UPS is currently experiencing technical difficulties and delays, including tracking packages and finding UPS Locations on ups.com.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause our customers.

Rest assured that the UPS technical support group is working very hard to resolve the issuses as quickly as possible.

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Our Warehouses will be closed from 12/23 through 12/27 and then from 12/29 through 1/2.

You may continue to place orders on the Member Website at www.snedcowholesale.com until 10:00pm CST on Wednesday, 12/28 for shipping.  Orders placed prior to that time will be shipped by the end of the day on 12/28.

As always, the SNEDCO WHOLESALE website will be available for customers to place orders.

Normal business hours will resume on 01/03/2012. 

We thank you for your patronage in 2011, and are eagerly looking forward to a wonderful and prosperous New Year with you in 2012.  Best wishes to you and to your loved ones, and have a very wonderful holiday!

Sincerely,

SNEDCO Wholesale and Staff

We would like to wish all of our US customers a Happy Thanksgiving.  If you travel, please be safe and enjoy your time with family and friends.

In observance of the US Thanksgiving Holiday, our offices will be closed on Thursday and Friday so our staff can enjoy time with their families and friends.

Normal business hours will resume on Monday Novemeber 28, 2011.

As always, the SNEDCO WHOLESALE website will be available for customers to place orders.

You’ll want to be sure to do some research and make sure there’s not already a business using the same name you want to use.

Here Are Some Things Not To Do When Choosing A Company Name

1.  Do Not name your company AAA Gifts just to get the first listing in the phone book or yellow pages.

2.  Do Not use a well known brand or other company name or you may find yourself in a court battle. Examples of what not to use are Macintoch R Us for a computer store or Saks Discounts for a department store.

3. Do Not use misspellings of famous brands or companies such as Home Depots for a home and garden store or Halmarc for a cards and gift store. This too can get you into legal matters with the court.

4.  Do Not give your company a long name. You want your customers to be about to remember your name when telling their friends or returning for repeat business.

5.  Do Not give your company a name that is unrelated to your business. For example, don’t name your business Mike’s Book Store – A place to get auto parts.

How To Choose The Right Business Name For Your Company

Now that you have seen a list of what not to do when selecting your business name, here’s a list of the thing to do:

1. As indicated in the beginning of this article, keep your business name as simple and easy as possible.  Simple to Spell and Easy to Remember!

2. If your business is a B2B (business to business) model you want to go with a more professional business name. A good formula to follow is: Your Surname + What You Do = Business Name. For example, Johnson Technology or Taylor Construction. As a general rule to this model, it is recommended that you not use your first name.

You can also add your city or associates to the formula:  Your Surname + What You Do + Your Town = Business Name    or   Your Surname + What You Do + Your Associates = Business Name. For example, Johnson Technology Victorville or Taylor and Sons Construction.

You could leave out your name altogether and just go with  Your Town + What You Do = Business Name. Victorville Technology sounds pretty good! But keep in mind, it will also make you sound like a more generic type of company as well.

 3. If you are going corporate, keep in mind that the old dry corporate names are a thing of the past.  Hip and futuristic are the words for new corporation names.  A helpful hint on finding a great corporate name is to take the best word that describes your business and look it up in a Latin dictionary. Use that and a random suffix that sounds hip, futuristic or just plan cool.  

4. There is a trend that seems to work for many businesses past and present– that is using a playful name such as a cute little animal for their business name. It gives the company a quick identity since most people will associate it with the company name. Not only that, just think of all the promotional campaigns that can be done. When Build-A-Bear first opened in 1997, many thought it would not be around very long. The skeptics wrong on that call because the company is going strong into their fifteenth year! Do you think it would have still be around if it was named Build-A-Stuffed-Animal?

5.  If you come up with a good name but its just way too long, there are ways to brand the shortened name. Like UPS is United Parcel Service and GEICO is Government Employees Insurance Company. Just make sure the abbreviation is appropriate and not offensive to anyone.

