Brooklyn's Progress
January 2001

Brooklyn Body & Soul, BGG’s personal care products program, in conjunction with its newly launched but un-named gift industry initiative, debuted at the AmericasMart show in Atlanta, last month. AmericasMart is the USA’s largest gift products show and attracts over 50,000 buyers. BGG’s booth featured six dynamic gift products makers including Elseware, producers of chained hanging soaps; Star Candle, manufacturers of scented candles; I Luiza, maker of natural hand-made soaps; Tasty, designer of clocks and funky T-shirts; Your Sister’s Mustache, designer of women’s and home accessories made from recycled newspapers, and Tyed Thru Tyme, designers of glamorous home accessories. Three orders were generated for show participants. Brooklyn Body & Soul exhibitor Elseware received an order from the Marriott Hotels chain with the potential of residual sales and two more orders were facilitated for Brooklyn designer Tasty. Janet Villano of Elseware is pleased with the results of the show especially the order form the Marriott International Inc. “We very much appreciate BGG’s trade show service. As a small company we could not afford to do a show by ourselves. We would like to continue doing joint shows with BGG, an organization we trust,” said Villano. The Brooklyn Goes Global booth drew buyers from around the country including big names like the Marriott Hotels International and the Graceland Division of the Elvis Presley Enterprises. In addition, smaller boutiques mainly from the South and the Mid-West expressed interest in Brooklyn-made gift ideas. AmericasMart, like any other trade show, also provides an excellent forum to explore other sales opportunities. Three BGG clients who traveled to Atlanta to join BGG staff at the show met with reputable gift products representatives and assessed representation possibilities in Atlanta showrooms. “Brooklyn is home to many very talented gift designers and manufacturers with enormous sales potential. It is important that BGG helps these small firms to grow their business through marketing assistance and access to buyers. A collaborative Brooklyn effort makes them more competitive” says BGG’s Joern Lohmann who runs this new initiative. BGG’s gift industry program specifically targets the domestic and international sales, marketing and research needs of Brooklyn’s gift and personal care products producers. Brooklyn Body & Soul and the gift initiative have other projects in the works, such as the development of a virtual catalog and the participation at further trade shows. At the present time, BGG is exploring the participation at the San Francisco International Gift Fair (SFIGF), Dallas Gift Show and SANA, one of Europe’s largest natural personal care products shows. For more information on Brooklyn Body & Soul and BGG’s gift market initiative, please contact Joern Lohmann at 718-875-1000, ext. 109, or jlohmann@brooklynchamber.com.