Introducing the GBA Advisory Board

SAN JOSE, CA - May 25, 2009 - The Gift Basket Association is pleased to announce the members of their first advisory board. This board, hand picked by founding member, Debbie Quintana, has been selected for their dedication and expertise in the gift basket industry. "I've been making gift baskets for the last 19 years but I will never call myself an expert. I feel strongly that we need to have a diverse range of professionals to provide feedback to some of the programs and services of GBA. I am proud to work with these individuals to help grow our community. I am so very grateful and humbled by their willingness to step up and help us all." The GBA Advisory Board is already in action and ready for our community. "I am honored to work with a group whose goals include education and giving back. I look forward to an inspirational learning experience!" says Lorie Obernauer, Vice President and Owner of the well respected Apex Gift Foods and Keystone Ribbon & Floral Supply. Obernauer was chosen to be on the board to represent the distributor sector and viewpoint of the industry. "I have been excited to get to know Debbie and see a today's look at our industry with lots of new technology. I believe this industry needs lots of different avenues of education and style to give the designers a different prospective for their businesses. As we know, no two businesses are alike and we don't want them to be. I believe GBA gives the industry that extra option of added resources to the industry." said Pamela Newell, co-owner of Gift Basket School, Inc. and host of 2009 Gift Basket Professional Convention. In addition to Obernauer and Newell, Quintana also chose Derek Thieke, owner of Northwoods Cheese to represent the manufacturing sector of the industry as well as two gift basket company owners, Cara Cohen of The Perfect Gift New York and Sandy Keller of Ace of Hearts Gift Baskets in North Carolina. Last and certainly not least is Mary Ann Jacobs, a highly respected consultant, mentor and trainer for gift basket professionals. The first project for review to the advisory board will be the survey for the 2010 Trend Report. This survey will be released to thousands of professionals in the industry to garner their forward-looking opinion of the industry. "The 2010 Trend Report will give our members the ability to forecast and prepare for the up and coming activities of the industry. As a gift basket company owner myself, I study quite often so I am ahead of the design curve, this report will yield very important details allowing us to be even more prepared." says Quintana. "It's time for us to build a strong community to help each other. The advisory board and trend report will help our entire community and allow us to truly support one another. This is just the beginning, we're just getting warmed up!" For more information, please visit The Gift Basket Association Advisory Board Member website. We invite you to join The Gift Basket Association and FindYourGiftBasket.com for just $99 a year. Suppliers can sign up here. Gift Basket Company owners can sign up here.

GBA is an association designed to bring the gift basket industry together with the ultimate goal of increasing sales in the gift basket industry. We are a centralized portal of information with a sincere, genuine and honest passion to help professionals and suppliers grow their business. We are building a community.