Boutique Workshop

I am so excited as I'm writing this...it's official, we are going to be doing an in-store event at this incredibly cute store up in Snohomish called Inside Out!

We (we being myself, Shawna, and Kris) will be conducting two 90 minute workshops at the boutique on the afternoon of Saturday, March 24th. Attendees are asked to pre-register and pay a $10 fee. The fee will be applied toward their purchase of a UB product.

Here is a link to the event: http://einsideout.com/events.htm

They have sooooo many cute things there, I'm afraid I will spend all of my earnings and then some before I get out of there!!

I will definitely post a blog after the event to discuss our successes along with lessons learned. I think partnering with independently owned boutiques like this is a great way to meet people, spread the word about our exciting concept, and move product!

Taming those Butterflies!

Blech. Back to rain in Seattle. It's so much easier to tick things off the to-do list when the weather isn't so glorious.

I know with a lot of new team members, the milestone of THE FIRST PARTY is looming. For some of you, this won't be cause for any anxiety whatsoever. But for others, just the thought of getting up in front of a group of people sets off a flock of a thousand butterflies in your tummies. I'd like to tell you that it's totally normal to feel this way!

Below is an article that gives some practical advice and tips on how to lessen any pre-party jitters you might have. Just remember that you are representing an amazing product and UB parties are always FUN (even if you don't say everything as perfectly as you wanted!).

Don't forget to breathe and you'll have those butterflies flying in formation in no time!

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Overcoming Speaking Anxiety in Meetings & Presentations
by Lenny Laskowski

Article found at http://www.ljlseminars.com/anxiety.htm

Do your knees feel like Gumby's when you have to get up and speak in front of a group?

Do you feel like the next words out of your mouth are going to be the dumbest words ever uttered by a human?

If you said yes to either of the questions above, be advised, you have a full-blown case of stage fright, says Lenny Laskowski, a professional speaker and President of LJL Seminars.

According to the book of lists, the fear of speaking in public is the #1 fear of all fears. The fear of dying is #7! Over 41% of people have some fear or anxiety dealing with speaking in front of groups. People who have this fear can experience all kinds of symptoms: Sweaty palms, accelerated heart rate, memory loss and even difficulty in breathing.

Some of the world's most famous presenters have freely admitted to nervousness and stage fright. Mark Twain said it best, "There are two types of speakers: those that are nervous and those that are liars".

Everyone, even experienced speakers, has some anxiety when speaking in front of a group of people. This is perfectly normal. The best way to deal with this anxiety is to first acknowledge that this fear is perfectly normal and you are not alone. To reduce your fear, you need to make sure you properly and thoroughly prepare yourself before you speak. Proper preparation and rehearsal can help to reduce this fear by about 75%. Proper breathing techniques can further reduce this fear by another 15%. Your mental state accounts for the remaining 10%.

Below are just a few suggestions you should use to overcome your speaking anxiety. The first and most important of all is preparation. I like to think of it as the 9 P's:

Prior Proper Preparation
Prevents Poor Performance
of the
Person Putting on the Presentation.

Nothing will relax you more than to know you are properly prepared. Below are 10 steps you can take to reduce your speech anxiety.

Know the room - become familiar with the place in which you will speak. Arrive early and walk around the room including the speaking area. Stand at the lectern, speak into the microphone. Walk around where the audience will be seated. Walk from where you will be seated to the place where you will be speaking.

Know the Audience - If possible, greet some of the audience as they arrive and chat with them. It is easier to speak to a group of friends than to a group of strangers.

Know Your Material - If you are not familiar with your material or are uncomfortable with it, your nervousness will increase. Practice your speech or presentation and revise it until you can present it with ease.

Learn How to Relax - You can ease tension by doing exercises. Sit comfortable with your back straight. Breathe in slowly, hold your breath for 4 to 5 seconds, then slowly exhale. To relax your facial muscles, open your mouth and eyes wide, then close them tightly.

Visualize Yourself Speaking - Imagine yourself walking confidently to the lectern as the audience applauds. Imagine yourself speaking, your voice loud, clear and assured. When you visualize yourself as successful, you will be successful.

Realize People Want You To Succeed - All audiences want speakers to be interesting, stimulating, informative and entertaining. They want you to succeed - not fail.

Don't apologize For Being Nervous - Most of the time your nervousness does not show at all. If you don't say anything about it, nobody will notice. If you mention your nervousness or apologize for any problems you think you have with your speech, you'll only be calling attention to it. Had you remained silent, your listeners may not have noticed at all.

