Always in Season: Eli Oelbaum

Name: Eli Oelbaum

Business name; Broadway Basketeers

Location: Lakewood, NJ

Years in business: I started in 1991

Position: CEO

Busy season: What’s called “fourth quarter” or holiday season, which is about June to December.

But there are also other busy seasons: Valentine’s Day, Purim, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and Rosh Hashanah. And there’s the general gifting for birthdays, shivah / condolences, corporate, and more

How did you get started?

I opened a party store and decided to sell baskets for Purim. We also started picking up corporate accounts, and the demand grew. Soon we were doing mass production of these baskets.

When do you start preparing?

Our packaging and containers come from the Far East, so those orders are placed in February/March. We produce all year long, but by the end of June, production picks up.

What’s it like at peak season?

Come September 1st, we start four solid months of non-stop production. The warehouse opens at 7:00 a.m., and there are always six to eight trailers picking up or dropping off shipments. It kind of feels like a spinning wheel — we’re working hard all day long, and there’s always another 10,000 to 15,000 more orders more to go.

What do you do with the leftover stock?

Seasonal packaging and designs are just put aside for the next year’s season. The custom-made food products can always just be used for a different basket.