Free Trade is NOT Fair Trade

Almost every week some one I know will refer to me as a free trader. This includes store owners, teachers, accountants and magazine editors.  It happens at parties and in email exchanges.  I have had many clients broadcast on social media about Dunitz & Company's free trade efforts.  I know in their hearts and minds, when they are saying 'free trade', they absolutely mean "fair trade"!  I always do my best to correct the mistake so it isn't made again. I'm certain that my friends and colleagues are expressing their support for businesses (such as mine) that have long term supportive relationships with artisans who would otherwise lack opportunity.  Fair Trade Federation has created an excellent graphic which I have posted here.  It simply outlines how the two are different. -ND

Look Booking

Some of the most fun I've had lately is photographing our jewelry on models.  The line comes to life on the women I've hired to sport our newest styles.

I'm lucky. Because Dunitz & Company is based in Hollywood, CA, I encounter lots of actresses needing a bit of extra work.  I've met some adorable prospects at the dog park and eating at local restaurants. (Yes, many waitresses are also actresses. It's absolutely true.)

 I almost never leave my home or office without wearing a necklace or a bunch of Dunitz bracelets. It seems a bit brazen to ask this person or that person if she might consider modeling my line.  Of course I tell them about our commitment to fair trade principles. And - I show off whatever I'm wearing.  If you're too shy to do this, there's always Craiglist. -ND
 

Adopt Don't Shop

It's Halloween.  And as I was browsing Facebook and Instagram I saw lots of costumes, decorated homes and store merchandise.  What I didn't yet see was a fun photo of a Dunitz mascot.  Jump into action: Stetson our fearless red doberman. That guy will let me do anything and he doesn't complain. (Then again on this day, the art of photoshop has allowed him to coast easy.)
Stetson was adopted about five years ago. We assume he's now around 7-1/2.  My prior dog (and mascot) was Byron, a cross between a Weimaraner and a Vizsla.  He was so awesome that when the time came after his passing, I looked to adopt a similar animal.  I found Stetson on Petfinder because he was listed as a Doberman/Vizsla cross. Turns out he is pure dobie. He is the easiest, calmest and friendliest dog ever.  He is an ambassador for the Doberman breed.  Since Stetson has become part of my pack, I've become much more involved and supportive of animal rescue. If you want a big dog, little dog, old dog, young dog, puppy, mutt or pure breed - you can find a great dog (and cats too) at shelters and rescues in your area.  Information is readily available online.  I adore Stetson so much, I adopted a second Doberman, Ida. She's now 3. (She didn't wear a pumpkin today ;0.) And she too, is a very good girl.  The lesson from my experience is "Adopt Don't Shop"! Why wouldn't you? - ND

What sells?

Blue. Any shade or tint of blue. Call it anything blue. Navy. Newburyport Blue. Capri. Baby Blue. Sapphire. Whipple Blue. Buxton Blue. Ocean. Sea. Woodlawn Blue. Wedgewood Blue. Stratton Blue.  Covington Blue. Cobalt. Teal. Sky. Blue Horizon. Stream. Creek. River.
Change it up a bit and coordinate "Blue" with grey or brown. Any shade of grey. Any shade of brown.  Years of designing with color have taught me I will always sell more baubles of blue than any other color.
How not to sell blue? When exhibiting a collection, always have Orange :).  Orange sells blue! Yes, orange sells. There are those fashionistas that MUST have an accessory of orange.  I've learned the orange offerings always increase the sales of blue. - ND

Challenge: Wholesale vs Retail client desires

So ShopDunitz launched a few days ago. And I'm thrilled because the site is absolutely beautiful. The feedback has been great. We've even received a few orders.  Not bad since we have our work cut out for us in terms of promoting the site. Not only will we have the challenge of promoting the site, but the challenge of offering designs our customers choose to purchase.
Years ago we used to stage an annual holiday sale.  Friends and family of mine and our staff would drop by the offices to pick up a few gifts. I was always surprised that in a "retail" situation, customers often chose completely different designs and colors than my "wholesale/store owners" did at trade shows.  I never figured out how that could be.  It was never unusual for our 'holiday sale' shoppers to select items I could not place in retail stores.
Step ahead many years.  ShopDunitz is loaded up with goodies. We've offered some of our best sellers (in retail stores) and some things we think are gorgeous and didn't sell well at the wholesale trade shows.  The site has it all!  We're absolutely NOT going to tell you which is which.  What I can say is in the first orders we've received online, we've sold both.
Punchline. You'll love our site.  You'll find items that under other circumstances would not make it to store shelves. And our history shows that this is definitely a good thing. -ND

#ShopDunitz has launched

We've done it. And it was a long time in the making. For years I've received emails and calls from consumers from towns around the US, where Dunitz did not have brick & mortar shops offering our #fairtrade jewelry. We've tried to accommodate our fashionista followers as best we could. The truth is - it's been impossible to do so without a retail website. We've been so busy with our primary business, wholesaling our beaded and fused glass jewelry we couldn't focus on creating a retail site for our fans that can't otherwise find our designs. We knew it was going to be a lot of work creating a tasteful site that featured our goodies in a way that would make us proud. Well, we did it!  Now you can visit and ShopDunitz  - & I know you'll love what you find.  You can even use our store locator function (and possibly find a shop carrying our line in your area).  A big thank you goes out to Ross Sabes, our fearless designer.  He has an impeccable eye and visually communicated our message in a way we don't think could have been done any better.  Go to www.shopdunitz.com & let me know what you think? #shopdunitz #fairtradejewelry #360fairtrade -ND

Do You See or Feel?

When you're looking at models wearing hip clothing and/or jewelry what do you see or feel?  Do you see the items being worn?  Do you capture the "feeling" of any given shot and note the emotions it brings out in you?  Do you long to look like or feel like you think the model feels in the photo?  As a recent photographer of models wearing Dunitz & Company fair trade jewelry, I wonder what I most want to convey to my audience.  What do they want to really see and feel?
Recently I showed some of my photography to an old time Hollywood actor friend of mine.  His initial reaction was to say that I should want people to look at the jewelry and not the models.  He was afraid that models could be too pretty and distracting.  And then I reflected on so many magazine spreads I've enjoyed that seemed to merely evoke emotions - not necessarily pitch a specific item.  What do you think? -ND