Bridge Luxury Home Goods Sales Network

New feature: easily view the most liked products in your 'Community' tab

2012-01-15T16:01:00.001-08:00

Haviland joins Bridge

2012-01-15T16:00:00.001-08:00

French producer of tableware and fine china Haviland joins Bridge.

Revol tableware joins Bridge sales network

2011-12-21T08:59:00.000-08:00

Revol, the French producer of tableware and giftware, is joining Bridge catalog.

Garnier-Thiebaut joins Bridge

2011-12-08T07:52:00.001-08:00

Garnier-Thiebaut, French manufacturer of luxury linens, joins Bridge.

The company offers table, kitchen, and bedroom linens. Some notable clients include Ritz-Carlton and Waldorf=Astoria hotels.

Learn more about Garnier-Thiebaut at www.gtlinens.com/bcg/

Laguiole joins Bridge. Laguiole makes fine knives and cutlery.

2011-12-04T14:00:00.001-08:00

Retailer Brown's Jewelry and sales representative company Urban Source join Bridge

2011-12-04T13:55:00.001-08:00

Brown's Jewelry
Brown's Jewelry of Georgia joins Bridge. Visit Brown's Bridge

Urban Source
Led by Bill Volpi, the New York-based company represents many leading home goods manufacturers such as Victorinox Swiss Army, Rosenthal, and Paperproducts Design. "We're joining to help easily connect retailers and manufacturers," says Mr. Volpi.
View Urban Source's Bridge

French consulate invites Bridge to speak in New York City

2011-11-20T07:53:00.001-08:00

UBIFRANCE, the French Embassy's trade group, invited Bridge to meet with French companies. We shared how French companies can use Bridge to connect with U.S. retailers.

Herend new introductions for Fall 2012 added to Bridge

2011-11-20T07:48:00.001-08:00

We added Herend's new introductions for Fall 2012 to Bridge. Pictures coming soon.
View Herend New Introductions Fall 2012 - click here

American Express reports that Bridge may be the Facebook of retail

2011-11-17T11:30:00.001-08:00

American Express's small business website reports that Bridge may be the Facebook of retail.

Read the full article:
How Jason Solarek Created The Facebook Of Retail

$12,000 sale made by Bridge retailer due to Bridge network

2011-11-13T11:15:00.001-08:00

A Bridge retailer today sold $12,000+ of Raynaud thanks to Bridge. The sale was made online.

Stafford Jewelers of South Carolina joins Bridge

2011-10-23T16:37:00.001-07:00

William Stafford Jewelers, located in Spartanburg, South Carolina, told us it is joining Bridge. William Stafford Jewelers will use its Bridge site as its primary website. This will save the retailer expensive web site programming. Stafford will receive 20,000+ products via Bridge, saving it $60,000+ and 85 weeks in labor.

Sambonet product photos are now available via Bridge.

2011-10-23T16:35:00.001-07:00

Sambonet product photos are now available via Bridge.

Sambonet flatware products added to Bridge

2011-10-15T15:52:00.000-07:00

We have imported Sambonet flatware to Bridge sales catalog. We will be adding pictures next.

La Villa joins Bridge catalog

2011-10-15T15:48:00.000-07:00

La Villa, a distributor of European glassware, tableware, and furniture, brings 200+ products to Bridge network. La Villa's Bridge makes selling its products easier and quicker for authorized dealers.

Rosenthal USA adds 1,700+ products to Bridge network

2011-10-02T17:19:00.000-07:00

We have added 1,700+ products distributed by Rosenthal USA to Bridge network. Rosenthal USA distributes tableware and home goods from Rosenthal, Versace, and Thomas. This addition will make selling Rosenthal's lines easier and quicker for authorized Rosenthal dealers.

Herend adds 4,400+ products to Bridge network

2011-10-02T17:10:00.000-07:00

We have added 4,400+ Herend products to Bridge network. Herend creates luxury tableware and figurines. This addition will make selling Herend easier and quicker for authorized Herend dealers.

New feature: add product's picture with one click

2011-09-25T18:20:00.000-07:00

Bridge now allows members to add a new product's picture to its catalog with one click.

Business Insider shares American Express Bridge catalog article

2011-09-25T18:14:00.000-07:00

We're happy to see Business Insider share American Express' Bridge review - read

Pickard Crystal joins Bridge

2011-09-02T14:17:00.000-07:00

Pickard Crystal, a partnership between Pickard China and England's Royal Brierly, is joining Bridge. Pickard Crystal offers stemware, glassware, giftware, trophies, and monogrammed crystal and glassware.

