Hey, here’s an idea. So, you’ve just finished walking the trade show floor for like eight hours. You’re tired and hungry. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could find a good restaurant, get right over there, get seated without a wait, enjoy a great meal, and get back to your hotel in time for any evening festivities? I mean, that would really be nice, wouldn’t it?

If you’ve been paying any attention at all to the last several Playbooks that we’ve sent, you can probably guess what’s coming next. College Kids will be hosting dinners during the trade show. The restaurants will vary, and there will be limited seating each night. Oh, and the only way you’ll know when and where dinner is being served is through Facebook and Twitter. I know, shocking.

Dinners will work just like the morning coffee runs. We’ll post the restaurant, the pickup point, and the time to Facebook and Twitter by 3PM each day of the trade show. If there are eight spots available for dinner once the details are posted, the first eight people to respond get a seat at the table.* Then all you need to do is get to the pickup spot by the posted time, and we handle the rest. Couldn’t be simpler, right? So get signed up today, and bon appetit!

*Employees and Sales Representatives of College Kids, LLP are not eligible for this contest. No purchase is necessary to win. To be eligible, you must be employed by an institutional or privately owned K-12 or Higher Education bookstore.

We don’t mean literally. We mean graphically. Headless mascot designs are selling like crazy! In fact, they are so popular right now that we’ve expanded our offerings to include some additional options like cheerleaders and sports-specific designs. If you haven’t considered one of these graphics for your assortment yet, take a minute to click through our gallery of headless options and see if any of them would make sense for your store.

If you have any questions, if you would like to place an order, or if you would like to set up an appointment with your rep, please call us at 800-556-2036 or email us.

Yes, we’re actually serious. See, we’re going to have a Nintendo Wii set up in our booth (#1861) and we’ll be running a little tournament over the course of the show. So you could stop in for a little break, sit down and relax for a few minutes, play a little tennis, then be on your way to the next several hundred booths. If tennis isn’t your thing, there’s bowling too. Or baseball. Or golf. The point is, you’ve got options here people. And we’ll be giving out a prize to the person in each category with the highest status level at the end of the show.* What could you win? Well, we’re not saying. We find life is a little more fun when there’s some mystery involved. Time to play people. See you at booth #1861!

*Employees and Sales Representatives of College Kids, LLP are not eligible for this contest. No purchase is necessary to win. To be eligible, you must be employed by an institutional or privately owned K-12 or Higher Education bookstore.

We’ve been talking a lot about all of the fun things we’re going to be doing at CAMEX this year. But we’d like to bring the room down for just a minute and talk straight to the ladies. Ladies, we haven’t forgotten about you. Sure, we like to have fun. But we’re still serious about great clothes. That’s what we do, after all. And we’ve got a few special items just for you….

Our brand-spankin’-new Girlie Tee. Seriously Cute!

We’re excited to introduce some new silhouettes exclusively for infant, toddler and youth girls. First up, our brand new Girlie Tee. Available in infant and toddler sizes, it’s like our basic tee with an extra dash of princess. The fit has been tweaked with just the right amount of sweep, and it has a unique gathered collar. Your most sophisticated young ladies will love it!

Our new Youth Girl Track Jacket and Pant pictured with our Long Sleeve Girl Tee.

We’ve also added a new Youth Girls Track Jacket and matching Youth Girl Pant. These two, like the Girlie Tee, offer just the right fit to look stylish and yet remain extremely comfortable. The Girls Track Jacket and Pant are available in our fashion color palette that includes our awesome new Grass green color. Pair these with the Girls Tee (30801) or Girl Long Sleeve Tee (30802) for a complete outfit that shows your school spirit from head to toe.

For more information on these new items, or any of the other great products in our line, view our 2010 catalog online!

This is a very serious question, and we don’t ask it lightly. After all, I think we can all agree that if you start your day with bad coffee, or God forbid…NO coffee, you might as well just throw in the towel and go back to bed. Conversely, some good coffee first thing in the morning can really get your day started off on the right track. And gosh darn it, College Kids wants you to have an enjoyable, productive time down in Orlando. Maybe even catch a little fresh air and sun on your way to the convention center. Interested? Read on!

It just so happens that there’s a Starbucks within driving distance of the convention center. And it just so happens that we’re going to be running to said Starbucks every morning from Saturday 3/13 through Monday 3/15. What does that mean for you? It means good FREE coffee! Well, a chance at free coffee, technically. Actually, it could be free coffee, or lattés, or a cappuccino maybe? But I digress.

So how do you get in on this deal? All you have to do is send in your Starbucks drink order via our Facebook Fan Page, or our Twitter Page, between 5PM and 9PM each night (3/12 through 3/14). The first 20 people to submit their order each night win free drinks conveniently delivered by College Kids.* That’s right, one drink per person, but whatever that drink is, it’s on us. How’s that for service? Bring on the Venti Soy Caramel Brulee Latte with an extra shot of espresso, or whatever your personal fix might be. But you have to be quick. Only 20 people each day qualify. The rest of you, it’s your call if you want to tough it out with, you know, regular coffee. Good luck everyone!

*Employees and Sales Representatives of College Kids, LLP are not eligible for this contest. No purchase is necessary to win. To be eligible, you must be employed by an institutional or privately owned K-12 or Higher Education bookstore.

Ok, so we’ve been pushing social media pretty hard. We’ve been tying all of the giveaways and fun stuff to Facebook and Twitter. Some of you have already set up shop on one, or both, of these services. Some of you haven’t, and you’re probably asking yourself why you should bother? Why would you want to go through the hassle of setting up an account? Is it worth a cup of coffee, or an iPod Touch, or something else that you won’t even find out about until closer to CAMEX? And even then you’ll only find out about it through Facebook or Twitter….

