The world remembers that 9/11 was a very sad day — and it was especially sad for those of us in New York City, watching the full disaster unfold as we looked out from our office windows in 2001. This 9/11 was the 20th anniversary, and I was glued to every special and documentary, as I am every year.
One of the cable networks had a special called, “The Lost Calls of 9/11,” and it included a story about a man in Texas who had purchased an Eyretel voice recording product at an electronics outlet center. Once he got home, he decided to see if the machine worked and what content was on it. It turned out that it contained revealing, never-heard-before calls from across the street, from the World Trade Center. This documentary showed relatives hearing for the first time the voices of their loved ones before they perished in this tragedy. What a gift to these people! And it was only possible through the power of technology. These are the days when I value and love that I am in this industry.
The world came to appreciate the real value of consumer technology on that day. Fast forward 20 years, and today, we are all once again being made acutely aware of the importance of consumer technology — because of the chip storage. Every online shopping channel, news program and retail TV ad is telling us to shop early to make sure we can access everything that our loved ones want for the holidays. Therefore, our cover story will be focused on this shortage, how it affects our industry, and how long it will last.
Elsewhere in the issue, we unbox the latest Embr Wave product together with Sam Hitt, and we look at why TV prices will go up, and at why digital art is a trend for every household. Our social media kit will give you the marketing tips you need to make the most of the holiday sales. And our “Retail on the Run” looks at a new and cool retailer on the West Coast.
We interview a real estate expert on what tech new homeowners want sellers to leave in the home, and what tech new homeowners want to purchase. We look at luxury appliances in the independent channel, and cover smart water devices.
Also, we have a great Fall Accessories article from the president of SYNNEX/New Age Electronics, Fred Towns. It’s something you won’t want to miss.
We are proud of the product we produce, and if there are any topics that you feel need to be covered, feel free to contact me at tmonteleone@ctlab.media.