6.  A newer trend in choosing a business is to include the .com at the end. Before you decide on a name with the .com, you should make sure it is available. Do your research and make sure if the domain is available, register it the same day you register your business. “Here today – Gone tomorrow”, certainly applies to the world-wide-web!

Take your time when choosing your company name. This is a big decision and one you don’t want to regret later. Get your list of potential names and ask the advice of family and friends.  Create a little poll.

1) Which name do you like the best?

2) Which name are you most likely to remember?

If you are having a hard time after a day of brainstorming, sleep on it. In the morning you may have a new perspective and the perfect business name choose will be easy!  

Wholesale Products – Wholesale Distributors – Drop Shippers

History of Celebrating Christmas
Christmas was originally called “The Feast of the Nativity of Jesus”. The word “nativity” comes from the Latin word Natalis, meaning birthday. The observance probably does not date earlier than 200 AD and did not become widespread until the 4th century. The actual date of Jesus birth is unknown but what is known is that Christian leaders in 336 A.D. set the date to December 25 in an attempt to eclipse a popular pagan holiday in Rome. The date of Christmas coincides closely with the winter solstice in the Northern hemisphere, a time of rejoicing among many ancient cultures. Christmas, as the great popular festival of Western Europe, dates from the Middle Ages. 

Santa Claus
Santa Claus was really known as St. Nicholas, he did not smoke a pipe, fly around in a wagon with any reindeer, goes down chimneys, worked with elves or live at the North Pole, he did however bring presents to children every year. According to tradition, he was born in the city of Patara, where he became bishop of Myra. He was imprisoned during the Roman emperor Diocletian’s persecution of Christians but was released under the rule of Emperor Constantine the Great. After his death he was buried in his church at Myra. In 1087, Italian sailors stole his alleged remains from Myra and took them to Bari, Italy. Nicholas’ relics remain enshrined in the 11th-century basilica of San Nicola, Bari. Nicholas’ had a reputation for generosity and kindness for the poor and unhappy. He was said to have given marriage dowries of gold to three girls whom poverty would otherwise have forced into lives of prostitution. The money was left in their stockings, which hung over the fireplace to dry. He became the patron saint of Russia and Greece. After the Reformation, Nicholas’ fan disappeared in all the Protestant countries of Europe except Holland, where his legend persisted as Sinterklaas (a Dutch name, Saint Nicholas). Dutch colonists took this tradition with them to New Amsterdam (now New York City) in the American colonies in the 17th century. Sinterklaas was adopted by the country’s English-speaking majority under the name Santa Claus, and his legend of a kindly old man was united with old Nordic folktales of a magician who punished naughty children and rewarded good children with presents.

The Christmas Tree
The Christmas tree is one of the most recognizable images of the season. Almost everywhere you go, it is the focal point of people’s holiday decoration. You pile your gifts under the tree. You gather around your tree to sing Christmas carols. The concept of the Christmas Tree originated around 3000 B.C. in ancient Egypt. After the untimely death of King Osiris, his wife, Isis practiced the doctrine of the reincarnation of Osiris as a spirit. She claimed a full grown evergreen tree sprang overnight from a dead stump, symbolizing the new life of the Osiris spirit from his death. On each anniversary of Osiris birth, which was in late December, Isis would leave gifts around this tree.

One other story is when Jesus was pursued by Herod’s soldiers, many plants offered them shelter. One such plant was the Pine Tree. When Mary was too weary to travel longer the family stopped at the edge of a forest to rest. A gnarled old pine which had grown hollow with its’ years invited them to rest within its trunk. Then it closed its branches down and kept them safe until the soldiers had passed. Upon leaving, the Christ blessed the pine and the imprint of his little hand was left forever in the tree’s fruit, the pine cone. If a cone is cut lengthwise the hand may still be seen. Many pagan festivals used trees when honoring their gods and spirits. In Northern Europe the Vikings considered the evergreen a symbol and reminder that the darkness and cold of winter would end and the green of spring would return. The Druids of ancient England and France decorated oak trees with fruit and candles to honor their gods of harvests. At the festival Saturnalia the Romans decorated trees with trinkets and candles. The use of a Christmas tree indoors appears to have begun in Germany. German Christians would bring trees into their homes to decorate.

