Happy New Year!

 

Another year has come and gone and each one seems to go by quicker than the one before! As we pause to reflect on 2021, we are very grateful and excited about our accomplishments:

• ·       Joined the Junkin’ Sisters Shop Hop Tour (and we plan to continue this partnership in 2022!)
• ·       Partnered with FHS Business classes to research and select a point of sale system. We are working on implementing the system as we speak! Soon you will experience a new checkout and receipt process in store!
• ·       Selected as 2021 Retailer of the Year by the Fairfield Area Chamber of Commerce
• ·       Featured in the Iowa Secretary of State’s Salute to Small Businesses.
• ·       Participated in the revival of Fairfield’s Fiesta Days
• ·       Started process to revamp our website (look for a new site this spring!)

We are thankful to see some business practices returning to pre-COVID processes. Although shipping and supply chain issues remain, we continue to work with our sales reps to identify new products, old favorites and American-made items. We are in the process of ordering our 2022 Holiday merchandise and that process will continue throughout January.

Pandora and Mariana jewelry continue to be two of our main products lines in the store. Pandora continues to create new collections and styles to keep the line fresh. We know you will love the new pieces available soon for Valentine’s Day and the Mariana spring collection should arrive in store late February  - early March.

Thank you for shopping local and being part of the Adela’s family.

We can’t wait to see what 2022 brings for all of us!

Happy New Year! 

Fall is Almost Here!

Fall is fast approaching and we are excited for cooler temperatures and changing colors. When the seasons change, so does our inventory. While we are experiencing shipping delays and supply chain issues, we are still receiving orders with new products weekly. We are trying to be patient this year as some items aren't arriving as early as we wanted. We have received some of our holiday products but the bulk of our items are still in transit. In the retail world, we are hearing stories of low inventory and difficulties with shipping and receiving orders. We remain optimistic that most of our holiday merchandise will be here in store and we know you will love it! 

We were involved in reviving Fairfield's traditional Fiesta Days event last month. For those of you who aren't familiar, Fiesta Days was held from the 1960s through 1990s and featured sidewalk sales throughout the downtown area. We want to thank all of you who came out and shopped and supported our local businesses! We had a great turnout and enjoyed hearing all the memories and stories about Fiesta Days and stores that some of us grew up shopping in. We look forward to helping our fellow businesses build on this event in 2022. 

We are excited to be participating in the Junkin' Sisters Shop Hop - Fall Edition Event, September 17-18. You may remember we participated in the Spring Shop Hop in April. These type of road trip shopping events bring new shoppers to our community and help us expand our customer base for our store. We also get to see new stores and pick up ideas from other business owners. Make plans to shop with us and other local businesses throughout Southeast Iowa. Follow Junkin' Sisters Shop Hop on Facebook to see a complete listing of participating stores and to view the route map. We will also host our Fall Open House during this weekend and have specials throughout the store.

Pandora continues to astound us with new designs and styles. Our sales rep was here last week showing us the new Holiday Collection + Pandora Me relaunch. Let's just say you might need a really large sheet of paper for your wish lists this year! Look for a Pandora free bangle promotion in September. 

Nora Fleming is one of our product lines that has experienced unprecedented growth and popularity during the last 18 months. And it has definitely experienced delays with the shipping and supply chain issues. New minis should be arriving sometime this month. We continue to carry the full line of minis and serving pieces. New keepsake boxes for storing your minis will also be here in September. 

Nothing signals fall and holiday time like Thymes Frasier Fir products. Our items should be in store within the next two weeks - stay tuned to our Facebook page and emails for notices on what is in stock. The oil refills and counter spray are the most popular products and tend to sell out first. Like most other seasonal merchandise, once these products are gone, they are gone until next year. 

We want you to know how much we appreciate your support and patronage. Your safety is very important to us. We continue to monitor CDC recommendations and Public Heath information and continue to operate with safety and cleaning protocols to keep our store safe for all. We are not requiring masks at this time, but encourage those who feel more comfortable wearing them in our store to do so. We are still offering curbside pickup, shipping, local delivery and private appointment shopping. Simply call us to make arrangements. We hope the situation continues to improve and will continue to monitor developments to see if we need to make any safety changes in the future. 

