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To The Person Who Has Everything, From The Person Who Hates Shopping

Apr 8, 2008
By .
Effluvia

Ken (no relation), who goes by the handle Kraken on our forums and Ironrod elsewhere, has a cool online store called Curio City Online. It's got a quirky and eclectic array of inexpensive but cool gadgets and items that are handy if you are looking for a gift for someone difficult to shop for. In addition, he's got a blog about the trials and travails of running an internet-based small business which I find interesting. Check it out.

Last 5 posts by Ken

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4 Comments

  1. Andrew  •  Apr 8, 2008 @6:39 am

    I've occasionally reading his blog for a while now — I find it simultaneously fascinating and scary.

  2. Andy  •  Apr 8, 2008 @6:52 am

    My wife is just starting her own business (linked in my name) and I've been reading the Curio City blog (and encourage my wife to do the same). It's fascinating and a good way to keep my wife's expectations from going sky high.

  3. N  •  Apr 8, 2008 @7:50 am

    The blog is fascinating (I read it end-to-end last week), and the store works well (I submitted a purchase on Wednesday and received the goods in great shape on Saturday). It was tough finding items from the store that I wanted to pay for, but fortunately I have a gift-giving opportunity in the near future and managed to find an item.

  4. RobF  •  Apr 8, 2008 @10:17 am

    I haven't checked out Kraken/Ironrod's blog yet, but plan to do so. I've recently become interested in the various details of starting a small business. It seems like it would be one of the most frustrating yet satisfying things one could do.

    On the shopping front, I used to agonize over my Christmas list trying to come up with near-perfect gift ideas for everyone, then I would proceed to try to track down those exact items around town or online. However, a few years ago I switched my shopping strategy from hunting predetermined targets to more of a gathering approach, browsing a small selection of shops and collecting appropriate items as they caught my eye. Curio City Online has fit in well with my new strategy, and I have been able to do a decent chunk of my gift shopping there the past two years. (In particular, the microwave popcorn bowls have been a huge hit.)

    I'll leave any gender analysis of my shift in shopping paradigms as an exercise for the reader.