Yup. Summer is officially over and we are entering into fall. That means that it is time to start thinking about the holidays if you haven’t already.

I know it’s still 90 degrees in some parts of the country like here in Houston, but did you know that it has already snowed in Wyoming? Christmas will be here before you know it and if you aren’t careful, it will get here before you are ready.

Every year Monica and I are shocked when Christmas arrives. We have not been ready for the demand in the past few years. For some reason, Christmas is always on the 25th of December and we are surprised that it arrives so quickly!

Not this year. This year we are determined to be ready for Christmas and be able to capitalize on the shows not only to make as much as we can, but to make others happy by helping them find the perfect gift for their favorite guy. In the past few years we have sold out of inventory and couldn’t get what we needed in time to make our products for the holiday.

This year we are determined to be ready. Here are some of the things that we are doing to make sure we can meet the demand.

Inventory

Having a lot of inventory on hand can be expensive. While we don’t necessarily want to tie up all of our money in inventory, there are things we can do to be better prepared. One of those is prepping materials where we can to more easily make the end product.

For example, making a lot of hand turned razors can get expensive when the final assembly is performed. There is capital tied up in the hardware to finish the final product. However, the handles and brushes can be turned in advance and ready for hardware that can be purchased and assembled later.

Packaging

It is extremely aggravating to run low on packaging, particularly at the end of the year when demand is high. This year we are buying packaging in advance and also tracking it closely to ensure that we can reorder in a timely manner if demand is higher than we expect.

Gift Sets

During the holidays, people are more often buying for other people than themselves. We plan on being ready by creating gift sets of our most popular products. Creating gift sets can be a great way to up sell to your customers. People want to see your products and be able to make a decision about it, but sometimes people get overwhelmed with choices. So we are going to reduce the number of choices by packaging everything together for an easy-to-pick up gift for their special guy.

Holiday Specific Display

Every year so far we have rushed to Hobby Lobby or another store to be able to purchase holiday decor to decorate our display. The result was a chaotic scene that looked like it was thrown together (maybe this is because it was). This year we are thinking about it in advance and even making holiday-specific items, such as Christmas tree ornaments to sell or make part of our gift sets.

Hopefully, Christmas won’t be a surprise this year and you will be ready as well. With a little lot of planning, you can take advantage of all the shows that are available between now and December 25th. You will also have plenty of inventory on hand to sell to all the people who will want your stuff.

This year, they aren’t changing the date. Christmas is going to be on December 25th, rain, snow, or shine. Between now and then there will be lots of people buying gifts for their loved ones. Make sure you are ready.

See you at market!