Romancing the store

Speaking metaphorically, Los Pollitos has gone to first base with a major national retailer.

The kiss came yesterday afternoon. They tell us they will be ordering a decent amount of “units’’ and will sell them on their Web site. I am shaky and sweaty as I write this. We did not go looking for them, as major retailers scare the stink out of me. They found us through the holy power of Google.

Now, this is big. Very big. And we are grateful they even took a first look.

Our elation is tempered a bit because last year we let a major manufacturer get completely up our skirt – the promise of licensing – and then we got the equivalent of “Yeah babe, it was great. I’ll call you.’’ Y nada.

It was, to the say the least, a learning experience. While it was a letdown, it showed us we are on the right road and we ended up with a kick-butt revised business plan.

I have to tell you, running this business is a delight. I love sending the tees and onesies across the country and the thrill is even bigger when customers write a note of thanks, or send a picture of their pollito wearing our designs. Melts.my.heart.

Plus, I get to use skills I learned as a reporter: persistence, deadline, detail, follow-through. And this makes me believe all those years reporting on fires and freaks was training for a new path. (And, I get to work with the most talented, funniest and dearest friend, Oscar.)

This is not to say I don’t have days when I am completely exhausted and freaked. We ride a roller coaster often. Like, hey five people asked for wholesale information this week and like hey, no one has ordered yet. Or, hell it is July…time to start the Christmas push.

So, it is possible that working with this chain will give us exposure in the equivalent of gazillions of dollars in marketing and advertising. The roller coaster would climb very high. Very high, indeed.

When our first kiss with this national chain turns hot and heavy (like when we actually ship out the goods) you all will be the first to know for whom we are waiting anxiously by the phones.

And then maybe please go buy some over there.

We want these people to love us long time.