Royal Limoge joins Bridge catalog

2011-08-30T15:26:00.000-07:00

Royal Limoges, the oldest producer of limoges tableware in Limoges, France, is joining the Bridge luxury sales network.

Distributed by BIA Cordon Bleu in the U.S., Royal Limoges will share 800+ products via Bridge.

New feature: Bridge registry now offers baby shower, house warming, and birthday registries

2011-08-20T18:28:00.001-07:00

Bridge offers retailers a new registry feature: choose from an array of event types for which to register. Previously, our registry tool just let a retailer setup a bridal registry. Now, a retailer can sign up customers for many types of registries, including baby shower, house warming, birthday, and more.

How does a retailer know if Bridge will save or cost it money? See for yourself first hand. You decide with this 'decision tree'

2011-08-15T08:11:00.001-07:00

Retail expert Carol Schroeder reviews Bridge catalog

2011-08-12T16:15:00.001-07:00

A Bridge to the Future
by Carol L Schroeder
Read full article - click here
Originally published at: www.giftsanddec.com

August 8, 2011
If you feature products on your website, you know that it can take a lot of time to keep the photos and information current. The Bridge is an innovative approach to solving this problem for retailers, connecting brands, shopkeepers and customers online by "stocking your website" with images and information. It is currently only active in the luxury and premium goods market, but the concept has potential for many other types of retailing. Is it something that might work in your field?

I learned about The Bridge from sales representative Celia Margolis while we waited for a plane to the Atlanta Gift Show -- I love the way air travel often leads to random conversations in the waiting area and even during the flight. It's a great chance to get to know someone you wouldn't normally talk to for an extended period of time.

The Bridge offers a catalogue site that can be customized with your logo, store colors, phone number, and other contact information. (The Fisherman's Wife in Wilmington, NC has a Bridge site that you can view as an example .) This site can be used to show merchandise from your store's choice of participating vendors, and all product information is automatically updated by the manufacturer. A Bridge site can also be set up for use by sales reps to show goods from lines they represent.

At the moment The Bridge has a database of 18,000 luxury products that is jointly managed by 28 brands/manufacturers. These products are synched to participating retailers' websites. The Bridge is not, however, a fulfillment service, so you would still need to either have the items in stock or arrange for the supplier to drop ship them to your customer when ordered.

In addition to saving you time and effort in putting information about the goods on your website, a program like The Bridge increases your online presence enormously by providing a ready-made e-commerce site that handles order and credit card processing. (A small percentage of each sale is taken as a service fee. View pricing.) Gift and bridal registry are also available.

The advantage to manufacturers is clear: they gain a large web presence with information that they can control. Retailers participating in the program are likely to feature a greater percentage of each line's offerings. And there is no charge for manufacturers to participate, because the retailer pays a monthly fee and a percentage of sales.

Jason Solarek, founder of The Bridge, recently won a competition from British Airways as one of the best small business services in the world. Solarek is Creative Director of the Solarek Studio, www.solarek.com a Manhattan-based design and marketing company. A graduate of Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, he brings a creative point of view to our industry. And that is always welcome!

Happy Retailing,
Carol "Orange" Schroeder

PS: There won't be a Specialty Shop Retailing blog entry the next two Mondays -- I will be traveling in Denmark and Iceland, and look forward to sharing my observations with you when I return.

Read full article - click here

New brand: Royal Limoges joins Bridge

2011-08-07T14:36:00.000-07:00

We welcome Royal Limoges fine china to Bridge catalog. Distributed in the U.S. by BIA Cordon Bleu, Royal Limoges creates its dinnerware in the oldest existing porcelain factory in Limoges.

Royal Limoges' 1,000+ products may be available via Bridge by September 1st.

New feature: Challkboard news tool

2011-08-05T13:16:00.000-07:00

You can now easily post news on your catalog via Chalkboard. 'Chalk' sales, new introductions, promotions, and any other news you'd like.

To chalk, first login, then click '+Add/edit' by the Chalkboard header on your catalog home page.