Concentrate on Your Message - not the medium - Your nervous feelings will dissipate if you focus your attention away from your anxieties and concentrate on your message and your audience, not yourself.

Turn Nervousness into Positive Energy - the same nervous energy that causes stage fright can be an asset to you. Harness it, and transform it into vitality and enthusiasm.

Gain Experience - Experience builds confidence, which is the key to effective speaking. Most beginning speakers find their anxieties decrease after each speech they give.

If the fear of public speaking causes you to prepare more, then the fear of speaking serves as it's own best antidote. Remember, "He who fails to prepare is preparing for failure - so Prepare, Prepare, Prepare."

For more specific techniques on handling nervousness, order our booklet, "Techniques to Handle Nervousness" or our 60 minute audiotape, "Overcoming Speaking Anxiety" from one of Lenny's "live" seminars. This guide will provide you with both physical and mental techniques you can use immediately to help you reduce your anxiety. You can order either one of these products through our convenient on-line catalog .
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Using Urban Botanic for Staff Appreciation

My teammate Kris Vanlew was asked to do a staff appreciation party for a company. The party was the day before yesterday and 20 women not only walked away with a personalized fragrance of their own creation, they probably left with increased morale which will translate into improved productivity and loyalty for their employer.

Genius!

An Urban Botanic party as a way to appreciate or recognize employees is a fantastic idea.

First, it is interactive, personal, and low-risk. Meaning, even the most introverted employee can participate in this non-threatening activity.

Have you ever been to a staff appreciation party where people are put on the spot to reveal something "personal" about themselves as a way to break the ice and build a team? Or...have you ever been to a staff party where there is no focused activity and people mill about making uncomfortable small talk? I have and I know for some people, those kinds of scenarios breed a lot of anxiety. It actually can backfire with people leaving the event with negative memories rather than positive ones. But with an Urban Botanic party everybody has fun because it ends up being about them and the custom scent they are making. What a great way to celebrate and recognize employees and the hard work they do!

Second, most managers or employers want to make their team feel special but buying personal gifts can be tricky. A fragrance party makes giving a personalized gift to each employee so simple!

The cost of doing an Urban Botanic party is actually very reasonable at a price of $12.50 to $48.00 per person. Just throw in some munchies and maybe some wine and you have the makings of an incredibly fun event! No need to rent out a special venue, just gather around the company conference table. The mixing and blending of scents transports people mentally, it certainly won't feel like a "regular" meeting.

Employees will have the chance to chat casually with each other or just focus on creating their scent. A party can even include a team-building activity if desired with the Urban Botanic Fragrance Designer acting as facilitator. And with our huge variety of scents, both men and women can participate and enjoy themselves.

The positive feelings that an event like this will breed will boost morale translating into a better functioning team and improved productivity. And tell the head of accounting that a non-cash gift of Urban Botanic products may even be tax deductible!

Ready...Set...Quick Start!

Being totally new to direct sales, I am learning more every day that my gut instincts about Urban Botanic were totally right on. That is a completely validating feeling!

It is my nature to follow my instincts but to back it up with research. I have found a multitude of resources online that give great information for those of us in direct sales. It made me smile when I came across the article below that talks about the importance of a 90-day Quick Start plan.

The 90-day Team Scentsational plan with UB is challenging but completely attainable. I met my 30-day goal in under 30 days, and I'm over half-way to my 60-day goal with 25 days to go. I have been working my booty off but I do attribute a lot of my success to my upline (who, by the way, is one of the main reasons I signed on to UB!). Shawna gives UB 110% every day and I swear, I doubt the woman ever sleeps! She leads by example and is always there to answer questions and offer encouragement.

Okay...enough about me and my team and on to the article which is an excerpt from the book Build it Big...enjoy!

_________________

Start Your Business Off Right
By Rachel Kerr Snyder
Lighting the way for others

article found at http://www.mlm.com/mlm/user/mlmarticles

Starting Quickly
Now that you’ve made the decision to begin your own home-based business it is important that you get started immediately and experience early success. Setting and attaining goals within your first 90 days of business will keep you motivated and start you making money. Some companies refer to this time as a “Quick Start.” Whatever you choose to call it, just do it—fast!

