© 2010 Google, Map Data © 2010 Google, Sanborn. Inset image property of Chute Gerdeman.

For me, no city stirs more Midwest envy than Portland, Oregon. Nestled on the west side of the Cascade Mountain Range, the city itself embodies an artistic and sustainable sensibility, a vibe expressed by both its citizens and establishments.

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Image property of Chute Gerdeman

As a lover of good cheese and all things delicious, I would consider myself a foodie. Sadly, my location in the Columbus area isn’t near the healthier grocery stores (think Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s) that offer more options than the traditional grocers. I do my grocery shopping at Kroger and Giant Eagle for proximity reasons (and I’m lucky to have newer store concepts of both). But, to buy cheese and more gourmet items, I’ll make the trek to Whole Foods.

I noticed construction was underway for a new store nearby, and I was hoping it might be a Whole Foods. After much research, I discovered that Earth Fare, The Healthy Supermarket (that’s what they call themselves), was going to open. Would they fulfill my dreams of cheese, upscale nuts and an organic wine selection close to home?

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Image via facebook.com/BirchboxMonthly

We all love to sample things—from perfumes, taste testing at the grocery store to wine tastings. Retail and manufacturer brands have caught on and discovered that sampling helps expose customers to new products and are more likely to purchase if they try before they buy. Understanding that approach, and in an effort to help cut through the clutter and find products that really work, young entrepreneurs Hayley Barna and Katia Beauchamp (who met at Harvard Business School) co-founded the beauty sampling program, Birchbox. How it works: subscriptions can be purchased for as little as three months for $30 or as long as a year for $110. Each month, a box is delivered to your doorstep featuring five new beauty and lifestyle products.

Image via birchbox.com

What’s unique about this sampling program is that it’s not just a random collection of items thrown together in a box. Products are first sampled by Birchbox staff and curated each month to support a theme. For example, March’s Birchbox theme was “Spring Training.” To help whip customers’ beauty routine into shape, they selected lifestyle products such as Kusmi’s detoxifying tea, Supergoop’s sunscreen wipes, Yogini’s “scent of liberation” and a few other goodies, all with the goal of getting the recipients’ beauty regimen on the right track.

Image via Chute Gerdeman

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Images via savannahnow.com, facebook.com/burgerking, beautyandbeyond.com

Editor’s Note: Once in awhile we come across something noteworthy and we want to share it with our readers. However, due to a variety of reasons (it’s too new to obtain research, it’s in a far-away land that we can’t quite reach, etc.) we don’t quite know what to do about it other than tell you “Hey. This is amazing and you should know about it.” Show & Tell is a collection of those recent things.

1. In a recent post celebrating National Mom & Pop business day, we mentioned our Intelligence Report “When Creativity Trumps Budget: What Big Brands Can Teach Indies.” One of the Big Ideas we feature in our report is “Fostering New Talent.” We were delighted when we spotted The Limited doing just that! They’ve partnered with Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD) to offer a unique jewelry collection to customers—created by students. The Limited’s CEO, Linda Heasley explained, “We were very fortunate. It was all done under the spirit of teaching and training and learning. We were thrilled that SCAD chose to do this with us. I’m very proud of the collection.” You can find the jewelry in stores starting in 2012.

Check out this video to find out more about this partnership that provided students with real business experience.

2. Food trucks have gone mainstream, just as we predicted last year in our own exploration of the mobile food market. This time, fast-food chain Burger King is testing out the idea. We heard awhile back that the chain would be delivering burgers to your home (within a specific proximity to local restaurants), but now the burger chain has gone one step further by literally taking operations on the road. We’re excited to hear how consumers respond to the initiative. We think food trucks create interest because of the unique offer and the convenience factor. Not to mention, it’s a great way to introduce new products which is exactly what the burger giant is rumored to be doing—using food trucks to introduce new menu items. They’ve launched new salads and fruit smoothies through a line up of celebrity endorsements including Sophia Vergara, Jay Leno, David Beckham and Salma Hayek. Check out the commercials here.

We’ll just have to wait and see if burger lovers love the new mode of fast food “delivery.” Remember—convenience is king.

Click here to read more about Burger King taking the Whopper (and more) to the streets.

3. Recently opened within Fred Segal in Santa Monica is the first beauty store operated by a magazine. Readers of NewBeauty are now able to find all of the products featured on the pages of this popular publication in one place. Products are accompanied by relevant editorial content allowing them to find the right product solution for their need. Beauty experts offer advice and product demonstrations, and an on-site video editorial staff is there to conduct customer interviews about the products. One customer described it as “putting the pages of the magazine on the shelf.” Check out the video below to hear more rave reviews from the magazine’s readers.

At the Builders’ Show in February, Sherwin-Williams launched the new interactive paint tool, Chip It! The first-of-its-kind, web-based app allows users to select any online image and instantly identify the Sherwin-Williams paint colors that correspond to the hues contained within the picture.

Image via letschipit.com

I’ve been intrigued by the various paint palette generators out there, but this one has me addicted and is the most user-friendly among the ones I’ve come across. Just like the online pinboard site, Pinterest, you download a similar application like “Pin It” (in this case, “Chip It”) to your browser’s toolbar which allows you to take any image of choice and “Chip It.” Using Sherwin-Williams’ wide array of paint colors (1,500+), a paint palette inspired by the image will develop. The generator draws five primary colors and once you view it on the Sherwin-Williams site, you can view even more accent colors.

“We know that finding the right color is often one of the biggest challenges when tackling the painting aspect of a project,” says Jackie Jordan, director of color marketing for Sherwin-Williams. “Our customers seek inspiration from a wide range of places. We want to help them take that inspiration and turn it into a reality.”

It’s a win with consumers who can now use the colors that inspire them while surfing the web to help make paint color decisions easier. And you can save and sort your “ChipCards” in customized “ChipBooks” to return to for inspiration on your next home project. Another plus is that you don’t have to create and remember one more username and password combo, because Chip It! uses your Facebook log-in information for the site. So smart. So simple. So addictive.

Sherwin-Williams Chip It! Tutorial

If you want to read more, check out Bob Vila’s take. And Interior Design magazine is on to this new tool, too.