Your weekly e-news now includes top 10 Bridge sellers for the brands you represent based upon overall marketplace sales

2011-07-22T16:55:00.000-07:00

In the weekly e-news sent to Bridge members, members will now see the top 10 selling products. These products will be from brands the member sells or represents. This helps members know:
+ What the marketplace is buying.
+ How the member's sales compare to the marketplace.
+ What items to order in-store if one needs to meet a minimum when placing a re-stocking order. One could review this 'hot' list, and order the items that are selling well for other retailers.

New feature: you can now edit non-Bridge pages easily

2011-07-22T16:50:00.000-07:00

You can now edit non-Bridge brand's About pages easily. To try this, please:
+ Login to your Bridge.
+ Browse to the non-Bridge brand's About page.
+ Click "Edit page" in the upper right. This will link you to the Brand Bio admin tool, where you can edit the brand's 'about' information.
+ Edit the brand as you'd like.

New checkout feature added: easily allow customers to request a phone call to place order

2011-07-10T22:09:00.000-07:00

Have you attempted to purchase an item online and dreaded filling out the online purchase form? Us, too. We therefore have added a third checkout option to Bridge stores: Call Me. Call Me allows the consumer to enter just his or her phone number, and click submit. The next screen shows the phone number her or she entered, and his or her desired order. When the person clicks submit, the retailers receives the order and instructions to call the phone number.
Benefits:
- Retailer receives via e-mail a complete list of items a customer wishes to purchase.
- Customer can skip filling out an online form, which some people do not like.
- Retailer can take the customer's payment information over the phone. Some customers prefer this.

Up until this feature's addition, a customer only had two checkout choices:
a) Complete the entire purchase online, including entering all payment and shipping information.
b) Call the store and dictate i) the items desired, and ii) all payment and shipping information.

Call Me is a third option that that exists between the two previous choices.

Richard Ginori selects Bridge Catalog as its U.S. website

2011-07-02T19:13:00.000-07:00

Richard Ginori, the luxury Italian tableware company, is using its Bridge Catalog as its U.S. website.
The site www.richardginori1735usa.com leads to its Bridge. Richard Ginori's New York-based office chose this strategy for many reasons:
+ The Richard Ginori Bridge is an easy, quick way for its U.S. consumers to see all its products.
+ When Richard Ginori updates a product on its Bridge, the change appears on its site as well as on its retail Bridge partners' sites.
+ Bridge is free for brands. Why should brands pay for a site when a brand can receive one for free?

The Richard Ginori Bridge catalog directs shoppers to local retailers to make a purchase via the Richard Ginori store finder tool.

Sales representatives can now use Bridge to make wholesale purchases

2011-06-21T08:51:00.001-07:00

Few people are envious of sales representatives. They have to work with multiple 'masters.' Bridge catalog just made it easier.
A sales representative can now purchase from multiple brands on their own Bridge catalog. The purchase notifications will go to each respective brand.

Start a quick, quality e-commerce store

2011-06-21T08:47:00.000-07:00

Know someone that needs an e-commerce website?
Bridge catalog now offers your friends quick, quality e-commerce stores.
We work with fashion stores, sporting goods companies, and any "wouldn't-it-be-cool" idea your friend has to sell something.
Please contact Bridge catalog to learn more.

Five retailers join Bridge in 10 days

2011-06-11T17:01:00.000-07:00

We are happy to share that five retailers chose to join Bridge thus far in June. This addition marks a 20% increase in members.

Easily edit any product in your catalog

2011-06-11T16:59:00.000-07:00

You can now easily edit any item you add to your Bridge catalog. Simply browse to the item in your public catalog, and if you're logged in, you can edit the item directly from the public page. You don't need to edit the item in an admin tool, then browse to the public site to confirm your changes are made. You can edit and confirm changes on one page.

Julia Knight, the tableware and home goods company, joins the Bridge luxury sales network

2011-05-11T16:38:00.000-07:00

Julia Knight, the tableware and home goods company, joined the Bridge luxury sales network in April. We are close to launching Julia Knight's Bridge sales catalog. The Bridge sales catalog allows authorized retailers who sell a brand to show all of that brand's products on their site without having to manually add each item to a website. All of the items appear on the retailer's site with no work needed by the retailer.

Arte Italica joins Bridge online sales service

2011-02-21T17:23:00.001-08:00

Arte Italica, the New York based creator of premium Italian dinnerware, is joining the Bridge sales network.