As always, thank you for being an Adela's fan - we appreciate your business & we love seeing pictures of your purchases and hearing stories of your favorite items! We hope to see you in store behind the red door soon! 

Upcoming Events:

August 25-September 6: Free gift with Pandora $125 purchase

September 17-18: Junkin' Sisters Shop Hop Fall Edition: special hours: 9 AM - 6 PM

September 23-27: Pandora Bracelet Event - stay tuned for more details

Marching On!

March is here and spring is so close we can see it! At least inside the store we can! Bright spring florals, new wall hangings and gift items are rolling into the store almost every day now. Can you believe it’s been almost a year since life as we knew it changed and we found ourselves at home? We persevered through the year with your support and love! From our virtual shopping to curbside pickup and porch deliveries, you embraced the situation and stuck with us to make sure we would still be here in 2021 and for years to come! Speaking of 2021, we are celebrating 15 years in business this year. Look for more events and specials to celebrate with us all year long!

We have completed our buying for the Fall and Christmas seasons. Typically this is done in January, but with virtual market appointments this year, the process changed a bit! We are so excited for all the great items we found to bring to you. We strive to find unique products you won’t easily find elsewhere and source as many local and USA made items as we can find. Covid has changed the game for sourcing and purchasing items. We didn’t see much of an impact in 2020, but 2021 has brought slower shipping timeframes and product shortages that we hope are temporary. The good news is our Spring merchandise is arriving in phases instead of all at once so the shop will continue to change over the coming weeks.

We are working on a line of product videos to showcase our tried-and-true brands that have been with us for some time now. Tune into our Facebook and Instagram pages to learn more about the lines we carry and how they can help you decorate, style and add some happy to your home!

Pandora is one of our long-standing partners and we are thrilled with their new product releases. New in store this week is their Garden Collection – nature, flowers and bright colors highlight this collection. And for the Disney collectors, a new Alice in Wonderland line brings a sense of whimsy that is perfect for your bracelets and O pendants. Our sneak peak of the Mother’s Day Collection also has us anxious for May! Pandora continues to step up their game and bring it! Stay tuned for more exciting product rollouts in 2021.

It was just three years ago I purchased Adela’s and while a few things have changed around the store, we hope you agree the experience and service hasn’t changed from what you were used to. We still offer complimentary gift wrapping, we still offer personalized service and assistance. We continue to offer curbside pickup and local delivery. In 2020, we added an online shopping tool to our website and Facebook site, and will continue to expand and improve it in 2021. Nationally, retail is seeing a great surge and the shop local, shop small movement has never been more popular. We are grateful to benefit from both trends. We are thankful to be in a small community where we can be a partner to local organizations and causes and where our customers are part of our family!

Enjoy this beautiful weather that is coming our way and stop in to say hi and check out all our new treasures behind the red door soon!

 

2020: What We Learned

2020 was a challenging year to say the least. While there are aspects we would like to forget, there were some positives along the way. Here are just a few of the things we learned in 2020: 

1.     Our customers are hands down THE BEST! You stuck with us through thick and thin. You responded to our video shopping events, our Facebook and Instagram posts. You called to shop. You embraced curbside pickup. You wore (and continue to wear) your masks. You bought gift cards. You sent gifts to friends and family near and far. You loved on us. You told your friends about us. You shared our story. You made sure we would be around in 2021 and beyond. 

2. We learned to do business in new ways – very quickly. An online store had been on our list for a couple years (ok – since 2018 when I bought the store). The spring shutdown left us no choice but to dig in, figure it out, and get it up and running. It continues to be a work in progress and we are excited to continue building it in 2021. 

3. Live selling on social media is fun! We were nervous when we started (and still are), but add a theme, a cocktail, corny jokes, your cute family, and away we go! Special thanks to Terry @ Visit Fairfield for getting the ball rolling on the Facebook Live Events. Look for more of these in 2021, just because they are fun to do and we have some fans outside of Fairfield we want to interact with! 

4. Our business community is awesome. When the shutdown happened, several businesses in town rallied around us and other retailers and restaurants. They purchased gift cards to give away in prize drawings, as well as partnering with the Chamber of Commerce to offer deals on Chamber Bucks. This infusion of cash and business came at just the right time! 

