The
Sharper Image is known as the premier gadget
store. Their
online catalog offers a wide product selection from
their exclusive Ionic  Breeze air cleaners to massage
chairs, spy cameras, compact stereos, electronic toys,
personal care items, and muchmore. Their Roomba  robotic vacuum cleaner is a big seller (plus check out
the lower priced eVac), as is their
selection of Dyson vacuums, but check out Overstock  for purchase of the Roomba first since when they have it in stock it is usually much cheaper, although it may be a previous model. Pricing at the Sharper Image is at or
near list for most items, with frequent sales which
are worthwhile to find plus an Outlet Store (look on the right side top menu bar). Shipping is fast
and reasonable in price and service is usually good. Website design is well organized with most of the product categories available in the top menu pulldowns. Note the top menu bar that has a category titled Special . Sharper Image has a newsletter that provides information on exclusive discounts and sneak previews of new products they are about to stock, too. Sales tax is charged in the 40 states have retail outlets. |
The
Discovery Channel Store  is known for their educational toys, games, and videos but also carries gadgets, travel gear, office tech products, and electronics, including MP3 and MP4 players, digital cameras and camcorders, compact stereos, portable DVD players, etc. They also  carry varied products including innovative fitness gear, clocks and watches, and a full selection of Meade telescopes and binoculars. The Discovery Channel Store has excellent customer service and a good return policy but shipping charges are a bit high, ranging from $6 to $29 based on the cost of the order for standard (3 - 5 business day) with lower charges for video, DVD, or book only orders. Tax is charged on orders where the DiscoveryStore has a retail presence, and this is over half the states.. |
Novica,
in association with National Geographic,  has a huge
selection of handcrafted items from around the
world and at excellent prices. They sell jewelry and crafts by
region and type, with bracelets, rings, necklaces,and
earrings from Bali & Java, Thailand, India,Brazil,
Mexico, and the Andes. To give an idea of
their selection, they  currently offer 215 Balinese
bracelets alone (and many are less than $50).
They also offer over 100 masks from various countries and with styles as varied as the artists who design them. The unique mask shown at left is wood and names "Moon Goddess and Demon" by Nyoman Setiawan. Novica also sells other handcrafted items besides
jewelry such as those for home decor including masks,
mirrors, paintings, sculpture, rugs, and
tapestries. A nice feature is that Novica usually provides a short background for each artist they feature. Shipping is slow, as they state on
the website, with orders typically arriving in 2 to 3
weeks, but at a reasonable rate for international
shipping. There are no duties or tariffs when shipping to the US. |
Think
Geek features products for the technophile
that are sure to please engineers, scientists, mathematicians,
physicists, and others who are most often afflicted
with geekdom. These include binary clocks and
watches, Star Wars light sabers, stealth cameras, a
portable wi-fi  detector called Wi-Spy, cube decorations, gadgets, PC
components, and a whole section devoted to caffeine,
including big bottles of Jolt cola and caffeinated soap! Oh yes, and a red Swingline stapler (if you don't understand why this is so popular, you need to see the movie Office Space). You will love
ThinkGeek if you understand this phrase imprinted on
one of their popular T-shirts: "There are 10 types of people in the world: Those who understand binary, and those who don't."
Choice of various DHL and UPS shipping options
starting at around $7. |
Mrs.
Fields is the famous retailer of cookies and
 baked goods with about 390 locations in the US and 80
internationally. They also have an online
presence with a large selection of goods in seasonal,
celebration, sentiment, and   business categories.
These include boxes of cookies, of course, as well as
gift baskets, large decorated cookies, muffins,
brownies, and fruit baskets. Shipping costs are
provided before items are added to the shopping cart,
a good feature. Besides cookies, Mrs. Fields now has a line of tinned chocolates suitable for gifts and especially popular on Valentine's Day. |
Hickory
Farms is one of the industry leaders in
traditional gift
baskets with summer sausages and cheeses,  but they also offer
fruit baskets and "fruit of the month"
packages, desserts, nut samplers, desserts, and candy as well as fresh
meats and seafood. They now carry a selection of
low carb giftbaskets, too, and given that their original business was meat and cheese baskets, they are the original low-carb gift basket
  merchant. Website design is good with a left side bar menu which shoes categories of price and occasion (birthday, thank you, congratulations, housewarming, etc) and there is a Create Your Own section where a custom basket of pantry items, or fresh food, can be assembled. Shipping costs are a bit
high and standard shipping can be slow, but express
and rush shipping options are available.
Hickory Farms gladly ships to APO and FPO addresses and sometimes offers free shipping upgrades. Website design is fine and easy to navigate. |
Swiss
Outpost offers
products made by the two official suppliers of Swiss
Army knives, Wenger and Victorinox.  They carry
the complete line of Swiss army knives, of course, but
also Swiss Army watches, travel gear, and camping
equipment like tents (a surprisingly good
value). Both of the major manufacturers produce
very high quality products,which is good since most  people can't tell the difference between the two! Wenger advertises itself as the
"Genuine Swiss Army Knife" and Victorinox as
"Makers of the Orig inal Swiss Army
Knife." The website's product detail pages
are annoyingly confusing, but they  offer discounts on
many products and carry the harder-to-find Swiss army
products and sell refurbished items like watches for a
good discount. Be sure to check out their newest
addition - the ultimate yuppie tool - a Swiss army
knife with built-in USB memory stick, pen, and light. |
1-800-flowers.com is the ubiquitous advertisement on many AM radio
stations near holidays like Easter, Mother's Day, and
Valentine's day. They provide a lot of
standardized arrangements with beautiful pictures on
their website. They are a national service but
contract with local florists to provide and deliver
the arrangements. As with any florist,  sometimes
people are dissatisfied with the flowers that are
delivered, which is understandable since the quality
of stock can vary a great deal from season to season
or even week to week. Ask if the fulfillment
florist can be contacted to inquire about their stock
before ordering a specific arrangement. Another
option is to instead order a gourmet, sweet shoppe, or
collectible basket, which 1-800-flowers also carries. |
Vermont
Teddy Bear delivers the highest quality teddy
bears, handmade in Vermont, in the form of a
"Bear-Gram", which features a fancy box,
package of candy, and personalized gift card.
 The selection of teddy bears is immense, with one to
two dozen available for most occasions - birthday, get
well, new baby, Father's Day, Mother's Day,
Valentine's Day, Christmas, and graduation. Many
are only available seasonally. The standard bear
is 15" tall and includes clothes and accessories
with a few larger (22" and 36") plain styles
available. They range in cost from $50 and up
with the average cost being $70 to $80. Shipping
is $12 for ground service, $16 for 2 business day
delivery, with faster options available. |
The
Oriental Trading Company is an online leader
providing discount party  supplies such as decorations,
party favors, themes, and tableware, but also carries a vast
selection of arts and crafts, including those for
teachers and scrapbooking, plus costumes, novelties,
toys and games, and wedding decorations and
favors. For all your party,
wedding, and scrapbook needs, it is worthwhile to check the pricing
and huge selection at the Oriental Trading Company
first. Where else are you going to find a dozen
8" rubber whoopee cushions for less than
$6? Shipping costs are based on order size, from
seven dollars and up, and with the options of 2-3 or
3-5 day express upgrades. |
|