Yahoo publishes articles, the Bridge 'publishes' products

2011-02-12T13:50:00.000-08:00

The Wall Street Journal reported that Yahoo is creating a publishing platform called LIvestand.
This brought to mind a new term that I think is fitting for the Bridge: product publishing. The Bridge is a product publishing platform that allows brands and retailers to easily distribute 'content', which in this case is products.

Tim DeVine promotes Bridge sales program in HFN magazine

2011-02-12T12:49:00.000-08:00

Tim DeVine, founder of tableware distributor DeVine Corporation, says in HFN magazine that the Bridge sales program produces immediate sales results for retailers that participate. Please see article and quote below.

Bridge 'sample' or 'pilot' site?

2011-01-16T18:14:00.001-08:00

In a recent Advertising Age article interviewing Dana Anderson, senior VP-marketing strategy and communications at Kraft, she says that she likes the word – and meaning - behind "pilot." She says the word conveys learning and experimenting. Thus far, we've promoted the testing sites we show retailers with the name Bridge 'sample' site. Maybe we should follow Dana's inspiration and call the tests a Bridge pilot site.

Ruling allowing price setting to be challenged in court

2010-11-22T17:13:00.000-08:00

This WSJ article relates to how brands/vendors/distributors may uphold MSPR/MAP.

By JESS BRAVIN And THOMAS CATAN

Three years after the Supreme Court authorized manufacturers to set prices at retailers, the Dallas boutique that lost the landmark ruling is asking the justices to take another look.

In an appeal filed Monday, Kay's Kloset contends lower courts have gone too far in applying the 2007 decision, reading it as giving manufacturers carte blanche to fix prices rather than analyzing each pricing agreement for itsanticompetitive impact.

Supreme Court losers like Kay's Kloset—which went out of business after lower courts dismissed its claim against the Brighton Inc. accessories line—rarely get a second glance from the justices. But the boutique has enlisted a prominent advocate, Einer Elhauge, a Harvard law professor who says he is so concerned with the lower court decisions that he took the case pro bono.

Consumer advocates condemned the 2007 ruling, which split 5-4 along the Supreme Court's conservative-liberal divide, as sure to drive up prices. Mr. Elhauge defends the high court's decision, but he says that the lower courts took it too far, depriving retailers of the chance to challenge manufacturers.

View full article

Arthur Court Designs gives a review of Solarek Studio's Bridge sales service

2010-11-09T09:17:00.001-08:00

"We find the e-commerce management tool that Solarek Studio set up for Athur Court to be very well designed and easy to use.

I've showed it to colleagues even outside the industry - such as those that do Quality Assurance at Oracle - and they have raved about the beautiful layout.

We specifically had a great experience with Solarek's Bridge sales service this week. Due to the Bridge service, one of our retail partners was able to sell a series of products that were not even in stores yet. The customer bought the items online without ever having seen them. Without the Bridge, this sale would not have happened for our retail partner nor us."

Neil Peters
ArthurCourt.com

/////////

Visit the Arthur Court Bridge home page

Join the Arthur Court Bridge

Have questions about the Bridge, or wish to join? Please call Jason Solarek at:
1- 212-254-9654

Hire 20 people but pay for just one

2010-10-17T18:08:00.001-07:00

We are always seeking for improved ways to explain the Bridge luxury sales service. It occurred to me that for a retailer joining the Bridge it is like hiring 20 people, but only paying for one. 20 brands work to maintain inventory and images, yet the retailer incurs no additional cost. It only pays for this 'employee' if a sale is made. Currently, the Bridge can stock 12,000 products on a retailer's website, saving it $27k+ and 46+ weeks of labor.

Net-a-Porter founder's insights about selling online

2010-10-15T13:24:00.001-07:00

The Wall St. Journal magazine interviewed the founder of the online store Net-a-Porter. I think her views may be able to help Bridge partners sell more. Some excerpts are below:

Excerpts:

People have attributed the site’s success to the black box. I think it’s because everyone had such low expectations of what online shopping would be—that it had to be no-frills, discounted goods picked from a shelf and shoved into an ordinary cardboard box. We’ve gone to the other extreme, which is to see how many times you can fold a garment within layers of tissue paper to protect and celebrate the purchase.

Brands will increasingly handle their own e-commerce and rely less and less on local distribution partners. Why should they give away their profit margins? This means any multibrand store will need to rethink their reason for being. It shouldn’t be just because they have the product. It should be that they’re the best marketing partner to the brand.

