Company Blog
Mirror Mirror…
by Adam Zack — April 2, 2015
“When I look in your eyes I see a reflection. And that reflection is me, and I look mahvelous, dahling.” – Billy Crystal (as Fernando Llamas)Being in retail all my life (literally – my dad worked grocery night crew at Market Basket when I was born.) I have made mistakes many times over by doing the most economical thing as opposed to doing things right. I hired a repair man to fix our ice machine that saved me $100 over the qualified technician, only to find out later that he fixed it by sticking a pencil into the leak, only to cost us over $400 later to fix it right. I thought I could replace a defective electric socket myself to save the cost of having the electrician do it, only to short out all the scales that were on the circuit. Until I learned better I always used the newspaper graphics department to design my ads. After all they were FREE! and I had a budget to meet. Or I would have the radio station write my ads because their service was FREE! I’d have the magazine publisher create my ad because, of course, the service was FREE! Until one day someone pointed out, not demurely, that my ads SUCKED! After indignation and denial wore off and I got over the bruised ego that this verbal ass kicking had g...read more
I Got a Name
by Adam Zack — March 27, 2015
Like the pine trees lining the winding road
I got a name, I got a name
– Jim CroceWhen I was in 8th grade I was on team that made the school yearbook. Our instructor, Mr. Bellamy, asked as we were proofing the book “What is the first thing people look for when they read the book?” I thought I was smart and answered “Mistakes.” WRONG! They look for photos of themselves and their name in the book. Oh yeah, that makes sense. I do that. We all do.One thing you can’t take away from someone is their name. Love your name or hate it, it is a group of letters that is uniquely you. When people you encounter take the time to learn your name, to remember it, to pronounce it correctly, to call you by it each time they see you, it gives you a sense of worth. Of importance. Of relevance. People who really make the effort to listen and remember the names of those they interact with and do business with will be more respected and more successful. And more liked. You are important enough to them that they remember your name and it gives you a natural sense of comfort and ease.So the next time you see that regular customer in your store, ask their name if you don’t know it. It’s OK to say “I see you in here all the time and ...
Adam’s Family Values
by Adam Zack — March 19, 2015
When I think of family, I think of a group of people related to me that somehow, through thick and thin, warts and flaws, fights and reconciliations still manage to share an unwavering support, love and loyalty to each other. No matter how upset I get with any of my family members, or how upset they get with me (and believe me, we are no picnic, with the many fractured branches in our family tree), we know that with a phone call or text we would be there for each other at the drop of a hat. It’s a comfort level that sometimes (OK, a lot of times) we take for granted. It means a lot to take the time to say “Hey, I appreciate you.” Or “I got this for you because I thought you’d like it.” Or “Hey, I just called to say hi and see how you’re doing.” It’s that family bond that we don’t often express, and sometimes it’s too late and we never did say the things we should.“So how does this relate to my store?”, you’re asking. Well, fortunately we work with a lot of family owned and operated stores. And it’s the family mindset and dynamic that distinguishes us from the chain stores. If we take that family consciousness and look at our employees like family, they will treat us like family. And you can’t just...read moreSetting Your Ground Rules
by Adam Zack — March 10, 2015
To us fervent carnivores there is nothing quite like the quest for the perfect burger. I have driven many miles, read extensive reviews and scoured social media for the ultimate combination of beef, bread and condiments that comprise burger perfection. (And for the record, I believe I have found it at The Riders Club in San Clemente, CA.) But what about creating the perfect burger at home? With the right ingredients, you don’t have to travel beyond your own kitchen to find taste nirvana.It all starts with the beef. And that is an area the big chain stores cannot compete with. Nearly all of them sell pre-ground beef in chubs. To the hamburger aficionado, that is cardinal sin #1. You have to have a combination of freshly ground chuck or sirloin. Some burger blends use short rib and steak trimmings. It has to have some fat in the blend. Yes, I said it – fat. Fat is flavor. Fat is juiciness. Fat is tenderness. I’m not talking all, or even mostly fat. I’m talking 20%. Maybe 22%. It has to be high quality beef too. No Holstein. No bull meat. We’re talking USDA Choice beef. The patty has to be gently formed. Not mashed and compressed. Gently formed to insure tenderness. The supporting players in this quest for perfection are also stars in the final result. Brioche buns? Check. Applewood Smoked bacon? Check. Aged...read moreIn Support of REAL Local
by Adam Zack — March 4, 2015
There is a certain national natural foods chain that really, really, REALLY tries hard to make its customers think it is a local company. And they do a really good job of reinforcing that brand image in their stores. But you know and I know that besides stores in Austin, Texas (or Texas in general if you want to really get liberal with the boundaries), it’s not local at all. But you are. And your customers should be reminded that you are. After all, you are the one who supports the local schools, sports teams and churches. You donate food to feed the needy in your city. You shop in your community. You pay taxes that go directly into your town. Your customers sit by you in church. They run into you at the movies. They see you working really hard in your store. Really, you are helping support your customers and their families. It’s an easy thing to say that you are local. Anyone can do that. Your advantage comes with the irrefutable proof that your profits, which are a very small percentage of sales, do actually stay in your community. They are not forwarded to Wall Street. They are not distributed to institutional investors. They stay with you and are reinvested in your town, in your customers’ town.So how a...read moreLet’s all have some Pi!
by Adam Zack — February 25, 2015
Pi – A transcendental number, approximately 3.1415, represented by the symbol π, that expresses the ratio of the circumference to the diameter of a circle and appears as a constant in many mathematical expressions. 3.14159265358979323846264338327950288 (to infinity…)“When you die, if you get a choice between going to regular heaven or pie heaven, choose pie heaven. It might be a trick, but if it’s not, mmmmmmmm, boy.” – Jack HandyMarch 14 is designated as National Pi Day. It was recognized and passed by Congress in 2009. I swear. Not making this stuff up. You may remember from high school geometry using the infinite number 3.1415 to solve problems. And it worked. With the mighty pi there wasn’t a circumference or circle area that I could not conquer.Now, as retailers our problem is how to differentiate ourselves from our competition and voila, we are able to use Pi to solve the problem! Who’d have thought that high school geometry would ever result in anything useful?Since every March 14 is Pi Day, it’s an annual promotion that you need to start and follow through on. But since March 14, 2015 (3.14.15) is a ONCE IN A CENTURY Pi Day, it’s a promotion you need to really embrace. Now of course most of our cust...
read moreDear Lord, Show Me a Sign!
by Adam Zack — February 18, 2015
sign: noun \ˈsīn\ : a piece of paper, wood, etc., with words or pictures on it that gives information about somethingThere are a handful of retailers that do signs right. I mean really do in-store signage right. Signs that convey the store’s brand, the item’s purpose for having a sign, the pertinent facts the customer needs to know about the item and the personality to actually persuade the customer to purchase. Stores such as Metropolitan Market in Seattle, Dorothy Lane Market in Ohio, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and West Seattle Thriftway are some that really get it when it comes to signage. They invest the resources (and it is a serious commitment – with at least one full-time sign person per store) required to tell their story through their signage. And it works. These retailers are extremely successful.There is another group of retailers that simply does a horrible job at signage. Displays will have no signs at all. Spelling will be incorrect. Prices will not be clear. There will be nothing at all that would make a shopper stop and take notice of the display. Watermelon may be a great deal at 99 cents each (or is it per pound, not a great deal at all), but when the watermelon looks like a pineappl...read moreIN DEFENSE OF OUTSOURCING
by Adam Zack — February 12, 2015
Ok, this week’s topic is going to read like I am so biased, and of course I am, but I have not always been on this side of the issue. What I am talking about is whether you should outsource your advertising and marketing projects or do them in-house. Duh, of course I am going to say, “outsource.” DW would cast a horrible karmic curse on me if I advised our retail partners to take their marketing efforts in-house. But’s there’s much more to it than just taking the biased side in support of my employer.You may remember from our introduction that I was on the operations side of retail for over 25 years, and still am on a consulting type basis. I know how it seemed like every warm body with a marketing degree seemingly knew what was best for my business and through their incredible savvy could transform my ad and brand into an award winning, life changing, profit generating, cost saving program! I must be the fool to ignore their expertise! And there were a lot of these people. A LOT. So being the prideful know-it-all that I was, I resisted. I politely declined meetings. If they were persistent, I politely took meetings and then politely told them “No, I’ve got it covered.” If they impol...read more