5. Adela’s is more than a store. I’ve known this since before I bought the store. Dorian always said many tears and stories were shared across the counter. That has continued this year and we are humbled that our store is a place of joy and solace for so many. Retail therapy isn’t about making a purchase (although we appreciate that!), it’s the calm and peace and joy you feel when you walk through the store. We hope if you are having a bad day, you see a quirky sign or a beautiful Pandora charm and it perks you up a bit! Our customers share their lives with us and we are privileged to have your trust and support.  

So what’s next? What are we planning for 2021?

2021 marks the 15th Year of Adela’s!  

Here are a few things we have planned for 2021:

• More videos showcasing our product lines and the stories behind the creators.

• Seasonal digital catalogs featuring new arrivals throughout the year

• New designs and items from your traditional favorites like Studio M Garden Art Poles, Mudpie  Home & Dishware, Sullivan’s Florals and much, much more! 

• New finds including: leather upcycled handbags, more Fairfield items, fashion jewelry, more baby gift items, and much more that we can’t share quite yet! 

We want to say thank you to our seasonal holiday staff: Judy & Dorian. These ladies stepped in and helped us and our customers during the busiest season of the year. And kudos to Grace and Audra. These ladies all make my life easier! It takes all of us to run the store! I am lucky to have such a wonderful team! 

Finally, as we pause to reflect and regroup for another year, we are ending 2020 on a note of gratitude and appreciation. We are pretty lucky. 

Holiday Season is Here!

Yes, you read that headline correctly – holiday season is here – and yes, we know it’s only October. We’ve had customers shopping for Christmas presents for a couple months now. We are continuing to transition the store over for winter and Christmas. We have just a bit of Fall and Halloween items left in store and those are 40% off through the end of October.

As we ramp up for our busiest time of year, we want to again say THANK YOU! 2020 has been anything but typical or normal and you all have been so supportive of Adela’s, we want to make sure you feel appreciated! Stay tuned for a special savings opportunity tied to our Holiday Open House, November 5-7. We love how much you read our emails, blogs and social media posts. We enjoy connecting with each of you – we not only share gift and décor ideas, but laughs and tears!

Many of you are Black Friday Shoppers and you may be familiar with Pandora offering great deals on Black Friday. Black Friday will look a little different this year, but don’t worry – Pandora will have something special for you – stay tuned for more info on savings and deals in November.

Speaking of shopping, there are several ways you can shop with Adela’s, if you feel comfortable and are healthy, you can shop in store during our normal store hours – Monday through Friday – 9:30 am to 5 pm and Saturdays 9:30 am to 4 pm. You can also shop through Facebook and our website www.adelasfinegifts.com . Want to come in but are worried about crowds? Call us to make an appointment before or after regular store hours or schedule a FaceTime shopping appointment! We are here for you to help you add special pieces to your home or office for the holiday season and to help you shop for everyone on your list. We continue to offer curbside pickup and free local delivery, in addition to our complimentary gift wrapping. Our team members wear masks when customers are present and we recommend customers also wear them. We clean and sanitize like crazy and encourage social distancing.

For Christmas this year, we focused on seven themes: Cardinals, Nordic/Ski Lodge, Nutcracker, Snowmen, Santa, Vintage Cocktail Party, and lastly – anything else we saw at Market and thought you would love! We have returning favorites in new designs: garden art poles, snow globes and water lanterns, Santas with colorful coats, light up canvases, TONS of trees in all sizes, ornaments for grandparents and new babies and GIANT jingle bells which will be debuting on our porch very soon.

We will be participating in Visit Fairfield’s FA-LA-LA Fairfield Live Shopping Event on October 23 and showcasing all the Christmas themes and giving you gift ideas. Did we mention all the new items in our baby room? New gift gown and onesie sets, books, plush toys and more!

As we close out October, here are a few important dates to keep in mind!

Now through October 31: Save 40% on remaining Fall and Halloween Items

October 23: Facebook Live – FA-LA-LA Fairfield, sponsored by Visit Fairfield – Live at 6 p.m. cst.