I believe that all brands will become storytellers, editors and publishers, all stores will become magazines and all media companies will become stores. There will be too many of all of them. The strongest ones, the ones who offer the best customer experience, will survive.

When you are selling from a digital screen, you need to reach out to the consumer in entirely new ways. You have to create content and visual excitement that draws a person in and gives them a reason to come to your website. The brands that are the most successful online today understand this.

Fashion magazines have been the marketing arms of the retail industry for at least the last 50 or 60 years; they just never collected any revenue from the final sale. For 10 years, Net-a-Porter has been focusing on how to create excitement for the product by doing everything that a good fashion journalist learns how to do. You edit, you have a point of view and you present the product in the best way. Magazines were what got people to go into stores and seek out that product to try on. I’ve always thought that the sale was actually made in the magazine pages.

Read full article at WSJ.com

Arthur Court, the California-based maker of serveware and decorative accessories, announces it is joining the Bridge sales network

2010-10-14T07:50:00.000-07:00

We are pleased to share that Arthur Court is joining the Bridge sales service.

Please find the Arthur Court Bridge catalog here.

DeVine sends e-mail promoting Bridge sales service to luxury retailers

2010-10-12T13:01:00.000-07:00

DeVine, the New Jersey-based distributor of premium tableware products, sent an e-mail to its 400+ retail clients today promoting the Bridge luxury sales service.

Gien, the maker of fine French dinnerware, is joining the Bridge

2010-10-08T12:25:00.001-07:00

We are pleased to share that Gien is joining the Bridge. Please learn more about Gien at:

http://gien.bridgecatalog.com/

New time-saving administration feature

2010-10-04T14:47:00.000-07:00

We've added a new time saving feature to the Bridge's admin tool.

To sort an item (have it appear higher or lower on the Results page), all you need to do now is drag it up or down the page.

To test this, after you login, please go to the Results page.

You will see a light gray "+" to the right of "Edit image".

Simply drag the item up or down. Your changes are automatically saved.

Online shopping will increase while budgets for online operations will likely decrease

2010-10-03T15:40:00.000-07:00

When considering how to spend one's time and money in building a business, it may be beneficial to look at predictions for the future. Most estimates predict that online shopping will increase. Conversely, retailers' budgets to add product to their websites will stay the same or shrink. Many companies have been cutting employees during the recession. With that in mind, we see that consumer demand will increase while the supply of product online may decrease.

The Bridge sales network solves this problem. Our technology enables retailers to increase their product offering while cutting personnel costs. The products in their Bridge are maintained by the brand, thereby alleviating it of the costs.

Meanwhile, the brand is able to save money by placing all its products in one spot, thereby saving it the time and money of sending the same materials to multiple retailers.

Annieglass is joining the Bridge luxury sales service

2010-09-26T17:54:00.001-07:00

Annieglass, the Watsonville, California maker of elegant glass pieces for the home, shared with us they are joining the Bridge.

We welcome Annieglass to the family of 17 luxury brands.

Visit the Annieglass website

October 17, 2011 update:
View Annieglass Bridge catalog

For Brands/Distributors

2010-09-23T17:12:00.000-07:00

A brand asked me today a few questions about the Bridge. My response is below.

How will the brand make more money with the Bridge?
1) A brand makes money by making more online sales via retailers' websites. Instead of a retailer having few items from a brand for sale on its site, the retailer will have 100s or 1,000s. The home goods industry is very reliant on bridal and gift registries. If a brand is not on a retailer's website, it's not on the bridal registry, and sales are missed. Bridge items can be sold via registries.

2) The brand also saves money by saving labor costs. Specifically, employees will spend less time sending CDs (and emails) with images and product data to retailers.

3) There is a lot of discounting of merchandise on the Internet. The Bridge reduces this by helping pushing gray marketers off the first page of Google results. For foreign brands, most gray market items are trans-shipped from overseas, such as Europe, to the U.S. As such, U.S. distributors are not making the discounted sale to the order placed in New Jersey but rather a retailer in, for example, Berlin. Stopping discounting gives the order back to the local retailer, who sources it from the U.S. distributor, thereby increasing sales for it.

How will a sale be made?
1. The consumer purchases the item on the retailer's site. The consumer's money is transferred to the retailer's bank account. The retailer receives notification about this order via e-mail.

