Want to Party?

Just a quick reminder....it's time for our annual party! But, more important than that is the fact that this is the weekend of the Ananda Khalsa Trunk Show! The trunk show takes place from noon - 9 p.m. on Saturday, September 6 and from noon - 5 p.m. on Sunday. September 7. Party festivities begin at 5 on Saturday and run until 9, but I have it on good authority that there might be some "extra" chocolate scattered about the store before the party "officially" begins! I hope you can join us to see so much more of Ananda's beautiful work like this beautiful necklace.

We're Sleeping In!

Please forgive us, but we're going to be closed on Labor Day, Monday, September 1 to catch up, re-charge and just be lazy! We'll be open again at 10:00 on Tuesday. On Wednesday, September 3, we'll be closing at 4:00 for a store meeting and event. Again, we'll be open at 10:00 on Thursday. We appreciate your understanding and apologize for any inconvenience. Have a wonderful holiday!

Thank You from Max's!

Welcome to Max’s Rewards Program! In appreciation for your on-going support of Max’s, we will recognize your purchases by giving you credit, in the form of points, for each purchase you make. You will receive a $.10 credit for every dollar you spend at Max’s, and you can choose when you would like your accumulated credit applied to your sales invoice. So, once you spend $10, you will have a $1.00 credit in your “Max’s bank”. When you reach $100 in accumulated purchases, you will have $10 in your “bank”, and so on. Then, for example, if you make a $300 purchase and have $25 in your bank, you can choose to spend all $25 at once and reduce your invoice total (before tax) to $275, or you can use any amount less than $25 and save the rest for a future purchase.. Again, you decide when you want to “spend” your points and how many you want to spend at any one time.

We will keep track of the additions and subtractions to your point balance….all we need is your name so that we can maintain the information in our sales system. It’s that easy!

WOW! What a Great Surprise!

Last night at the awards ceremony held during the Buyers Market of American Craft in Philadelphia, Max's was named as one of NICHE magazine's Top Retailers of 2008! What a great surprise and fabulous honor! Quoting directly from the press release, "the annual Top Retailer Awards program recognizes craft retailers who are committed to fair business practices and to growing and strengthening the North American craft community." We were one of 33 retailers and gallery owners from across North America who were recognized by the magazine in various categories. What I think is especially great about this award is that artists nominate the retailers who they think are deserving, and then the nominees are judged by other retailers from across North America. I am so proud that Max's has earned this kind of respect in its short 2-year life! A huge thank you to all of our artists whose creativity is at the core of Max's success story, as you enable us to bring beautiful work to our customers.

Kudos to the Bag Ladies!

Many congratulations to all of the women profiled in last Saturday's (July 19) Minneapolis Star Tribune as the "bag ladies" for their wonderful handbag designs! A very special "YIPPEE!" goes to Laura Nelli, who worked at Max's between 2006-2007, and Tracy Dyer, one of Max's favorite customers (Tracy.....LOVE the ring!). It was a lot of fun to open the paper on a sleepy-eyed Saturday morning and utter "wow...I know them!" Well done ladies!

Too Much Chocolate?

So, do you think there’s a such thing as too much chocolate for one person? No, I don’t really think so either, but there was a time in the last couple of weeks when I began to ask myself that question. I was in New York at the Fancy Food Show searching out some new chocolates to bring into the store as well as getting a glimpse…and a taste….of some new products from some of our current chocolatiers. One of my goals was to find some more single-origin chocolates that were manufactured in the same country that the beans come from. Well, after having eaten countless samples of different types of chocolates….bars, truffles, toffees, caramels, you name it….I’m happy to report that I’ve found some wonderful new products. We now have some bars made of chocolate that is grown, crafted and packaged in Madagascar, as well some new chocolates from Equador…again grown, crafted and packaged there….which include some chocolate covered berries and banana pieces. We also have some delicious new chocolates from Sao Tome and Principe Africa…the beans are grown and the chocolate bars are produced there by the farmer and his two sons. And, finally, at least for now, we have some chocolate discs that are made in a very traditional Mexican style that uses stone mills to grind the beans into a coarse texture. So....too much chocolate? Never!

I am Humbled

It's with a great deal of both pride and humility, that I want to let you know of Max's nomination for a NICHE award as a top retailer for 2008! The NICHE Top Retailer Awards, which are sponsored by NICHE magazine (a trade publication for retailers of fine American Craft), recognizes the nation's best craft retailers, arts nonprofits, museums and guilds for growing and strengthening the American craft community. The program annually recognizes 24 retailers and gallery owners as Top Retailers and one Retailer of the Year, and gives awards in 10 other categories. Needless to say, I am thrilled that we were nominated! We will find out in August whether we have been recognized with an award, so stay tuned. As an FYI, in addition to publishing NICHE magazine, The Rosen Group produces the bi-annual Philadelphia Buyers Market of American Craft, the nation's largest wholesale American craft tradeshow which is a major source for many of the wonderful artists we represent at Max's.