Happy (early) Birthday Lou Samuel!

Wishing the happiest of happy birthdays to daughter of Heidi Klum and Seal, Lou Sulola Samuel – 1-year-old! What a milestone and happy day for the entire family.  Best birthday wishes from the Le Top family. We think that Lou would look so cute in our new rabbitmoon clothes! Pick out your favorite outfit at www.rabbitmoon-usa.com. We love this one-piece: http://www.rabbitmoon-usa.com/neapolitan.

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Zap…Oh!: PREMIER RETAILER Q&A

Oh Zap!  We are featuring the cutest children’s boutique in New Mexico today as our premier “Store Spotlight” – Zap…Oh! We can’t get enough of how wonderful the store owner is, her merchandise, and especially her insight into the local area’s family activities and sites to see! Enjoy!

Where did the name Zap…Oh! come from?
Charlisa: I was in Argentina and thinking about opening a kid’s clothing boutique.  A children’s clothing designer and I were tossing around words.  We were thinking about the trend toward fun, ugly things like the ugly dolls and thought of toads.  The word for toad in Spanish is sapo … so it just morphed into Zap…Oh! – The name also fit since you can imagine a child putting on an outfit from our store and ‘Zap’ (Shazam), they’re so cute…Ooh! Aah!

2.      Describe the neighborhood where your store is located.
Charlisa: Nob Hill is the fun, walking, shopping, dining destination area of Albuquerque, New Mexico.  The University of New Mexico is just down the street, so it also has a bit of the college town feel.  Last year this area was designated a Main Street area by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. 

3.      What are the best 3 family activities to do in Albuquerque, NM? Or fun spots to see?
Charlisa: We have an amazing Bio Park with a world-class zoo, aquarium, and botanical gardens.  The Explora! Museum is another highlight where the kids love to play with the hands-on science activities.   The city has done an amazing job of creating a family, bike friendly city with parks and bike paths throughout. 

4.      Tell us about the school lunches your mom or dad made for you when you were a kid? What would someone find inside your brown paper bag?
Charlisa: Mom gave us 35 cents to buy our lunch.  Imagine 35 cents!!

5.      What tip would you give to a parent dressing a child for fall? Any hot trends?
Charlisa: Hats and scarves are what it’s all about, especially fedoras and skinny year ‘round scarves. 

6.      Do you do anything special for Halloween at your store?
Charlisa: This year we’re going to have a local children’s author be a Zombie Zookeeper releasing stuffed ZombieZoo critters.  Each has it’s unique personality, such as Stich the non-typical Pink Pig who is obsessed with hygiene and her treasured possession is hand-sanitizer.    These cool, soft-stuffed toys will be at Toy Fair in New York in January.

7.      You have been in business a few years now and survived the economic downturn – what do you think has kept your business so strong and sets you apart from other children’s stores?
Charlisa: Lots of luck, lots of repeat customers, and constantly changing our merchandise.  The thing we notice with the downturn is that people were still needing gifts, clothes, and shoes for their kids.  However, they couldn’t spend as much and needed each item to be perfect, so we saw more exchanges (we only do returns for store credit) and more indecision.  We just upped our customer service and understanding. 

8.      What is your best or most memorable moment in your store?
Charlisa: The very first customer insisted on buying something the day before we opened and she still comes back.  Her daughter is now too big for our shop, but it’s great to see her. 

9.      What collection or piece from Le Top or Le Top Baby line or Rabbitmoon do you love from the Fall/Holiday 2010 collection?
Charlisa: I’m a dog lover, so all the dog and puppy motifs are a hit with me!

Zap…Oh!
103 Amherst Drive SE
Albuquerque, NM 87106
(866) 473-9350
http://www.zapoh.net/

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