2. The retailer looks at its inventory. If it has the item in stock, it ships what it has in stock. If the item is not in stock, which is likely when carrying 1,000 of items on a website, the retailer will place an order for the item with the brand. The brand in turn gets paid.

Does the brand drop ship?
If the brand drop ships, then a retailer will likely ask the brand to drop ship a Bridge order. If the brand does not drop ship, then the brand will mail the item to the customer, and then the reteailer will mail it to the customer. With this model, the retailer charges enough to cover both shipping costs.

Does the brand require minimum orders from retailers?
If the brand has a minimum order requirement and the retailer has a Bridge order in hand, it will likely first assess if the order is over the minimun or not. If it's over, the retailer places the order as a drop ship. If the order is under the minimum, the retailer may decided if there is additional product it would like to order. It may order product to fulfill the order as well as stock the store in order to meet the minimun requirement.

Sales update

2010-09-12T18:11:00.000-07:00

In 2008, the Bridge helped retailers sell $49,000+ worth of goods
In 2009, the Bridge helped retailers sell $62,000+.
This year, as of today, the Bridge as helped retailers sell $79,000+.
With four months left in the year, we may well reach $120,000.
As such, this year the Bridge may double the value it provides to retailers.

Please note: these numbers above only include online sales, and not orders due to the Bridge but placed via telephone. As such, the total sales attributable to the Bridge are even higher than what is shown above.

- J

Thoughts on My Summer of Success / by Linda Tabas / Pink Daisy retailer

2010-09-10T16:56:00.000-07:00

by Linda Tabas
The Pink Daisy retail store
Yardley, PA

I wanted to share my good news after so many years of banging my head against the wall. With the help of the Bridge, Jason Solarek, and many hours of hard work on my website my web sales have tripled. My in store sales have also increased because in the retail world you need to keep reinventing yourself or the world will pass you by. We have a saying in my store...we want to be whatever the customers want us to be so if that means selling scarves and pocketbooks we will do that too. Baby is also very important. Don't forget that the baby boomers are all becoming grandparents...that means lots of baby gifts and lots of 60th birthday presents for women who already have all the vases and serving dishes they can use. Think personal accessories.
Well back to the bridge...I added Alberto Pinto and within one week I received an order from Chicago for $1200. Yesterday when I wasn't even open I got an order from Des Moines, Iowa for $4400 for Anna Weatherley. Some brands I don't do as well with because of the discounters but the bridge has helped my in store sales because everything is pictured there and has helped especially with Mottahedeh.
So whether you are going to do a bridge or just have Jason Solarek do a new website for you remember that it is always good to move forward and that he has been worth every penny to The Pink Daisy.

Bridge analogy: sell gallons vs. ounces of luxury products

2010-05-15T17:50:00.000-07:00

When explaining the Bridge, sometimes an analogy works well. Currently, the marketplace is using individual water bottles to manage it's inventory. There is a lot of waste in this approach. The Bridge lets brands create a 'tap' through which retailers can 'pour' the brand's product into the retailer's website. The more water that retailers have, the better it is for retailers and brands. The retailers can in turn sell the product in gallons vs. ounces online.

In addition, this helps brands and retailers 'flood' Google with approved sellers. Currently, there are many gray marketers (aka unauthorized sellers) that appear on page 1 of Google when someone searches for a brand. The Bridge helps wash away these discounters , and replace them with Bridge partners.

DeVine e-news about the Bridge

2010-03-23T14:43:00.001-07:00

DeVine sent this e-news to retailers today explaining the Bridge services.

Policing prices to support the Bridge

2010-02-10T07:55:00.000-08:00

There was an article in the New York Times this week about price setting by brands/manufacturers, and retailers seeking ways to get around this. Overall, brands being allowed to set prices is now often accepted. This is in the Bridge's favor since the Bridge sets prices, and rewards retailers for this by by giving them all the product pictures and prices. It's a win-win.

With that said, the Bridge works best when brands police discounting. Why? We don't want items found for less on other websites. As such, the Bridge necessitates that brands/distributors do as much as they can to stop discounting. Mainly, they can invest in stopping discounting. Otherwise, without funding (or repercussions), it becomes an empty policy.

One area that may interest us (and brands) is hiring a company to police prices. The article says:

"Wes Shepherd, chief of Channel Velocity, ...sells software that allows companies to scour the Web looking for violations of pricing agreements."

