Archive for September, 2007
September 14th
The autumnal equinox is almost upon us.
At this time of year, the ancient Celts conducted a mock sacrifice of a large wicker man which represented the vegetation spirit. This might have been the origin of Julius Caesar’s comment in his “Commentarii de Bello Gallico” (Commentary on the Gallic Wars) that the Druids performed human sacrifice. Although he never witnessed a human sacrifice and never met anyone who had, this story has been accepted and repeated often enough to be accepted as truth.
In modern times the figure has been adopted for festivals. The Celtic sacrifice has been reborn in the Burning Man Project, a yearly fall festival celebrated for one week in Black Rock Desert in Nevada. A wicker man is burned each year at Butser Ancient Farm in Hampshire, England as part of neopagan-themed ceremonies.
The Wicker Man, a movie staring Nicholas Cage and set in the Pacific Northwest, was released in 2006. The original was done in 1973 and filmed at various locations in Scotland. It starred Christopher Lee, Edward Woodward and Britt Eckland. I think the original is still the best.
September 13th
I’m always curious to find out what other people do for a living, so I thought it might be interesting to get in touch with a Quo Vadis designer and talk about what that’s like. Laurence Barragan works at the QV factory in Carquefou (on the west coast of France near Nantes), and she graciously agreed to answer a few of my questions…
How long have you worked at Quo Vadis?
I’ve worked there since 1988.
What kinds of projects do you work on?
I work on a lot of different projects, like creating agenda covers, notebooks, and binders. I’m also responsible for things like product catalogs, logos, and stands.
How long does a typical project last, and how many people are involved?
It varies considerably. Whenever anything is created from scratch, you have to do an enormous amount of preparation—research, planning, finding the right personnel, and so on. Preparation for a single project might last anywhere from an hour to several weeks. After that, it’s a little easier to estimate how long it will actually take to execute the project. That ranges from 5 minutes to several more weeks.
A lot of people are involved with each project that we do. The head of product planning and I are mostly responsible for the preparation. But our Graphic Design and Industrial Services departments also help us figure out exactly what’s possible, technically speaking, and then of course they help us execute it.
What do you like best about working at Quo Vadis?
Above all, I enjoy the creative aspects of the job—you get to share ideas with other people while still maintaining a large degree of independence.
Is there anything else about your job that you feel is particularly unusual or interesting or cool?
Because I’m located in the Quo Vadis factory, I can follow the each project from its inception to its final production. That’s very interesting, and it’s also somewhat rare in my profession.
September 12th
We recently finished our annual overhaul of the Quo Vadis web site. The home page has been completely redesigned, giving faster access to locating a particular refill or format.  The academic section has been expanded. Our fabulous web developer also installed a program that enhances your visual experience for product viewing in the Covers and Gifts sections. You can almost feel the cover material.
Most importantly, we have made it faster and easier for visitors to purchase–not only individual refills, but also date books with specific covers. For example, Trinote with Club cover; or Visual and Kali cover, etc.
Suggestions for improvements are always welcome, as well as knowing which features of the site are most valuable or beneficial. We deeply appreciate everyone who take a moment to write - in praise, to complain, ask a question or suggest an innovation.
September 10th
Last week, I wrote about the results of a small, informal student focus group we recently held. FIT student and part-time Quo Vadis employee Nicole Caravella, who led the group, sent us some photographs of the participants (and their respective universities), and I thought it might be fun to post them here on the blog. Thanks for all the great feedback!
September 9th
A Space 24 with a green Maderia cover was seen on the popular TV show “Law and Order” on August 29th.Â
Someone watching the program gleefully emailed us to say the layout and cover were clearly shown as the cops were checking the suspect’s agenda to see his appointments.
September 7th
A couple of weeks ago, Fashion Institute of Technology student and part-time QV employee Nicole Caravella convened a small focus group of New York area students to talk about Quo Vadis planners.
Unsurprisingly, the students gave us some really great—and unexpected—feedback. Some of it was positive: like me, they swooned over the new Robert le Héros covers, and they also liked the variety of planner layouts and the quality of our paper. Among the improvements they suggested, however, one thing stood out in my mind: they wanted to see more planning space allotted to Sundays.
I rarely write out my plans for Sunday, but I figured it was worth asking the question on a larger forum like this blog. What do you think? Would you like to see more planning space for Sunday? Let us know in the comments!