The tradition of the Christmas tree eventually spread through out Europe. The English Royalty help popularize the tree in England by decorating the first Christmas tree at Windsor Castle in 1841. Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, decorated the first English Christmas Tree with candles, candies, fruits, and gingerbread. When the German immigrants went to American they also brought along their Christmas trees. In the 1830′s most Americans still considered the Christmas tree an oddity. One of the first public displays of a Christmas tree was set up by German Settlers in Pennsylvania. At the time many still considered the tree to be a symbol of pagans and it wasn’t until the late 1800′s that Americans began accepting the Christmas tree.

In 1880, Woolworths first sold manufactured Christmas tree ornaments, and they caught on very quickly. Martin Luther, in the 16th century, was walking through the woods late one night. As it was clear, many stars were shining through the branches of the trees giving the impression of twinkling lights. Luther was so inspired by the beauty of the sight that he cut down a small evergreen and brought it home. He recreated the stars by putting candles on the tree’s branches. The first electrically lighted Christmas tree appeared in 1882. Calvin Coolidge in 1923 ceremoniously lit the first outdoor tree at the White House, starting that long tradition.

 
Fruit Cake and Christmas Cookies
Many people feel that fruit cakes improve greatly with age. When they are well saturated with alcoholic liquors, which raise the spirits and keep down mold, and are buried in powdered sugar in tightly closed tins, they have been enjoyed as long as 25 years after baking. No one knows how they got attached to Christmas. Cookies came European custom of decorating a fir tree with apples and small white wafers representing the Holy Eucharist. These wafers were later replaced by little pieces of pastry cut in the shapes of stars, angels, hearts, flowers, and bells.

Mistletoe
Mistletoe originated from the story of Balder and Frigga. Balder had a dream that he was going to die. His mother, Frigga, the goddess of love and beauty, was frantic about his dream To ensure her son’s safety, Frigga went to all of the elements, as well as to all of the animals and plants, and asked them not to kill Balder. Balder’s enemy, Loki, found a loophole in Frigga’s request. Mistletoe grows on the tree it attaches itself to, and therefore has no roots of its own and could not be affected by Frigga’s request. Loki made a poisoned dart with mistletoe, and killed Balder. For three days, all the elements tried their hardest to bring Balder back to life, but failed. Finally, the tears that Frigga cried for her dead son changed the red mistletoe berries to white, raising Balder from the dead. Frigga then reversed mistletoe’s bad reputation, and kissed everyone who walked underneath it out of gratitude for getting her son back. The correct way to use a mistletoe is for the man to remove one berry when he kisses a woman. When all the berries are gone, there is no more kissing underneath that plant. It is believed that an unmarried woman not kissed under the mistletoe will remain single for another year.

Christmas Cards
The Christmas card began as a kind of stationery. The first card was produced by Sir Henry Cole who worked for the British Postal Service, and an artist he hired named John Horsley. This early card was a depiction of a Christmas scene framed in three panels. In the center panel was a homey table scene: children, parents and grandparents seated and some raising their glasses for a toast. On either side were panels depicting acts of Christmas charity: to the left, feeding the hungry — to the right, clothing the naked. Underneath appears the now familiar phrase A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You. Actually cards were preceded by Christmas Pieces written by school boys in England as greetings to their parents and as proof of their progress in the art of writing.

Advent Wreaths
The Advent Wreath is a Lutheran custom that originated in Eastern Germany. They are round as a symbol of God’s eternity and mercy. It is made of evergreens to symbolize God’s everlastingness and our immortality. Green is also the Church’s color of hope and new life. There are four candles, the three purple represent penance, sorrow, and longing expectation and one rose or pink that represents the hope and coming joy. In Denmark, the Christmas season begins on December 1, with the lighting of the calendar candle. The candle is marked with 24 lines, one for each day before Christmas — the burning of the candle represents the waiting and preparing for Christ’s coming.