November 5-7: Holiday Open House with special savings and extended hours

Also coming in November: Black Friday specials

December 4-5: Shop & Be Merry, sponsored by Visit Fairfield

We also have some new marketing plans on the horizon for the season. Soon you will notice a new graphic on our billboard, east of Fairfield on Highway 34. We are also participating in KTVO’s 12 Days of Christmas Giveaways – follow KTVO on Facebook and visit their website at www.ktvo.com  to follow along and enter to win! We are also filming a new commercial that will air on Ottumwa Radio’s Facebook page.

If we can help make the holidays more special for you or anyone on your list, please let us know! We love to shop with you and for you! We added Judy Cox to our team in earlier this month and Dorian Atwood will be in helping out during the holidays as well.  We want to wish you a safe, healthy and happy holiday season. Thank you for supporting Adela’s and our entire team.

All the best to you and yours!

Kara & Team (Grace, Audra, Judy & Dorian)

It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.

“It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.” I’m not sure if any other 12 words strung together could describe this year any better! It has been a little bit since our last blog post, and we have so many updates for you - so here goes!

Yes, we are OPEN! We have been fully open for a few weeks now. We continue to socially distance, clean & disinfect and wear our masks. Masks are still optional for our customers in store. We have returned to our regular hours of Monday-Friday 9:30 am to 5:00 pm and Saturdays 9:30 am to 4:00 pm. We are posting regularly to Facebook & Instagram with new products, events, and specials. You may have noticed we created an online store with some of our best selling products – you can shop there 24/7 via our website: www.adelasfinegifts.com . Need ideas or want to narrow your search before coming in? Just message us or call us and we can send you pictures and gather up ideas to make your visit more efficient. We are still offering curbside pickup, free local delivery, and shipping to meet any of your shopping and gifting needs. And of course, we still offer complimentary gift wrapping!

One question we continue to hear is, “how are you doing?” “Is the store ok?” Our answer is – “we are getting through it like everyone else and yes, the store is great!” Is it like it normally is? No, but it is better than we thought it would be when this all started back in March. One HUGE reason why is YOU! Our customers and community are awesome supporters! We cannot say thank you enough to all of you for shopping, calling, visiting, following us on social media and sharing our posts. All of it contributes to our success! So, thank you! We would not be here without your support! And if you are missing our Facebook Live Videos, don’t despair, those will return closer to holiday time.

You may wonder how all of this has affected our inventory and product offerings. The quick answer is, not very much. We continue to order and receive shipments. We had completed most of this year’s ordering at Market in Atlanta in January. All indication from our vendors and partners is that holiday shipments will be on time and minimally impacted (so far). We continue to source more products that are made in the USA, like our Studio M Garden Posts. Those have been our #1 seller this season and we have more on the way – and by the way – they have new posts for Halloween, Fall and Christmas coming soon! You are sure to love them!

Pandora continues to blow our socks off with new styles and designs. In July, we are partnering with them in their “Thank You Campaign.” Buy any bracelet $65 value or more and receive a FREE Thank You/ United Together charm. We only have a few of these, so don’t wait too long! Also new are more Pandora Me designs and sports charms – tennis & badminton. New Harry Potter designs are coming in July. Keep an eye on our social media – this is the 20^th Anniversary of Pandora and there are fantastic pieces being released in the next few months. We predict your wish list will be long!

Speaking of sparkle- Mariana is also releasing new collections. We anticipate having these new styles and colors in store by Fall – just in time for holiday gifting! We hope to host another Trunk Show with a fabulous promotion in October.

We are making way for our fall merchandise, so all our current florals and greenery pieces, including our adorable succulents are now 50% off through July 8^th. Yes, we said fall! We have a great selection of fall items, including Halloween & Thanksgiving, on their way. You will begin to see these pop up in store in late July. Our remaining Patriotic decor is also 30% off this week. 

Fourth quarter is the super bowl of retail and we are already planning for the winter and Christmas season. You may have noticed our posts about themes. We typically buy products based on 5-6 themes. Our 2020 themes include: Mid-Century Modern/Vintage Cocktail, Gnomes, Nordic, Snowmen, Nutcracker/Sugar Plum Fairy, Cardinals, Santa Red and all other cute things we find! Ok, that’s more than six themes, but there was so much fun stuff to choose from this year! And wait until you see all the gifts and serving pieces from Mudpie. They continue to be one of our favorite brands. Gifts for her, gifts for him, hostess gifts, office gifts and plenty for your home.