Getting Off The Starting Line
Get control of your calendar. It’s critical to form this habit early so that you manage your business, rather than your business managing you. Meet with your family, spouse, and any others who have a claim on your time and decide when you are and are not available to work your business. This simple act of marking off time on the calendar for family and other commitments, establishes boundaries that will give you clarity in making appointments, scheduling phone time, doing presentations, and attending trainings. You and your family will find it much easier to operate when everyone knows the schedule. Family scheduling should become a weekly, scheduled meeting.

Host a Business Kick-off event at your home. Personally invite guests to come and see what you are doing, sample your product, and give their opinion. Everyone has an opinion—and is usually willing to share when asked.

Don’t spend a lot of time organizing an office. A phone, calendar, and your enthusiasm are your most critical components of success. Forget fancy handouts and blasting e-mails. Your personal connection is the key that will unlock the door to your success.

Talk to as many people as possible. Direct selling is just a numbers game. The more people you talk to, the more appointments you will book and the more people you can share the business with.

Be consistent. The business of direct selling is not difficult, but demands consistency in sales and sponsoring. If you are consistent, you can generate a steady and growing income while keeping your life manageable. When others see you incorporating your new venture into your life without turning your life upside down, they will be more inclined to support you and eventually join you.

Make FRANK a friend in your business development. This is a well-known acronym for Friends, Relatives, Acquaintances, Neighbors, and Kids, and is a memory jogger to help you build a list of individuals to introduce to your product or business. This list, with phone numbers, needs to be with you at all times, so that you can make that call when you have a moment and so you can add names as they come to you. This document is a most important piece of your business development, as it focuses you to stay on top of your prospects at all times.

Order business cards, and give them out at every opportunity. When people ask for your name, phone number, or other contact information, hand them a card. Surveys show that people hang onto business cards—for a long time. It’s an easy way to publicize your business without being intrusive.

Use the resources available to you and attend trainings regularly. Your sponsor and leaders are available to mentor and model successful business practices for you. Listen in on their calls, go with them to appointments, and watch them make presentations. Schedule this on-the-job training time just as you would any other business activity.

Embrace and incorporate these activities into your first 90 days of business. Teach others the same principles and watch your income multiply.

Actions For Today And Tomorrow
1. Set a date and time for your family scheduling meeting. Emphasize how important it is to you that everyone makes a point to be there every week.

2. Set a date for your Business Kick-off event and set goals for the number of guests, total sales, number of bookings, and potential team members you would like to gain from the show.

3. Begin your FRANK list and commit to add at least three names every day.

This is an excerpt from the best selling book Build It Big – 101 Insider Secrets Form Top Direct Selling Experts, brought to you by the Direct Selling Women’s Alliance (DSWA). The DSWA provides industry-specific education, resources and support to direct sellers in more than twelve countries, representing over 275 companies.
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Interesting Perfume Project

I've been looking at a lot of different blogs out there -- wedding and lifestyle blogs, beauty blogs, and blogs dedicated to the love of fragrance.

Through reading a few of the fragrance blogs, I learned about this interesting project where two of the top perfumers who work for major perfume houses are creating "dream" fragrances for two women who each run a fragrance blog.

The entire project is being chronicled on (what else) a blog called Made by Blog (click the title to go check it out!).

Because I am new to the world of perfume through my involvement with Urban Botanic, reading through their process is utterly fascinating. Just getting a glimpse of the olfactory training these perfumers have gone through is humbling indeed.

The Science behind the UB Personality Test

My newest teammate posed a question to McKenna Gordon, the founder of UB, about how science was used to create the UB Personality Test. Below is McKenna's response. She eloquently and articulately explains how she and her team developed this component of UB and I thought it was a great item to share.

____________________________

The idea that fragrances can portray certain personality traits is not a new one. To illustrate this, go grab any magazine you have lying around and open it up to any perfume ad. Look at the model in the ad. Look at her hair, makeup, and clothing. Look at the colors in the ad. What is she doing? What is her body language? In all of these elements, the story of someone's personality is being told.

An example: Estee Lauder Pleasures fragrance. If you haven't seen a magazine ad for this, go here: http://www.esteelauder.com/templates/products/multiproduct.t mpl?CATEGORY_ID=CATEGORY6835&cm_sp=top%20navs-_-fragranc e-_-fw_elpleasures
The ad does NOT say (nor does it need to) "this scent is very floral and romantic and bright and happy" - because you just know that from looking at the personality portrayed.

