Sales vs. Service

  In 2016 Nordstrom spent 1.7% of total revenue on advertising. Macy’s spent almost three times as much at 5.5%. What else do you need to see to stop investing in promotional schemes and start investing in people and authenticity?  What is more, this didn’t surprise me in the least. I was so confident that this …

Everyone Loses The Race To The Bottom

Why I don't believe in off-price retails future.

E-Com, And Why You Maybe Shouldn’t

Small brick and mortar retailers are all enchanted by the siren song of e-commerce. Virtually every POS at this point has a native e-com platform that sync's your inventory, solving what was an almost impossible hurdle for non enterprise level businesses just 5-7 years ago. It feels like all you have to do is flip …

A Thirteen Hundred And Twenty Eight Dollar Wallet

I was in a store a few weeks ago and came across a product my company used to produce and wholesale.  A wave of nostalgia came over me as I remembered sewing wallets and bags in an unairconditioned garage in Pasadena in the height of summer.  For years my wife and I would fill our …

What Do I Do Here?

One of the hardest things a business owner has to do is loosen their grip on aspects of their company. When you are starting out, you do everything out of necessity.  If you need business cards, you design them.  If you need your books done, you do them... But the truth is, if you aren't a …

An Asshole With 200 Dollars

My friend's father was a used car salesmen and would often deal with upset customers who would try and bring back vehicles.  He quickly learned that, at the point someone is trying to bring back a used car, they are in a pretty rotten mood.  Whatever transpires they are leaving his dealership upset.   They might (and early on …