12 Days of Christmas
The popular song The Twelve Days of Christmas is a song of Christian beliefs dating to the 16th century religious wars in England, with hidden references to the basic teachings of the faith. Each present represents a biblical term. On Http://www.debwebonline.com/Mercy_in_Jesus/twelvedays.html there is a list of the 12 symbols with their meanings:

1 Partridge in a pear tree = The One true God revealed in the person of Jesus Christ
2 Turtle Doves = The Old and New Testaments
3 French Hens = Faith, Hope and Charity
4 Calling Birds = the Four Gospels and/or the Four Evangelists
5 Golden Rings = The first Five Books of the Old Testament, the Pentateuch which contain the law condemning us of our sins.
6 Geese A-laying = the six days of creation
7 Swans A-swimming = the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, the seven sacraments of the Catholic faith
8 Maids A-milking = the eight beatitudes
9 Ladies Dancing = the nine Fruits of the Spirit
10 Lords A-leaping = the ten commandments
11 Pipers Piping = the eleven faithful apostles
12 Drummers Drumming = the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle’s Creed

Christmas Cane
A candy-maker in Indiana wanted to make a candy that would be a witness, so he made the Christmas Candy Cane. He incorporated several symbols from the birth, ministry, and death of Jesus Christ. He began with a stick of pure white, hard candy. White to symbolize the Virgin Birth and the sinless nature of Jesus, and hard to symbolize the Solid Rock, the foundation of the Church, and firmness of the promises of God. The candy-maker made the candy in the form of a J to represent the precious name of Jesus, who came to earth as our Savior. It could also represent the staff of the Good Shepherd. Thinking that the candy was somewhat plain, the candy-maker stained it with red stripes. He used three small stripes to show the stripes of the scourging Jesus received by which we are healed. The large red stripe was for the blood shed by Christ on the cross so that we could have the promise of eternal life.

 
Christmas Gifts
In ancient Rome, people exchanged gifts on New Years Day. These might be jewelry, pieces of gold and silver, or home-made pastry, cookies and candies. Sweet things were given to ensure sweetness for the year to come, lamps to wish for the light and warmth, and money was given to wish for increasing wealth. Wrapping of gifts may have originated in Denmark. When the Apostles brought the Gospel to Rome, the people learned of the Three Wise Men who came from the Orient to present gifts to the newborn King. From then on, the old custom was only slightly changed. The exchanging of presents remained, but now it was done in imitation of the three wise men, on Christmas. 

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If you are planning a wedding and know that most members of this wedding party are hams who won’t mind the whole “public speaking” thing, then by all means keep the toasts traditional with dad, the best man and others taking their expected turns at the microphone.

But if you’re looking for something different, either because you want to save putting people on the spot, or you simply want to do something different and fun, read on.

First, you can certainly take the whole toast thing off the agenda if you wish. There are no rules requiring a toast at any wedding. Weddings should be unique events and reflect the personalities of the bride and groom.

But if you want to do something a little different, there are options. You can go the video route, which asks people to essentially make a toast on camera and then the video is given to the bride and groom later. This isn’t a particularly unique idea, but it does solve the issue of not wanting to put people on the spot and still gives everyone a chance to say something special to the bride and groom.

If your guest list includes many outgoing people then consider “pass the microphone”. This can work in several ways. You can either be silly with it, or deadly serious. Most people like silly. Say dad takes the microphone first. His last name ends with T (so, let’s say dad’s last name is Smith). He must find someone whose first name begins with a T (Tom? Tony? Tina? Theresa?) and pass the microphone to that person, who then gives a toast.

This method of giving toasts does put people on the spot (certainly before the fun begins you can warn them so if they are really uncomfortable, they can escape to the restroom or bar) but it can also be a lot of fun. Getting people when they least expect it and then asking them to remember something funny or meaningful about the bride and groom can result in interesting, funny and truthful results.