Another example in contrast: Calvin Klein's Euphoria fragrance. Ad here:
http://www.pvh.com/Brand_CK_Fragrance.html
Model's makeup is smoky, colors are deep caramels and intoxicating maroons. If you were to imagine what this fragrance smells like just by looking at the magazine ad, you'd probably guess this was a dark, mysterious, and seductive scent using lots of spicies and woodsies with a hint of florals to keep it just feminine enough. And you'd be right. But the ad doesn't tell you that.

Urban Botanic's personality test takes years of my personal research along with a team of other experts including psychologists and other fragrance experts. The information and data for the test isn't "made up", it's just never before been compiled in a format like we did. We reverse-engineered the method all perfume houses around the world use for marketing. It turns out that flirty people wear flirty fragrances (floral/some fruity) because 1) Flirty people LIKE floral/some fruity fragrances better than others and 2) Floral/some fruity fragrances also reflect "Flirty's" personality.

The fact that fragrances portray certain personalities is a proven fact. What those personalities are, and which scents connect them is somewhat of a mystery, so the question a few years ago was "Will UB's personality test work?" You tell me :) It's hard to measure a personality test because so many people answer untruthfully, and one's personality can change with their mood. But what I do hear over and over from anyone who takes the test is that the test was dead on. Both with the personality description, and which fragrances they prefer. This is all part of our patent-pending U.B.You System. Nothing remotely close to our personality test or our method of blending fragrances has been patented before, so this is very exciting for UB and our Fragrance Designers!

McKenna Gordon
Founder, Urban Botanic
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Write Up by DesignMom.com

So much to my surprise this morning I got an email that another blogsite had written about Urban Botanic.

Gabrielle Blair runs DesignMom.com. She is based in NYC, has 5 children, is a graphic designer (like me!), and has impeccable taste. She posts and writes about all sorts of stylish and hip products so I am supremely flattered that she took the time to post about UB.

Check her blog out at: http://www.designmom.com/

You may have to scroll a bit to see the UB write up because she does multiple posts each day.

How is your PMA?

PMA - positive mental attitude.

I remember people saying that all the time back in high school. Mostly my friends who were on sports teams. On the cheer squad, we would say it, too, and we talked about what it meant to be a member of a team and the attitude we portrayed to the community.

It's easy, as an adult, to forget about PMA sometimes. I thought this short little article was a nice pep talk and I wanted to share it. Whether you are starting a business (like me with Urban Botanic) or you have a job working for someone else, it's a nice reminder about the power of PMA.

It even sounds a little cheerleader-ly! ;)

--------------------------------
Decide to Be Fired Up!
Jan Ruhe
copied from http://www.mlm.com/mlm/user/mlmarticles

Use every email and call you make
Every conversation you have
Every meeting you hold or attend
To let everyone know your dreams and desires
Let people know of your vision of what you expect
Fire Up! others around you
Fire Up! and forgive those who have hurt you
Fire Up! your vocabulary and choose your words carefully
You are a powerful person
Spread the fire of desire
Radiate your passion
Believe in yourself
Concentrate on what you do right
No human is perfect, forgive yourself
You can't change the past
on your goals, your dreams and your hopes
Believe in miracles, expect them do not be surprised by them
Come to the table of plenty, there is a place set for you
Your success will be served on a silver platter

Stay Fired up no matter what.
The day you decide is the day that your life will change for the better forever.

Decide to stay Fired Up! For life!

- Jan Ruhe
www.janruhe.com

Write-up by KenzieKate

I wanted to share the good news that Mackenzie of KenzieKate has written about Urban Botanic on her blog.

Mackenzie designs the most beautiful wedding invitations and she also writes a very witty and stylish blog sharing her opinions on cool products relating to weddings and events. So I am over the moon that she wrote about U.B.!

Check it out at www.kenziekate.blogspot.com.

Rules of Thumb for Email

Since so much of our communication for our Urban Botanic businesses takes place on email and over the internet, I thought this article was a good refresher on some ways to make sure our electronic communications are effective.

A good rule of thumb that I personally follow is to expect that my email (or message board post, etc.) will be forwarded. Meaning, I don't write something in an email that I would not want to be shared widely.

Also...my number one rule - always, ALWAYS proofread. Read it backwards, read it three times, save it and read it the next day before sending it (for fresher eyes), and always ask a few trusted friends/colleagues to look at something before going live with it. The more important the communication or the bigger the audience, the more it pays to be careful and methodical.

___________________________

Seven Rules of Email
Bob Osgoodby
article can be found at
http://www.mlm.com/mlm/user/mlmarticles

Now there is no law that says you have to follow these rules, but if you are in business on the Web, you should definitely pay attention.