With the above said, you're invited to report discounting to any brand should you find it. Also, there is a blog for anonymously reporting discounting here:
http://discountedtablewarefinechina.blogspot.com/

The full article from the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/08/technology/internet/08price.html

First Alberto Pinto sale via the Bridge

2010-01-27T07:58:00.000-08:00

Below is an example of where the Bridge really comes in handy.
This is an order that came into a Bridge retailer today.
The only online stores that carry this Alberto Pinto pattern Belles Saisons are Bridge partners.
As such, the Bridge became the sole tool for someone to buy this pattern online.
The retailer that made the sale below did not even have to think about adding this obscure pattern to their site; the Bridge did it for them. And then the retailer gets 1/2 this amount below (about $2,800). Even if this retailers just makes this one sale, their investment in the Bridge is paid for for the entire year and more.

From:
Date: January 26, 2010 4:43:42 PM EST
To:
Subject: Your Order - Merchant Order Notification
Reply-To:

You have just received an order. The order details are as follows:

Order ID: 6C96B3FC-19D1-B053-1456A7EA705E5176

Ship To
====================
[Customer Name] [Street name], New York, NY 10021 USA

Order Details
====================

Product: Champignon Set of Six Dinner PlatesBy: Alberto Pinto(APRL2CH)
Quantity: 1
Price: $1,590.00
Product: Belles Saisons Dessert PlateBy: Alberto Pinto(APRL3DBS)
Quantity: 4
Price: $325.00
Product: Belles Saisons Summer Dinner PlateBy: Alberto Pinto(APRL2BSE)
Quantity: 2
Price: $360.00
Product: Belles Saisons Winter Dinner PlateBy: Alberto Pinto(APRL2BSH)
Quantity: 2
Price: $360.00
Product: Vieux Kyoto Buffet PlateBy: Alberto Pinto(AP1VK01)
Quantity: 2
Price: $280.00
Product: Vieux Kyoto Dessert Plate #2By: Alberto Pinto(AP3DVK04)
Quantity: 2
Price: $175.00
Product: Vieux Kyoto Dinner PlateBy: Alberto Pinto(AP2VK02)
Quantity: 2
Price: $185.00
Total: $370.00

====================
Subtotal: $5,610.00
Shipping (UPS): $0.00
Tax: $483.86
Order Total: $6,093.86

First Couzon Bridge sale

2010-01-14T13:59:00.000-08:00

We are pleased to share that The Pink Daisy made the first Couzon Bridge sale today. DeVine became the U.S. distributor for Couzon silver on January 1st, 2010. Thanks to the Bridge, Bridge retailers were able to quickly sell all Couzon's 250+ products on their websites.

What decisions does a company make in building a website:

2010-01-06T17:05:00.000-08:00

How many products do you want to sell quickly?
If you choose the Bridge, you have the power to sell up to 13,000+ products from 14 brands. In addition, we are adding new products and brands often.

How much money do you wish to spend adding products, maintaining prices, and removing old product?
If you choose the Bridge, you have the power to add up to 13,000+ products for pennies on the dollar.

How a non-Bridge site compares to a Bridge site

2010-01-06T16:08:00.000-08:00

Pink Daisy Mottahedeh Bridge Operating

2010-01-06T10:17:00.000-08:00

Example:

Mottahedeh brand Blue Canton pattern:
http://www.mottahedeh.com/results_temp_1.cfm/Mottahedeh?patterns=1&pattern=40

Pink Daisy's Mottahedeh Blue Canton pattern page:
http://www.thepinkdaisy.com/results.cfm?bid=36&pattern=40

R. Haviland: Bridge Now Operating

2009-12-31T17:00:00.001-08:00

The Robert Haviland & C. Parlon Bridge is now running.

Click on the following comparison:

Haviland's Gold Colette pattern page:
http://www.mottahedeh.com/results_temp_1.cfm/Robert_Haviland_and_C_Parlon?patterns=1&pattern=83

LCR West Hartford's Gold Colette pattern page:
http://www.lcrcollection.com/results.cfm?bID=98&patid=83&brand=Robert%20Haviland

Mottahedeh: R. Haviland update

2009-12-30T12:02:00.000-08:00

Haviland is now up at Mottahedeh.com:

http://www.mottahedeh.com/results_temp_1.cfm/Robert_Haviland_and_C_Parlon?patterns=1

Over 30 patterns.

I hope to Bridge this soon.

