I always love when we can partner with others in the retail industry to bring great information to our readers. Smart Retailer is thrilled to sponsor its first webinar—a three-part series on Employee Engagement and Retention from One Step Retail Solutions and retail expert Tina Praino of Engaging Retail. The first installment was this morning and everyone who attended received some great tips! Tina is engaging and interesting. So for those of you who missed it, here are my Top 10 Tips from this morning's Boost My Hiring Process webinar:

1. Build a description of the perfect person for the job; make that part of the job description.

2. Allow the job description to be flexible; include verbiage similar to "duties may change as assigned."

3. Leverage social networking sites to find good candidates. Today's younger generation networks digitally in many ways. Consider LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter in your search.

Most experts suggest that to truly prosper in your business, you need to enjoy it. If you don’t go to work every day loving what you do, eventually it becomes just a means to a paycheck. And let’s be honest, if you’re only putting in enough effort to eke out a paycheck, that paycheck is going to dwindle to nothing. Then it won’t be any fun at all.

So this year, let’s all rededicate ourselves to enjoying what we do. Let’s bring the fun and merriment back to our workplaces. Take a moment to think about what you truly love about your business, what brings a smile to your face every time you do it. Remember back to the giddy days when you first started and how excited you were to open the doors for the first time or to design that very first product. That joy in your work ...

In addition to finding new product, the gift and decor trade shows are great resources for display ideas. While in Atlanta this January, I came across several showrooms that were just stunning. No matter what the company was selling or the general theme of the display, one thing remained the same. Every successful display had something that drew you in. Sometimes it was a pop of color or an unexpected prop. Other times it was the positioning of the display pieces. And sometimes it was the sheer abundance of the materials used. Here are some of my favorite displays from the Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishings Market.

Bright color will always draw your eye. One way to use color is to paint something unexpected in a vibrant color. At Grace Direct's Bridgewater Candle showroom, the designers painted the tires of a tractor bright, girly pink. Pink and yellow tulle ...

Last year's presidential election was a heated event with strong opinions on both sides and a country very much divided. When the votes were counted, President Barack Obama was elected to another four years of running this country. Pundits, analysts and even the guy at the gas station all chimed in with their predictions and opinions of what would happen with the economy, how businesses would fare and where America will be headed in the future. No matter who would have been elected, the new president was faced with a daunting task. The recovery is moving slower than everyone hoped, and the fiscal cliff loomed way too close for comfort. But what will happen in the next four years is beyond the control of just one person, just as what has brought us to this point didn’t happen as a result of one person. In fact, I read an interesting ...

Recently my sister dragged me to a What Not to Wear seminar presented by a local fashion consultant and personal shopper. I had a long day at work and I almost bowed out. I'm so glad I didn't! During the hour-long session, this style guru made every one of us in the room not only rethink what we were wearing but also clearly recognize how critical proper dress is in the business world.

It made me think about how every time I attend a trade show, I'm always amazed at the various levels of attire on the floor. I do see people appropriately dressed—business clothes and comfortable yet proper shoes—but I also see ladies in tight crop tops and pencil-thin spiked heels, men in baggy jeans and T-shirts, people in shorts and tank tops, even the odd person in sweatpants! What are these people thinking? Do they forget that a ...