Unhappy Mother's Day

After coming out of the chute strong, Mother’s Day flopped. April was the first month that I didn’t beat last year’s benchmark. The first week of May should be among the busiest of the non-Christmas year. It wasn’t. I’m spending $15-20 per day on PPC ads to buy 140-180 visitors per day (vs. 60-80 visitors at my normal ad spend). But they must be looking for traditional “mom” stuff, because they aren’t buying very much at all. A newsletter announcing the new Earthsong jewelry line didn’t give me the boost that I was hoping for.

Let’s focus on the positive. Due to lucky timing of some expenses, April was paradoxically one of the first months to show a profit. Sales are still comfortably ahead of last year, although that lead is gradually eroding. The balance sheet is only slightly in the red – which is fine; retailers don’t expect to see black ink until November at the earliest. And Mother’s Day isn’t quite over; maybe these last few days will deliver an unexpected rally.

Maybe Father’s Day can turn things around. My merchandise is stronger for men than for women – I’ve always been weak on girlie stuff. Whose dad wouldn’t want a talking barbecue thermometer? Father’s Day is the last big sales opportunity on the calendar until back-to-school begins the countdown to Christmas. It was a big event for Curio City last year. I hope it comes through again this year.