Rule #1 - Turn off your CAPS LOCK
Some people seem to feel that if they write their E-mail in ALL CAPS it will be more effective. Quite the opposite is the case. CAPS should be used only for emphasis. Many people consider the use of ALL CAPS as being the equivalent of shouting and do take offense at it.

Rule #2 - Never send multiple E-mails without using Blind Carbon Copies (BCC)
If every E-mail address you sent it to is displayed, you are making the spammers job a lot easier when theyharvest addresses. But you have to address it to someone, even if using BCC, so remember, there are a lot of "kooks" in this world who will persecute anyone they can identify.When using BCC, never send the note to someone on your mailing list. If you have a second ID use that, or send the note to yourself with copies to everyone on your list. That way, if someone decides to "vent" it will come back to you and not someone on your list. It also gives you a permanent record of the E-mails you sent to your mailing list. If you don't have a second ID#, you can get one easily at Juno, Hotmail, etc.

Rule #3 - Are you sure your E-mail was actually sent to your mailing list?
One easy way to be sure it was, is to include your E-mail address in your file of names you send it to. A good method is to include your address at the very end of the list. If you get your copy, you can be sure everyone else did as well.

Rule #4 - Don't Bore Them to Death
Advertising by E-mail is a cheap and effective way to get your message out to people, and most people don't mind getting an E-mail if it is short and to the point, but don't spam and send to people you don't already have a relationship with. Also, don't try to sell them your product or services with your first mailing. Try to pique their curiosity instead and have them either reply to your E-mail or visit your Web Site.

Rule #5 - Honor Removes
If someone asks to be removed from your mailing list, do it immediately and send them a courtesy note advising them it has been done. Keeping people on your mailing list that don't want to receive your information is not only bad form, but can cost you your ISP if a complaint is lodged against you.And NEVER forge headers so they can't respond to you by E-mail. This is the favorite trick of the scamsters who don't want you to respond to their E-mail, and give you a number to call or a form to fill out instead.

Rule #6 - Be sure that you are not sending the same person multiple E-mails
This is a definite sign of spam and most people will simply delete them.

Rule #7 - Be careful with attachments
I still get E-mails with no text and the message they wish me to read is an attachment to the E-mail. It is immediately deleted as it could very well contain a virus - even from someone you know. Some ISP's have a top limit to the amount of text they will display, and anything larger is automatically converted to an attachment. Many people will not go through this exercise, so you should ensure that your E-mail message can be read by all the people it is sent to, without them having to open an attachment.

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Bob has been publishing online since 1996. All the "tricks of the trade" are contained in his latest E-book. Learn how to avoid being shut down by your ISP for Spamming, and where to find "E-mail friendly ISP's. Learn which software packages are available to easily manage and distribute your email. For more information - http://www.adv-marketing.com/business/handbook.htm

The Money's in the Product

I'm home today with a sick kiddo so I figured I'd take the time to write another post.

Last night I was making a custom fragrance for my cousin who is also my sister/best friend. She loves vanilla and has been using body sprays and eau de toilette from a well-known bath product store for years.

We mixed up the most delightful blend for her that included vanilla, brown sugar, a hint of maple and a hint of chocolate. She was ecstatic!

She could feel the difference in the spray immediately. She pulled out the bottle of the other stuff she had been using out of her handbag and we compared ingredients. Then we took a sniff of it and literally all we could smell was the pungent odor of the alcohol. It was so amazing to compare the two scents side by side.

Then she pulled out a glass bottle of the eau de toilette she had in her handbag (I told you, she loves this stuff she doesn't leave home without it!). She was commenting on the packaging. Wouldn't you know it - the "other" stuff was less ounces but that had been camouflaged by a heavy glass bottle.

She then said, "Urban Botanic obviously puts their money into the quality of product and ingredients. They don't waste it on packaging."

So true! Now, being a graphic designer by trade, I am a HUGE sucker for aesthetics and pretty packaging is something I fall for time and time again. I might not even want the actual product but if it's packaged beautifully, I'll buy it.

Now don't get me wrong - the U.B. label design is fresh and lovely. The products all together in a row look great. But comparing the U.B parfum spray packaging to other fancier shaped bottles, you can't help but notice a difference.