September 7th
With all the commotion and concern over the safety of Chinese-made products, consumers are now starting to look a the label to see where a product was made. For too long, I think, cheaper made products have held sway. Many people used to use price as their primary purchasing factor. Not anymore. Now they are bringing health and social concerns into the equation.
I decided to put “Made in the USA” on our home page to let people know our agendas are manufactured right here at our plant in upstate New York. Quo Vadis and Exacompta planners are made with paper harvested and processed in any environmentally safe and respectful way; and where worker health and safety is also a primary concern.
We have been asked why our products are more expensive than some of our competitors…That’s easy to answer. We pay a competitive wage for workers here in the U.S. Most of the people working at the company are long-term employees. We follow–and go beyond in compliance–stringent environmental rules and regulations in the manufacturing and production process. Our paper is superior quality. We are commited to our customers and our products, combining pride in a well-made product with the backing of a fifth generation family-owned business.
September 5th
The “Marketing Mix” blog has been posting a great little mini-series about list-making recently. The first post talked about a very cool online service called Ta Da Lists, which basically serves as an organized virtual home for all the lists you want to keep. For those of us drowning in tiny scraps of paper (and permanently glued to our computers), that could be very useful, indeed—though you obviously can’t take it with you to the store.
The second post gave some tips for making your lists more useful. But the third (and most recent) post was the one that most fired my imagination. It’s about the benefits of making lists for your personal—and not just your professional—life. Think about your favorite books and movies, the things you’d like to accomplish before you die, or even, writes blogger Colleen Wainwright, “five things you’d go back and tell your 20-year-old self” or “five things you’d tell someone starting out in your industry right now.”
Now, I don’t know if a list is necessarily the BEST way to keep track of what your personal goals are or what you’ve learned over the years, but it’s certainly a very efficient way to do so. And if what you list are answers to something like the Proust Questionnaire, you might just discover something unexpected about yourself, as well.
September 4th
In my old Baltimore catechism the third in the “commandments of God” was “Remember thou keep holy the Lord’s Day.”
Growing up Catholic in the 50s and 60s this meant going to church and eating a midday meal together (Sunday dinner). Most stores were closed, so there was no shopping and people weren’t supposed to work. No liquor was sold and no bars were open until later in the afternoon (ostensibly to not interfere with my uncle’s church-going!)
The Sabbath was a day of worship, but it was also a day of rest. I remember my father, who worked hard all week, spent the afternoon working on his flower beds, or tying flies and making lures for future fishing trips. Sometimes he just snoozed by the radio or TVÂ as Yankees baseball or NYÂ Giants football played on in the background.
In the late 60s and 70s things began to change. Organized religion lost its iron grip; malls opened up, and instead of a day of rest Sunday became another day of the week. Nowadays, the internet, blackberries, cell phones and other electronic devices make it hard to have a stopping point or even a moment alone from work, shopping, and keeping up.
A few weeks ago, I realized I could not relax anymore. Worn down by a seven-day-a-week attachment to my computer, I continually worked, emailed, researched stuff on Google, and thought of more things to do.
Without thinking about it too much I returned to a modified Sabbath of my girlhood.
I have spent the last several Sunday mornings sitting on the back porch with my spouse talking and being together. We watch the birds in the backyard, and look at our flowers, butterfly bushes, and herb and vegetable garden. We marvel how they have grown and changed since we planted them. We observe the small changes that herald the coming of a new season. After morning coffee, we go for a long walk on the beach, sit down for a leisurely dinner together, and enjoy a companionable silence reading the Sunday Times or a new book.
A few weeks ago, I was tired on the inside and out. Now, after several Sundays of no work, I am beginning to appreciate the wisdom of setting aside one day to rest, renew, and appreciate all that God has made for us.
For a good book on this subject, try “A Day Apart: How Jews, Christians and Muslims Find Faith, Freedom and Joy on the Sabbath” by Christopher Ringwald.
September 3rd
… to all our U.S. and Canadian readers, at least. Both countries have been celebrating Labor Day in September—and not on May 1, like most of the rest of the world—since the early 1880s. At the time, there were several labor organizations who came out in favor of a May 1 holiday, but after the Chicago Haymarket riots in early May 1886, U.S. President Grover Cleveland decided that commemorating Labor Day on that date could strengthen the socialist movement. In the U.S., Congress made the holiday official in 1894.
