Lot's of backpackers and casual traders do small business deals along the Main Bizar - those guys are actually organised, they can link you up with shipping companies and you can get cheap shirts and hippy clothes, jewellery and exotic items back to your store in your country. But be warned. They don't care (or don't know) about proper labeling, nickel free metals, certificates etc etc. Your goods can easily get stuck in customs. Most of the traders are one time dealers, moving on to the next new-comer.. we learned our lesson years ago. Don't even think about shipping container quantities with those guys.. we spoke to one guy who lost €50,000 like that.

But turn a corner, pass through a security railing, and find clean relatively quiet streets, see the nice cars parked and organised spacious showrooms. The professionals who understand the modern export trade and have their own factories and good contacts across India. Here is where good business is done. See I tell you all the trade secrets.. These are usually small family businesses where the second and third generations - younger switched on people have become specialists in their particular products. Big business, one guy ships container loads of paros to Ibiza Spain every month. Another claims to have a contract with Zara. Yes, Delhi people are prone to exaggeration but I wanted to spend some time here and develop some new trading relations.

But after a few days of this and the noise and hassle just getting there and back from our South Delhi hotel. Enough is enough. Tomas, Mr Chatterjee and I took an Air India flight from Delhi to Goa. We arrived last night.. This morning catching up with friends here.. when disaster struck.

Well two actually.. 

Operations at Kolkata's Chandra Bose International Airport (I was there two weeks ago) were suspended from 6 PM on Thursday to very high winds and heavy rain. Mr Chatterjee is on the phone like all the time, organising things.. The factory is closed and everything locked down. Let's hope this thing passes without casualty.  

Our Portuguese website at AW Artisan.. had a few hundred thousand registrations starting early this morning. Raul says a very sophisticated possibly AI driven attack that got past all our (expensive) defences. Once registered, robots are trying to access and disrupt our system.. Raul has been manfully fighting it the last few hours. At one point it took down the main server - it's back up now. But as I write the attack continues.  No other websites have been attacked (yet) but Raul and his team are on it.

Rodrigo and team have so much they have been actually struggling to get them all online. But wonderful new Incense ranges including exclusively for AW a beautiful artfully packaged range of Buddha incense I'm particularly excited about.

I can't believe it's already the last Friday in October, and this weekend the clocks go back.. Halloween is practically here!

It's all go go go.. check out the very special deals we have for you including FREE Halloween bath bombs if you move quickly.

OK I have to go.. There is a Gemstone Guy down from Gujarat with his samples waiting for me in his hotel room almost next door.