BUT the bigger (and more important) difference is in the product. Every time I spray the parfum spray on someone for the first time, I get the same reaction to how different it feels (it's those silk amino acids - they are amazing!). Then in explaining the ingredients - how there is no alcohol, fromaldehyde, or other questionable chemicals - I can see people have this "a ha" moment.

Then, if you really think about the U.B. price point in comparison to the department store brands with their (expensive) fancy bottles...well, it's pretty clear where a lot of their money is going.

U.B. puts the money in the product. She summed it up perfectly. And as much as I love a pretty glass bottle, I will take the better quality product over something inferior any day of the week.

Tweens as a U.B. Market

In my earlier post, I wrote about marketing U.B. to brides. Now I'd like to shift focus to the tween market. Tweens are identified as kids between the ages of eight and 12. Essentially, they are in between being children and teenagers. Hallmarks of this age group are a fierce need for independence and establishing a more grown-up identity. At times bouncing back to familiar childhood habits or comforts (stuffed animals or dolls) but then turning right around and wanting to wear makeup and dress like they are 25 (yikes!).

Meanwhile many parents are struggling with the fact their kids aren't children any longer but they still need their help and protection, which flies directly in the face of said kids' desire for independence and an identity apart from Mom and Dad.

Oy vay!

My own daughter who just turned five is already at times displaying these tween-like behaviors. Which is terrifying to say the least. It really got me thinking to how I can create some traditions and bonds that might give us common ground to see us through the trying times ahead in our relationship (I'm not going to kid myself here - there WILL be those moments for us, just like I had with my mom). For instance, as a treat, I will take her to get a mini-manicure with me where she gets to pick out any color of nail polish in the salon and sits like a grown up chatting with the manicurist (seriously...the first time we did that, I was holding back tears at watching my baby behaving so grown up). I know that my mom and I didn't have those connections during my tween and teen years, like shopping or getting our nails done together, and that is something I would like to try and have with my daughter.

So...cut to Urban Botanic. I think this is the perfect product for tweens. Especially for a mother/daughter event or a tween birthday party.

The products are hypo-allergenic and contain no harmful ingredients like many/most other fragrances or cosmetics. The more important aspect of how U.B. would absolutely appeal to both kids of this age group and parents alike is how it allows the tween the ability for self-expression and individuality which they so desperately crave. Yet, it is self-expression in a completely safe and contained manner. And it is fun, creative, and really quite a "cool" activity. Bonus, bonus, bonus for the tween and their parent!

And the price point is so reasonable. As a mom, I could totally see throwing my daughter an Urban Botanic birthday party in a few years. I would pay for, say, a bubble bath and/or a shower gel for each girl attending. At $12.50 a pop, that is actually less than what I have been paying for her parties already (some of the most popular places to have parties in my area are $300 and up just to rent the space for 2 hours). The girls would have a blast, and hey, the Urban Botanic Consultant does most all of the work! ;)

So here's to looking forward to the tween years with my daughter. At least I have one strategy for retaining my status as a "cool" mom intact! :)

Finding my niche

Everyone has heard the term niche marketing and target marketing. In figuring out how I could position myself and where I could really focus my efforts as a Scent Consultant with Urban Botanic, I immediately thought of two markets that would likely get excited about this new product: brides and tweens/parents of tweens.

First up...brides.

Thinking back to my own wedding, I would have absolutely flipped and gone nutso over the idea of having a "signature" wedding fragrance. I have heard so many times over the years how the sense of smell evokes a huge emotional response, especially associating smells with memories. How better to remember your wedding day than with a custom fragrance!

I was such a make-it-"signature" bride. My colors were bright orange, bright pink, and red fer Pete's sake! Mind you, this was several years before the whole infusion of Middle Eastern, Moroccan, or Indian sari-looks hit the mainstream. My bridesmaids carried fans instead of flowers, I served margaritas but had not a drop of champagne, and we had karaoke at the reception...but I digress... ;)

I realize now that the custom market for weddings has really taken off. There are soooo many adorably cute and sophisticated ways to make a statement, not like back in my day (haha - like it was sooo long ago). Being a bride who loved poring over the minutia of planning the event...let's just say the whole signature-fragrance-for-a-wedding was an immediate connection for me when I first found out about Urban Botanic.

The unfolding of the custom fragrance making could take place as part of a bridal shower, as part of a bachelorette party (and no, not with tacky stripper-dudes, well...at least not until later, ha!), or even as part of a nice bridesmaids dinner/brunch with the fragrances being the gift from the bride to her bridal party. How fun!

Next time...marketing to tweens.