You might also decide that one person at each table be required to give a toast. Number the tables and at various intervals, have the MC or DJ call a number, which will require guests at that table to decide amongst themselves who will give the toast at that table. Certainly, more than one person can if they like, but there will likely be at least one ham at each table who will enjoy standing up and toasting the newlyweds.

Say you have plenty of public speakers in the group, and finding willing toast participants won’t be a problem. But you think the subject matter might be. There’s an easy solution to this problem. You can provide open-ended topics for the toast speakers. Say you are providing an “open mike” toast arrangement, where anyone can request the microphone and offer a toast. The DJ, MC or someone else in the wedding party (perhaps the maid of honor or best man) can offer the speaker a surprise topic, which might be pulled from a champagne flute or drawn out of the floral arrangement on the head table. There might be slips of paper to choose, or just one sheet of paper with several ideas.

The speaker might choose to finish this sentence, “I remember when (groom’s name here) was a little boy, he always …” or answer this question, “When was (insert bride’s name here) at her silliest? Tell us the story”. You might have to give each speaker a minute or two to collect their thoughts, but you’re sure to have some interesting stories, some unique anecdotes and some different perspectives on the bride and groom.

Of course, watching the bride and groom push cake into each other’s mouths is a long-enjoyed tradition, but there are many more fun – and less messy – activities to consider as well.

One new option that’s gaining popularity is to have cupcakes instead of a cake. This is a method that is usually more affordable than having a cake and it can be a lot of fun. Cupcakes are decorated in alignment with the wedding theme, just as a cake is, but the cupcakes are instead arranged on tiered cake plates and displayed on a cake table until it’s time to eat them. The cupcakes can be simply handed out on plates to each wedding guest.

Now, what’s fun about using cupcakes instead of a whole wedding cake is you can save money, certainly, as many reception halls and caterers charge a per slice fee to cut and serve the wedding cake, but you can also build activities into the cupcake presentation. For example, the cupcakes that are for the bride and groom can have a different decoration than the ones for the guests.

As an extra touch, you can have the baker include a special prize in one or several cupcakes. A small charm or tiny toy can be baked into the cupcake. Whoever gets the charm wins a special prize. These prizes can range from a gift basket or gift certificate to a restaurant to a dance with the bride or groom.

Some brides like to use a Southern tradition and have charms baked into the wedding cake. Similar to the idea above for cupcakes, this involves baking small charms or tiny toys (but usually charms) into the cake. Those who get one of the charms are said to have good luck. You might even consider having charm bracelet charms baked into the cake, which are then made into a charm bracelet for the bride.

Not everyone enjoys cake. How about an activity for those who won’t be eating cake? They can be required to do the “Macarena” or the chicken dance during the time when everyone else is eating cake. If they manage to do the dance continuously while the other guests enjoy cake, they win a prize. Or they simply get to sit down, as now they are tired!

In keeping with the dance during cake theme, how about a requirement that in order to get cake, a guest must perform an impromptu dance first? Or there could be trivia questions about the bride and groom or about popular culture. Guests must correctly answer the questions before getting their cake. There could be competitions among tables or individuals for most questions answered correctly.

Many people believe that once the cake is cut, they are free to leave if they wish. Since cake cutting usually comes after the meal and after dancing and other traditional celebration activities, many people take the opportunity to leave the party after the cake is cut and enjoyed.

If the bride and groom want their guests to stay after the cake is eaten, it is worth some extra effort to build some activities into the cake-cutting event so people will stick around longer. This can be as simple as telling people not to leave, or can be more subtle and fun.

For example, each person could receive a slip of paper with his or her cake. These slips of paper could be prepared ahead and provided to the catering company with instructions that one folded strip of paper be placed on each plate with the cake. The paper might give an agenda for the rest of the evening or might ask its recipient to perform a little dance, to head over to give the groom or bride a kiss, or might ask them to take the flower girl out on the dance floor for a spin. The unknown will keep all the guests guessing and provide some entertainment as the instructions are carried out.