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{Sponsored} Retailers know just where to go when they’re looking to stock the latest trends across categories: Atlanta Market at AmericasMart. Among those trends buyers are searching for at the upcoming market are housewares, candles and, of course, paper and stationery products.

Stacie Keller, with Bella Grace Paper & Gifts in Louisiana, attended Atlanta Market in January to pick up more lines for their business and buy products that will last for the year.

“We really like to find new lines and new brands that we typically can’t find just by Google research or marketing research,” she said. “We usually attend, mainly, to get the deals, to get first pick, to get new products and to make sure nothing sells out.”

Bella Grace Paper & Gifts specializes in products ranging from bath and body, paper and home goods to gifts and party supplies. When Keller attended January market, she picked up 15 new lines for her store.

One such line was Patchology — a self-care brand aimed at improving skin quickly and effectively. Patchology has a wide variety of products including face masks, serums and energy supplements.

“We bought a brand called Patchology, which we’re really obsessed with. They have eye serums, under-eye masks and foot peels,” Keller said. “We’re (purchasing) a lot of self-care for women more than anything.”

Keller also was on the lookout for products that would work well in a bundle — something to make the gifting experience easy and hassle-free for her customers. Notepads, pens and other giftable items that are easy to bundle in a set, like specialty foods, are especially popular for her shoppers.

Keller noted that a trend picking up over the last few years is year-round gift-giving not associated with a holiday or a birthday. Treating someone goes beyond a special occasion.

“People are really about the gift-giving all year round. Now, we’re finding that a lot of people are purchasing gifts ‘just because’ or (for example), their friend had a bad day, so they’re buying a gift,” Keller added.

Something that’s happened industrywide in recent years is a growing interest in shopping online rather than in-person, partly due to the pandemic. This trend hasn’t been as noticeable at Bella Grace Paper & Gifts. While many businesses have switched to more online sales, Keller says their customers prefers the in-person shopping experience.

“We personally pride our store on the community and the service we provide in-store and the personal experience,” she said. “Our goal and our employees’ goal is to create a connection with people that you can’t get online. You don’t get to connect with the person one-on-one.”

For retailers looking to attend Atlanta Market, Keller recommends having a budget set, shopping by categories and tackling showrooms based on those categories. Keller also reminds retailers to grab various catalogs and take notes to keep up with the rush of the market.

Showrooms: July 12 – 18, 2022

Temporaries: July 13 – 17, 2022

For more information and to register, visit AtlantaMarket.com

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