I’m sorry, I’m doing it again.

Listen, here’s the upshot of the whole deal. Without going on and on about how consumers are spending more time on social networks, without droning on about how they are seeking out the opinions of others through social media to make purchasing decisions…without babbling for hours about how major corporate players are moving their marketing efforts away from traditional media and onto social networks, let me just say why we think it’s worth five minutes of your time to set up an account and connect with us.

Social media gives us the opportunity to communicate more often, more easily, and to involve more people in the conversation. We can share ideas about new products, hot graphics, and merchandising tips. But those things are really just the tip of the iceberg, and that’s the beauty of social media. The conversations can flow and go where they need to go. Why wouldn’t you want to be a part of that?

If you need a little more convincing, click here to read a very good article that really articulates why you would want to participate in social media. And did I mention the iPod Touch?

I’m sorry, old habits

I hope we’re not being too forward, but we’d really like to connect with you. We’ve just got so much in common…we like clothes, we can talk for hours about gross margin versus gross mark up…good times. So we should totally do something at CAMEX! BTW, we got you a little something….

Well, we got you a chance to win something. Here’s the deal. If you fan us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter from now until Monday 3/15/10 (the last day of the CAMEX show), you’ll be eligible to win an iPod Touch* preloaded with all of the apps you’ll need to become a social media juggernaut. That’s right, juggernaut. The entire social media universe in your pocket. That sounds seriously impressive, doesn’t it? Excuse me, what do you do? Oh, I’m a juggernaut. Yeah, top that.

And we’ll make this even easier for you. If you’re new to Facebook or Twitter and need some help getting an account set up, call us at 800-556-2036 and we can help walk you through the account set-up process, and get you connected with College Kids. We’ll also have computers available in our CAMEX booth (Booth 1861) where you can sign up and connect with us as well. It’s just so easy!

And remember, College Kids will be doing a ton of special things during the CAMEX show that you’ll have an opportunity to participate in and/or benefit from. But you’ll only know about them if you’re watching our Facebook or Twitter feeds. So don’t miss out on any of it. Get connected today, and don’t forget…we <3 you!

*Employees and Sales Representatives of College Kids, LLP are not eligible for this contest. No purchase is necessary to win. To be eligible, you must have a valid Facebook or Twitter account and be a fan of and/or following College Kids by 3/15/10, and you must be employed by an institutional or privately owned K-12 or Higher Education bookstore. A drawing will be held on 3/15/10 to determine the winner of the iPod Touch. You do not need to be present to win.

No, you didn’t read that wrong. Nope, not a typo either. And no, I am not a disgruntled employee that has hacked into the company web site to wreak all kinds of havoc. This is the real deal. 24 piece minimums per graphic. Anything you order, any time you order.

Why did we do that? I’m glad you asked. Simply put, we believe that if you have the ability to give your customers more choice, a better assortment of product, you’ll sell more stuff. And if you can sell more stuff without having to commit huge dollar amounts up front to meet high minimums, you’ll be more profitable. Plus, not having to stock large quantities gives you the flexibility to tweak your assortments more often to keep them fresh. Seems to make a lot of sense for both of us, doesn’t it?

Contact your College Kids sales rep for more details, or drop us a line at 800-556-2036. We’re ready to help you kick off 2010 with a bang!

By W.A. Higbee

Dateline: Thursday, Feb.4 – Miami, FL

After a morning meeting downtown with my new Sales Rep, the two of us got into our silver Toyota Rav4 and left the hotel for our appointment at the University of Miami. On the way there, on a major thoroughfare, we see a motorcycle cop, lights flashing, in our rearview mirror. And he’s coming up on us FAST! He speeds by us, followed by what must have been another 20 cops. When they reach the first intersection, they stop all traffic…except for us. They wave us right through.

While we’re trying to figure out what just happened, we realize that we are now being escorted by a motorcycle cop doing about 60 mph in a 35 mph zone. He’s pointing to us to keep up with him. At this point, we’re the only car in this motorcade. I glance behind us to notice four huge, white motor coaches right on our tail. It finally dawns on us that we’ve mistakenly been added to the New Orleans Saints motorcade as they are being escorted to the Hurricane’s practice facility. The cop keeps us in the motorcade all the way to our appointment. Our customer just happens to be standing outside watching the motorcade drive by. Imagine his surprise as we come streaking into the parking lot with our full Miami-Dade police escort. Now that, my friends, is how you make a super entrance.

Click to the image to view our catalog.

That’s right, the whole bloomin’ thing is available to browse on our web site. Now you can check out the entire 2010 collection from the comfort of your own office any darn time you choose. Enjoy the digital wonder of a simulated page turn over and over. And each time you’ll find a super-cute merchandising idea just waiting for you on the other side of the page.

But wait, that’s not all! Like to make notes while picking all of the ultra-fine College Kids styles you’ll want to add to your assortment? Just download a copy of our 2010 Line Sheet and mark it up to your heart’s content. Heck, throw on a doodle or two. Live a little! We’ve even posted our Sizing Chart for your convenience. And as always, if you’d like to meet with a sales rep to see the goods in person, just give us a call and we can help get an appointment arranged for you.

Our goal is to make it easy and convenient for you to get the information you need to plan out your kids department. Stop by our web site and check out all of the great new styles and graphics available for 2010. Try out the new tools. Let us know how we can be of assistance, and how we can continue to improve the site to make it easier for you to use. Here’s to a great 2010!