Speaking of office gifts, if you have a group you need to find gifts for, let us know. We love to work with our customers on sourcing and packaging gift baskets/items for their coworkers! Give us a budget and a couple of things they like, and we’ll take it from there!

Our in-store events are a little uncertain right now, but we do hope to have a Fall Open House, Pandora Anniversary Event and Holiday Open House later this year. We will keep you posted.

Speaking of events, we also hope to host our Annual Porch Sale – save the date for September 18^th and 19^th. Also watch for our kids’ room sale later in July. We are reimagining our kids’ room and discontinuing some of the lines to make space for others. We can assure you we will still have great gifts, toys, and blankets for the little ones. New items for that space are already on their way, so we will be deeply discounting some items to make room!

I’ve said it before, when I bought this store a little over two years ago, I really had no idea what I was getting into. I have been overwhelmed with support from our customers and vendors over these last couple months and I am not sure I can ever show my full appreciation to all of you. You may never know how much your support has meant to me, our staff, this store, this legacy. So again, thank you for supporting everything we are doing behind the red door. 

Here’s to great times ahead! See you soon! And thank you! 

Kara

Welcome to the era of "What Day is It?"

It has been quite some time since I sat down and wrote a blog post. There's so much to say and yet nothing to say during this unusual space we are in. Some of you are working from home, some are on the frontlines, some are continuing to go into the office, some are trying to wrangle your kids more than ever and most of us are unsure which day of the week it is! 

As you know, we closed the storefront to the public last week. We are still searching for a balance of public safety and running a business. I'm at the store each day for a couple hours to respond to appointments, phone and online orders and you all have been amazing! Our business like others has taken a hit and will continue to for some time, but your loyalty and support is certainly helping us better weather this storm.

It's strange that a crisis like this forces or rather encourages us to work on projects we've put off and reach out (virtually) to friends and family we've missed spending time with. I know a lot of you are organizing closets and cleaning every inch of your house. At the store, we are painting, cleaning and organizing inventory to make the most of the time. If you follow us on Facebook, you may have seen my son's videos in the store. I have drafted his help with marketing as part of his home-school lesson plan! This situation also forced me to create Adela's Online Store, which had been on my to-do list for almost 2 years! That's right - you can shop some of the store at www.adelasfinegifts.com  or via Facebook. And you can purchase Adela's gift cards there as well! 

This situation has affected all of us differently and it has so many layers. For me, I am worried of course about my husband and son. My son doesn't fully understand why he can't have his cousin over to play everyday and he's missing baseball and soccer. My husband has asthma and is still going to work everyday. My mother has diabetes and has been good about abiding by our wishes for her to stay home. I have other family members and friends who have been laid off from their jobs and I know many of us are worried about paying bills and maintaining some sense of normalcy. And on top of that, I add the store. Of course like others, I'm worried about the toll this will take on the store, but I also miss all of you and wonder how you are all fairing during all of this. 

Ok, enough of that. We are strong and together we will get through this. There is so much to look forward to. We still have merchandise arriving for spring and summer and believe it or not, Christmas items should start shipping in another month or two. Once we are reopened, we will have so many new and awesome things to show you! And let's face it, after all the organizing and cleaning you've been doing, you'll have some empty spaces for new treasures! 

So for now, take care of yourselves and your family, friends & neighbors. Shop and eat local as much as you can. I know my fellow small business owners need it and appreciate it. Keep following us on Facebook and Instagram. Check out our website store. Call us if you need anything - people are still celebrating birthdays, anniversaries, births,  and other life milestones and we can help you find a little something to let them know you are thinking of them. Even more so during something like this, we are grateful and thankful to be part of this kind community. 

Call us at (641) 472-1824 or message us via Facebook or email (adelas@iowatelecom.net) with any questions or needs you may have. We are offering curbside pickup, shipping and local delivery.

As always, thank you for your support and loyalty. Stay safe and keep in touch!

Thank you - 

Kara

Owner, Adela's