New York Stationery Show

May 20th this year, Chaz and I are off to the 66th National Stationery Show in New York, the world’s most comprehensive collection of stationery, greetings and related lifestyle products. It stands alone as the only business event and tradeshow in the United States that focuses specifically on these profitable, powerful product categories.

With its world wide market, The National Stationery Show attracts a diverse global attendance of 11,000+ buyers from stationery, card and gift shops, bookstores, party stores, department chain and online retailers as well as distributors and importers worldwide. We've arranged to meet up with new buyers and distributors as well as our 'old' friends at Pictura (Sweden), TMS (Holland), Noble Works (USA) and Kat Kards (Australia) ... to name a few!

We always plan to spend a minimum of two full days at the Show to allow enough time to thoroughly shop and get acquainted with the new locations of many exhibitors’ booths. We like to walk the Show at least twice, starting from a different direction each time making sure we don't miss anyone. It's a long way to go to miss someone out!

Our day begins with a little walk from the hotel, south towards the Javits Centre, stopping on the way at one of the hundreds of diners for a coffee and 'Eggs over Easy'! You can't beat an American breakfast! After fuelling ourselves up for the day, it's a long jaunt down to the Show ... and then the fun begins!!

We hope to see you all at the Show, just contact us prior if you want to meet up ... we'll let you buy us a coffee!!

Dave

http://www.chazanddave.co.uk

Dear Google

Dear Google wallet staff,


I am having a big problem with your documentation, Im reading your 'book' and page 53 has been torn out: developers.google.com/in-app-payments/docs/tutorial . Quote:  It's simplest if you use a library. I would like to use 'luciferous jwt' but the explanation of how to implement this in your documentation is MISSING! I would like to use your new wallet system because I am confident that it is the future but you need to  support the developer because without the developers you have nothing... I hope you have a good rest tonight, I am going to stay up and look for answers.


Ben

Chewing the cud or the card?

Hi,

If you are reading this and wanting to reach out to independent designers this is what I have just said to someone similar, please have a look at what we are about! 

We spend many of hundreds/thousands of pounds and all the hours that god has gifted us trying and plying our trade to blinkered horses. So do we as designers have to become jockeys before we're noticed? I have travelled the globe meeting many potential clients with my wares, only to find they have moved on to newer pastures! nice for them?... Frustrating to us! But, when we continue to ply our chosen trade, as designers, is it to make us better or to keep the buyers in 9 to 5 jobs? if it was not for you the job creator (Designer) the originator where would they be? behind a 'drawing' board or 'drawing' their money out from there dole? 

Let's meet together in the same que

x

chazandave.co.uk

Plagiarism

As the Spring Fair approaches again, us poor, unrewarded designers face the ignominy of our work being copied by unscrupulous greeting card companies who have not got the talent themselves to create their own ideas!

Many people think of plagiarism as copying another's work, or borrowing someone else's original ideas. But terms like "copying" and "borrowing" can disguise the seriousness of the offence

But can words, designs or ideas really be stolen?

According to law, the answer is yes. The expression of original ideas is considered intellectual property, and is protected by copyright laws, just like original inventions. Almost all forms of expression fall under copyright protection as long as they are recorded in some way (such as a book or a computer file).

Here are a few explanations:

* to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own

* to use (another's production) without crediting the source

* to commit literary or design theft

* to present as new and original an idea/design or product derived from an existing source.

Plagiarism is an act of fraud. It involves both stealing someone else's work and lying about it afterwards.

As a Company, Chaz and myself have been unfortunate victims of plagiarism over the years with several of our ranges copied by some 'well known' (but to-date unnamed) greeting card companies. The only positive we can take from this fraudulent act is that the 'copied' designs were not a patch on our original ideas!

Don't forget cheats ... we know who you are!!

http://www.chazanddave.co.uk

My mate.......is dave!

Spring Fair 2012

We'll be seeing you at the Spring Fair

Well it's nearly that time of year again when it seems the whole world descends on Birmingham for 5 days of the Spring Fair. This year the show is from 5th-9th February 2012.

Our innovative concept 'SMARTCARD' will be our new creation for us this year. We've teamed up with Facebook to create a unique way of sending a greeting card to your friends or family, anywhere in the world, and with over 800 million Facebook users around the globe, it's a great way to send an instant personal message. For further information visit us at www.chazanddave.co.uk

http://www.chazanddave.co.uk

What a bunch of Bankers!

What a bunch of Bankers!

What a bunch of Bankers!

Unfortunately when setting up your own business, you have to open a bank account and get involved with one of Britain's most corrupt establishments, The High Street bank. Banking is one of the few industries where money can be taken directly from your account without either your knowledge or permission. We hear every day from top economists and government spokesman that in the current economic climate banks need to help businesses, especially small businesses, by relaxing their stringent conditions on lending money (or in the case of some banks, lending us our own money back).

Well this is the story of when I approached my bank manager for a short term loan for a print run. Unfortunately he was a typical branch manager, no personality, soppy as a wet weekend and couldn't make any decisions unless he spoke to his superiors first. Bearing in mind I had pre-orders for the product which were 3 times the value of the actual loan I was asking for, I felt we had a strong case for some help. I won't name the bank in this instance as 'in some parts of South East Asia it's considered rude to divulge that kind of information'!

After outlining the history and aims of our business to him (most of which he should of known as we have been with this bank for 3 years) we then got onto the 'nitty gritty' of asking for the money. His first thought was to ask me 'How much money can you put into the business yourselves?'. Errrrr ... if we had the money to put in ourselves, we wouldn't be sitting here would we? His next words of wisdom were 'Who do you bank with personally, won't they lend you the money?'. It was at that point that I had one of those out-of-body experiences where I reached over the desk, grabbed him by the neck, punched him in the throat and shouted stick your bank up your a**e!

Anyway, obviously that didn't happen (partly 'cos I couldn't reach him) but his final gem was 'Come back in 6 months when your credit rating has improved and we might be able to do something!' Rather than react and say, NO YOU TIT, we need the money NOW, I picked up my samples and business plan and left the building. It occurred to me on the way back to the office that if the bank asked us for some designs, do we say 'Have you thought about training yourself up on Photoshop or Illustrator and designing them yourself, or even find another design company to do them for you?' ... what a bunch of Bankers!

http://www.chazanddave.co.uk