spend some of their time in jail. Of course there is no promise of the item being in stock, even online but most site allow you to put your information in and be charged only when the item comes in stock and is being sent to you. In this case, you should get an e-mail confirmation. We have provided some tips to help make your MORE pleasant shopping season stay pleasant AND SAFE.

1. Preparation; Even though you are not going shopping out in the real world, you still need to take a few of the same preparations. LISTS! Make sure you have a list of the people you want to buy for. It will help by jotting down ideas of the items they would like. This will help you build your complete “shopping cart” in each online store before completing your purchase. Make sure you have everything that store offers so that you can keep yoour shipping cost(s) as low as possible. Many times, a shipping fee is waived if your purchase total exceeds a certain amount.

2. Be Early; Again, some of the traditions stay whether you shop in a physical or a virtual store. You should begin early, and being at home (after the kids have gone to bed) makes it a little easier. Although online stores generally keep a large stock of merchandise, they can still sell out. As mentioned earlier, no store can have and endless stock of the most popular and brand new video game system. As Christmas comes closer and closer, the shopping volume of both physical and virtual stores increase.

3. Security; Just as physical stores’ Christmas shopping draws out thieves and pick-pockets, virtual shopping bring out identity thieves. If you have to type in much information in a store or create an account, make sure your information is entered in on a secure page. Another precaution you can take is not to enter in credit card or bank information on a Wi-Fi connection. All it takes is a laptop near your computer (whether in your house, or at the coffee shop) who has a program locked on your computer’s activity. They can read everything you do. Do your purchase on a computer connected to a hard line. Check to see if the particular store you are shopping has been reviewed.

4. Wrapping Services; Wrapping takes a lot of time and although you may save time by shopping online, lets face it, we find other things to occupy us. Besides, when a package is delivered, it can be impossible to sneak it by the kids. So look for a wrapping service. Most stores will have them around Christmas. Some even have them year round.

5. Delivery Date; This is a reason to start early. Sometimes, a few items (popular items especially) will go on backorder status. Not only are they out of stock, but they already have a list of purchases to be sent when it is available. Normally, they can calculate when the item will be in stock and when it can be delivered.

6. Card Services; It is easy to forget a select few people to send a card to. There are services available to prevent this situation. Just type in the name and address of the people you want to send to, choose a theme and they will take care of the rest.

There you have it. Otherwise, just shop around and compare prices as you would in a physical store.