Back in ABQ

Coming out of the airport the first face I see is Max. He's so excited I can't get him back so I can open the door. Once inside he sits on my lap the whole way home.

It got a little busy so I missed some notes but Sal with Santosha.com came by and we had a nice talk. We might try and do a Kodo demonstration in the future at his shop in Long Island.

The last day we visted the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx and had lunch with my buddy Roseanne from Sunrose. She took us to a little Italian spot in a residential area of North Bronx. The food was fantastic!

It's good to be home and I spent today catching up the books and shipping orders.

Dinner with Sensia

Last night we went to dinner with Cindy, Kate, and their friend Gary at the Topaz Thai Restaurant. Of course we had a great time!

David Oller
From Treo mobile

Nippon Kodo & Esteban

Went over to visit with Masashi (Masa) Kanamori with Nippon Kodo at the Esteban booth.

Kyozaburo Nakata and Masa Kanamori.

We always enjoy speaking with Masa. He is one of those people everyone likes! This time he is working the Esteban booth in the Home & Decor section.

Nippon Kodo Booth

Shoyeido Booth

Yesterday I went to visit Shoyeido and say hello to Akinori Okumura. Okumura San came by the first year we came to New York and he is a very likeable gentleman who we enjoy very much. He loves Shoyeido, of course, and can answer any question about their products.

Shoyeido Booth

Later Okumura San returned the visit. My camera was being difficult so he and Lisa had a good laugh.

NYIGF – Day 2 Cont.

Lisa showed up this morning and guess what?

Then she read the blog and laughed. . .before she went back to arranging.

Before long long Shimomura San came to visit us and he brought with him Masaki Ito with the Awaji City Society of Commerce and Industry and Masashi Tsukuda with the Hyogo Prefecture Incense Cooperative. They are here to support the Awaji Islands incense makers. 

Lastly, Nakata San and I went to Guantanamera Cuban restaurant on Eight Avenue  just North of 57th. st. Great Paella. There website is http://www.guantanameranyc.com

NYIGF Day 2

A quick breakfast at the hotel Starbucks and we're off to the Javits Center . . . We thought!
You think someone would mention the NY marathon was heading down 7th ave. (where we catch the bus) so the hotel suggested we try 6th, and after wandering around 6th for a spell a bus did wander by. The driver was as surprised and not sure where to go as well.

I guess it's natural a small event like the NYC marathon would slip in under the radar.
David Oller
From Treo mobile

Visiting Japan Incense

One of the best parts of doing the show is visiting with old friends, so after setting up the booth so Lisa can re-arrange it we went over to say hello to Kotaro and Jay of Japan Incense and Kohshi Incense Store in San Francisco’s Japan Town,  great place by the way, I don’t think there is any question that looking for things Japanese,  San Francisco’s “Japan Town” has no peers in the USA.

Kotaro and Jay are featuring incense made in Japan, and Nakata and I had the pleasure to meet Mr. Yasunori Nakashima of Seikundo Co. located on Kyushu Island and Mr.  Chosaku Shimomura of Daihatsu Incense Co. on Awaji Island.

Jay Cowan, Shimomura San, Nakashima San,  Nakata San, and Kotaro Sugimoto.

Here is a small example of some of the products they represent.

If you are attending the show you should definitely visit their booth #2255 and if your not at the show visit their website at http://www.japanincense.com

View from The Stores

Looking out across Columbus Circle
At the South end of Central Park.

We had a light dinner of bread, sopressata, and fruit at Whole Foods grocery followed by a short walk through the park.

David Oller
From Treo mobile

NYIGF – First Day – Set Up

Well, of course, the first thing we did was show up!

This is the entrance to the Javits main building. Setting up is a ritual Nakata San and I go through before Lisa shows up tomorrow and changes everything we did, of course it will be better after she finishes because she is better at arranging things than we are. Now it would seem to make sense to have her here today, but frankly it wouldn’t be as much fun!

This is Mizuho with Jetro (Japan External Trade Organization) She helps us with almost anything and is a real pleasure to work with.

Dinner at Topaz

We discovered this Thai restaurant on our last visit. Great food and Tom Yum soup.

Kyozaburo Nakata & David Oller


David Oller
From Treo mobile

Albuquerque Airport

This is the Albuquerque Airport at 4:00 AM. Not a really busy place and you can't even get a cup of coffee

Test

Just testing, but since it worked, here is a pic of the ingredients display at the last show.



David Oller
From Treo mobile

Twitter updates on NYIGF

Keep an eye on the Twitter posts on the right sidebar, or go to our Twitter page for updates as we head for the New York International Gift Fair.

New York International Gift Fair

It is getting close, in fact my bags are already packed and I’m tying up the loose ends now. I plan to take better cameras this time and possibly do some blogging of the show.

We’ll see how it works out!

If your registered as a retailer to visit the show please stop by booth 2881 and say hello, hola, ohayou, dia duit, salut, tag, yia-sou, etc.

David

New York International Gift Fair

It’s that time again! If you are a retailer and ,have never been to the New York International Gift Show, and you will be in New York City, or you can arrange to be in NYC, around the middle of August then you may want to come and visit us. If you are a retail store you can register in advance for no charge at the shows webpage http://www.nyigf.com

We will be in the same booth (2881) in the main building. While you’re there Japan Incense from San Francisco, Nippon Kodo, and Shoyeido will all be there showing their newest products and current offerings.

From Winter Show.

Tokiyoshi Nakata with Baieido will be there, as well as Lisa Asari and myself.

Look forward to seeing you!

Mint Incense

Baieido just announced a new "Imagine" incense that will be introduced early summer. It will combine the aromas of both Spearmint and Peppermint. I haven't been able to smell it yet, but I'll let you know when I do.

David