Thanks, J

Bridge Explanation Chart

2009-12-30T10:53:00.000-08:00

How does a product get from a brand’s website to a retailer’s website?

Current way of doing business

Step 1. A brand adds 1,000s of product images, prices,
descriptions, dimensions, and other product data to its site.

Step 2. Hundreds of retailers do the exact same thing.
They independently add 1,000s of product images, prices,
descriptions, and dimensions to their site. The duplication of these actions is expensive.

There are massive inefficiencies in this system.
100’s of retailers are updating the same product’s information.

///////////////////

New way of doing business

Step 1. A brand adds 1,000s of product images, prices,
descriptions, and dimensions to the Bridge database, which supplies
data to its website.

Step 2. There is no step 2. The brand’s database is
synced with retailers’ websites so there is just one
database of products: the Bridge database. The brand does the ‘work’ of
100’s of retailers just by doing what is was done before:
updating its website. Brand is able to maintain
MSRP, and product picture quality, etc., while retailer
Gets quality, real time product data with no employee
cost or tech cost.

Brand and retailers access the same product data.
The brand and retailer have unique websites. Their website designs
are independent of each other.
The retailer can sell any other brand’s items it wishes. Joining the
Bridge does not limit a retailer from selling other products.

Bridge News: Service Clarification

2009-12-17T10:42:00.000-08:00

Dear Bridge Partners,

I hope you're well.

There was some confusion recently, and I wanted to clarify it.

The Bridge is a service by the Solarek Studio (not a brand or distributor) that syncs data from another site to yours.

Solarek invented and maintains the syncing.

The brands/distributors do not receive financial compensation for the Bridge. (They benefit from having all of their product available online on your site.)

You could manually download all of a brands'/distributors' 10,000+ product pictures and data and manually enter it. That is up to you.

Please contact me with any questions: 212-254-9654.

Thank you,

Jason

Bridge News: Mottahedeh

2009-12-17T10:40:00.000-08:00

Dear Bridge Partners,

The Mottahedeh Bridge is now active for the brands Mottahedeh and Milestone. Your stores can be the Find a Store page:

http://www.mottahedeh.com/stores.cfm

Please give the search a try.

Your store with a direct link to your Mottahedeh brands will appear on each search results page. Even if you search for an obscure location, such as Alaska stores, your store will come up.

Please contact me with any questions: 212-254-9654.

Thank you,

Jason

Bridge News: Mottahedeh

2009-12-02T10:46:00.000-08:00

Dear Bridge Partner,

The Mottahedeh website is being completed in parts. I'm pleased to share that the brand Mottahedeh is now online.

For many items, Mottahedeh may offer large, crisp images like this:

http://www.mottahedeh.com/productgallery_temp_1.cfm?pattern=38&bid=36&record=1

Those are great to have on your site.

Offering:
I am offering now to you a Bridge for Mottahedeh tableware and lamp products (500+ products).

The Mottahedeh Bridge will soon offer you all the products from all these brands:
- Mottahedeh (includes lamps, trays, vases, bowls, giftware, specialty products for Historic Charleston, the Metropolitan Musuem of Art)
- Robert Haviland & C. Parlon
- Milestone

You can sell all these items online.
You can also use them for your registries.

Cost:
$49 per brand per month; total $147/mo.

What you'll receive:
- All products.
- Your store listed on ALL store search results for a Mottahedeh, Robert Haviland & C. Parlon, or Milestone.

Please let me know if you'd like these products Bridged to your site.

Please contact me anytime with new ideas or questions.

Thank you,

Jason

Bridge News: Blog Active

2009-11-01T10:50:00.000-08:00

Dear Bridge Partners,
I have started a Bridge blog. The purpose of the blog is to:
- Share news about Bridge services.
- Empower partners to share their experiences and ideas on how to make it better.
- Enable Brands to share what they are adding to the Bridge inventory. In this manner, retailers can stay up to date.
- Enable retailers to share information in general about increasing sales online. We can then see if there is a way to for the Bridge to help to this end.

Please bookmark this page, and check it weekly.

I will be sending you an invitation to post comments on the blog. With this login you may write on this blog, and share whatever you'd like.

Note: this blog will be private, so you only you and members can see its postings.

The goal is increase communication, and sales for all involved.

If each of you were to post just one thought or insight per month, this would make for a very helpful tool.

Thank you,

Jason