When even a closing down sale doesn't help

Today I visited Borders book store. I've never seen it so busy just goes to show that the British love nothing like a bargain. Odd thing is that though it was packed not many people where buying. I picked up a book but decided against buying it, not sure why just didn't feel right.

And that's the problem with Borders, it doesn't feel right. Sure there's a Starbucks but the whole shop just feel wrong. It has a huge mish mash of stuff in there, books, CD's, stationery, household items, toys and loads of other stuff.

Borders' never knew if it was coming or going and neither did the buying public. Though it didn't buy the book in borders I walked around to Waterstones and I bought a book there, I paid full price when I'm sure if Borders had felt right I could have bought there for a lot less. But in Waterstones it felt right, because it is just a book shop that's what they do.

Further job losses at Grattan

I posted a while back about job loses at Grattan in Bradford, and today they have announced another 160 losses with clothing sourcing moving to Germany. It's a sad day but not that much of a surprise.

On a good note ASDA have announced the possibility of 375 new jobs if planning permission goes through for a new store in Leeds.

The figures on the news will only tell you about the job losses, but keep looking at you'll see glimmers of a recovery. It's small and very slow at the moment but it's coming.

Be better not bigger

The reason lots of the larger household names have gone under recently (in my view) is that they lost their way completely. If you asked anyone what Woolworths was for they couldn't tell you and neither could Woolworths. They just had loads of stores and no idea what they were doing with them.

They concentrated all their effort on being bigger and forgotten to be special. What Woolies ended up doing was selling a bit of everything and ended up selling nothing at all.

If you running a company and you're worried about the future, then concentrate on the customers you have any giving them amazing service and products. Don't go trying to be the biggest in the market, it'll rarely work.

Here's Seth Godin's sage advice on being better not bigger.

Winning the Chips War

I've just returned from Wales with my children. As you can imagine on holiday all kids want to eat is fish and chips, ask most kids and it's their first and last answer. Walking around Tenby it got to that time when they start pulling on your leg wanting something to eat.

Tenby is a beautiful seaside town and is full of restaurants. However they all seemed to omit Fish and Chips from the menu and my kids insisted on fish and chips.

The first place I found watched me struggle in with three kids and a buggy, sit down find a baby seat and ask my what the kids wanted while the staff all stood around and waited. I went to the counter to order and was told in a very bored way that the "friar is broken we can't do anything other than cold sandwiches" it wasn't their fault to be fair but they could have intercepted me, offered 1/2 price sandwiches or a million and one other things, Tenby was packed and it was lunch, we left and struggled back through the door.

After a short walk we found a chip shop which looked open but didn't look ready to serve. My little boy was getting really hungry at this point and asked the shop owner "are you open?". The man said that they'd be open in a few minutes as they were waiting for staff. This is at 11.55, so 5 minutes to dinner time.

I thought about waiting but then spotted another shop around the corner. This was open, had a working friar, friendly staff, spare tables chairs and high chairs, was easy to get in and out of.

We sat down and a waiter took our order, they took notice that I'd a baby with me and gave me a spare plate to put his food on. They served quickly and the food was hot as well as delicious. While we ate I spotted that they had won awards for their fish and chips over several years didn't take much to see why.

On the whole the last shop didn't do that much more, I'm sure all the other place's food was just as good, but they let me down before they'd started.

I think the point is that when times are hard and choice is wide and almost endless businesses have to go a little further. Just sitting back isn't good enough any more as some of the bigger businesses have found to their cost. If you want to succeed then make the effort you'll be rewarded.

Designer's Repulic closes it doors

Just checked my email and I truly gutted that Designer's Republic has closed. Growing up in Sheffield it was difficult to miss their influence. From nightclub flyers, I still have my full set of flyers from the opening of Republic nightclub. To the covers of Pulp records, Designers Republic was the place to work for a creative, just wish I'd been good enough.

Goodbye Designers Republic

News at 10 spin the figures

Just watched News at 10 and they announced with a fantastic set of graphics that there were over 7,000 job losses announced this week alone. Which is terrible news and was rightly reported as a main item. And they did use a very striking graphic to ram the figures home.

Thing was that once the figure had been taken off the screen they then announced that 15000 jobs would be created by the major supermarkets.

Now call me cynical but isn't that a net gain of 8,000 jobs? Why on earth didn't the graphic come back on and then move the other way?

Clearly we're not ready for good news stories yet.

Seth Godin inspires me

Just getting ready to go back to work. No one knows what 2009 will through at them but one thing is for sure if you sit back and let stuff happen to you you can't complain if its not what you want.

Why not take hold of the opportunity the uncertainty is bringing to everyone else and make 2009 a great start. