Admittedly, there have been better times to go to Thailand than now. With protesters from the north occupying the streets of Bangkok and the State Department warning against non-essential travel, it's understandable why folks would shy away from a visit. However, some of my favorite sources in the world for textiles and craft are here. Items that can't fit into your bag can be shipped for a reasonable price. Below are a few sources I always recommend:
Suan Lum Night Bazaar (Wireless Road, Bangkok): Why put up with the midday heat and crowds of JJ Market, when you can wait to shop more comfortably in the evening? Here in the center of Bangkok, you'll join savvy collectors of craft and antiques. Grab a beer, a plate of ก๋วยเตี๋ยวผัด and enjoy the band in the beer garden before you map out which of the hundreds of stalls you'll visit.
Vila Cini Silk (30 Charoenrat Road, Chiang Mai): Located in an elegant townhouse just across the river from the center of Chiang Mai is the best source for contemporary Thai silk. This isn't a place to find prints, Vila Cini weaves textural patterns out of raw silk. There are a wide range of timeless, elegant and modern home accessories, apparel and bulk fabric… and all for a fraction of prices you'd see at Gump's.
Siam Paragon (Siam MRT Station, Bangkok): The fifth floor of this otherwise ordinary luxury mall is a wonderland of contemporary Asian design. If your time in Thailand is limited or you forgot to get souvenirs until the last day, Paragon's fifth floor is a one-stop chock full of top notch art & craft, furniture and accessories. Authentic craft is the key here, you won't find any of the disposable tchotchkes sold on every Bangkok street corner.
Jim Thompson Silk (Multiple Locations): No trip to Bangkok is complete without a visit to the home and store of Jim Thompson, who is widely credited with revitalizing the Thai silk industry in the 1940s. His brightly colored fabrics were made famous in the film version of The King and I. While some of products and designs are a bit stale looking, there is still much to love: block printed linens, screened printed silks and elaborately embroidered pillows.
Luxury goods firms are finally engaging in social media – some dive right in and experiment with lots of different tactics (LV), others are more cautious (Burberry), while others are just dipping their toe in the water. A couple weeks ago, Hermès launched a new perfume, Voyage d'Hermès, with splashy and expensive banner ads on some of the most trafficked websites, including the New York Times and Le Monde. The banners pointed to a site loaded with beautiful content that hit upon the Hermès' lofty brand theme of exotic travel. Customers can share their own dream travel-experiences… these varied from a candlelight picnic for two on the floor of Sistine Chapel to scaling mystical peaks in far off lands. A Facebook fan group was set up and viewers are encouraged to share the video with friends. It seemed all the key elements (content, networks and engagement) were set for a social media hit.
Two weeks and millions of dollars later, only 40 dreams have been shared on the site and the Facebook page boasts a whopping 70 fans. The video has views numbering in the tens of thousands on You Tube, a resounding flop by Web 2.0 standards. What went wrong? I have my theories:
The online community has never interacted with Hermès before. Hermès (the parent brand) has never engaged in social media, so there's no core audience with whom it can share the launch and drive traffic.
The level of customer engagement (thinking of a story, writing and editing it) is far higher and more complex than it should be. It also doesn't help that this area of site started with zero examples of content, making it socially risky for the first users to engage. Burberry's Art of the Trench requires only a photo and began with a stable of professional examples to which amateurs could add.
Perfume, especially a new one, isn't a product that lends itself well to digital fandom… the reason is obvious: you can't smell a perfume online. The strategy might work well-established scents, like Chanel No. 5, for which we have sensory memory to reference. It's far easier to become a fan of more tangible Hermès products such as scarves or leather goods.
What do you think Hermès could do to improve their social media strategy?
J.B.'s Delightful World is now The (critical) Customer. I figured it was time to hit upon a more singular theme than the "world" and seem to keep returning to discussions of shopping for products or services and customer experience. I look forward to keeping you updated on my favorite haunts and extraordinary service. Of course, I also won't hesitate to call out less than delightful encounters.
My apologies if the banner photo is jarring, it's a work in progress.
Nike's answer to this question is: another fitted polo shirt. In advance of the World Cup the athletic brand has plastered the Paris Metro with ads featuring famous footballers, including a brooding Cristiano Ronaldo and his multicultural posse. To my eye, the campaign lacks the characteristic 'oomph' one expects from Nike, doesn't relate to the brand and the product is downright dull. That said, I do like the flower emblem made up of Nike swooshes.
With my nesting instincts kicking into high gear and the Euro tanking (dreams really do come true,) I'm on the prowl for additions to my next home. I scouted out some wonderful places for housewares all over Paris. These stores all deliver high-style, originality and craftsmanship without breaking the bank.
Les Fees (19 rue Charlot, 3é): The name means Fairies, which inspired a beautiful "Midsummer Nights' Dream" collection of home accessories. This is a wonderful source of animal and nature inspired ceramics and glass, as well as handmade wool pillows and throws.
Olivier Desforges (94 rue Saint Antoine, 4é): France is known for producing some of the world's finest linens. Olivier Desforges holds to the high standards of this old-world craft while creating unfussy contemporary designs.
Flamant Home Interiors (279 rue Saint Honoré, 8é): Offers authentic French-country inspired pieces for the home, this store is what Restoration Hardware aspires to be. The accessories are particularly impressive and the prices are surprisingly reasonable.
Bookbinders Design (53 rue Vieille du Temple, 4é): Behind the doors of this tiny shop lies a wondrous world of brightly bound books and folios, stationery and things to keep your life stylishly tidy.
Cinco de Mayo 2010 was a day worthy of celebration – beyond toasting Mexico's victory over the French with frosty margarita. Two of my oldest friends and favorite people, Chris and Vignetta, had big life-changing days. Vignetta married her longtime beau, David, in a small ceremony on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. On the other side of the country, Chris and his lovely wife, Alyse, welcomed the newest member to their growing brood: Tate.
It's all exciting stuff… congratulations to the newlyweds and the newlyparents!
I grew up in a musical family: my grandmother play any almost song on the piano by ear, my mother teaches music in the Palo Alto public schools and my father played a range of folksy instruments including guitar, country fiddle, banjo and washtub bass. Dad and his friends even had a band with the cheeky name "The Harmony Grits." I always admired his adventurous taste in music. His interests ran the gamut, from blues to classical, Simon and Garfunkel to Led Zeppelin. He devoured books about composers, bands and music history. Even though I was not blessed with musical talent, I always prefer living with music to living in silence.
My biggest offense in regards to music is that I consistently overplay the same things until everyone around me rolls their eyes. Case in point: Death Cab for Cutie. I'm a little lazy and find discovering new music I love can be a bit of a chore, so I usually rely on the advice of friends to help me diversify my collection. Over the past few months, my best music purchases have resulted from searching for things like "Cadillac CTS commercial music" on Google and then quickly adding them to my iTunes. Buick might make cars for retirees, but the ads feature The Airborne Toxic Event. Cadillac features a clip from Phoenix's brilliant album, "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix." Compilations are also a great source for discovery. For instance, the movie "(500) Days of Summer" also had a splendid soundtrack featuring The Temper Trap, whose album "Conditions" makes fantastic accompaniment for running.
So the next time I find myself fast-forwarding through commercials on my DVR – I'll remember I might be passing on the opportunity to find my next favorite band.
I'm not usually one to coo over kittens, puppies or babies, subjects that fall more in the territory of Cute Overload, but this trailer for "Babies" the movie is completely charming. The documentary charts the first year of four babies from Mongolia, Namibia, Tokyo and San Francisco. The film premiers Friday May 7 in the U.S.
The director, Thomas Balmès, isn't trying to make a grand statement about cultural differences. "It's not a National Geographic film," he told WWD. "The differences between these babies are very small. All four have parents that give them attention and care. This film is simply about what it means to grow up."
The excellent music in the trailer is Sufjan Stevens "The Perpetual Self or 'What Would Saul Alinsky Do?'" from the album The Avalanche.
The end of business school has brought on a serious case of daydreaming… mostly about what the next step will bring. Mind you, I have absolutely no idea of where I'll be living or what (exactly) I'll be doing to pay off these loans… which is beginning to stress me out. However, when the going gets tough, I start nesting. Since I packed all my earthly belongings into storage and put my bed up on Craigslist, I've been wandering through home stores in Paris, poring over shelter magazines and have become something of a minor expert on bedding.
The details of my design choices are just beginning to form… but what I really would love to do in my next apartment is to recreate one of those wonderfully comfortable beds you see in most upscale hotel chains. You know… the deep mattress, pressed linens, double comforters, triple-sheeting, big fluffy pillows, etc. I admit that the hotel-bed-at-home isn't an original idea… but it wasn't so long ago that hotel chains were known for the sort of scratchy sheets and worn-out mattresses that had you longing for a night at home.
Starwood's Westin brand fired the first shot in the "Bed Wars" by creating the Heavenly Bed in 1999. Legend has it the CEO tried out hundreds of different mattresses and linens in his Connecticut home before approving what became the first branded hotel bed. Starwood rolled out bed programs throughout its brands, Marriott vowed to replace every mattress in their chain, then Hyatt and Hilton both followed suit. Radisson uses the Sleep Number bed and Kimpton outfits many rooms with extra long beds for tall guests. A good night's sleep doesn't stop at the mattresses and sheets, now hotels are throwing in sleep masks, sound machines, earplugs and specialized turndowns.
Customers aren't the only ones delighted by the battle, the bed wars are big business. Marriott spent over $190 million on their bed program from 2002-2005. Analysts estimate that in the height of the bed replacement initiatives, hotel companies were spending almost $1.5 billion annually on mattresses. The beds seem to pay their way, research by Marriott indicates that the branded bed will allow them to charge $30 more per night and Westin says customers are willing to pay $12-20 more to sleep on a Heavenly Bed.
On Thursday, I visited the Cemetery at Père Lechaise, Paris' most notorious final resting place. As the elaborate crypts and statuary indicate, this is a cemetery for glory-seekers… this is where drama queens rest for eternity. Edith Piaf, Sarah Bernhardt, Oscar Wilde, Gertrude Stein, Baron Haussman, Maria Callas and Jim Morrison all call this home. I included a shot from my very, very creepy visit to the catacombs, as well.
Today the clouds were just bizarre and beautiful – below are a few shots of Notre Dame/Ile St. Louis and from my apartment window.
Even though it's studded with parks and boats a stunning riverfront, Paris isn't known as a runners' town. That's beginning to change as more Parisians take up "le footing." I've enjoyed finding some new routes around Paris. Of course, there's the routes that run along the Seine or through Bois de Boulogne, but there are also some less-known paths. The shady banks of the Canal St. Martin make for a peaceful run through an up-and-coming artsy neighborhood just north of the Marais. Also, I've found several Parisians who don't know about the beautiful park build on top of the Viaduc des Arts, which runs for 2.5 miles from behind the Opera Bastille out to the Periphérique.
I suppose I should be more supportive of the initiative to run, but I'm just baffled by the outfits some locals choose to run in. I've seen joggers bundled up in perfectly warm weather, wearing polos or button-downs, with sweaters thrown over the shoulders and running in all forms of inappropriate running bottoms: khakis, clam diggers, jeans and Daisy Dukes. I thought, at the very least, Parisians would know how to dress for the occasion. I suppose tech-y athletic wear is one corner of fashion where America still reigns supreme.
My perfect world? One where experiences and products always exceed expectations and are (in a word) delightful. Here I share my thoughts about my never-ending quest to discover and create memorable customer experiences.
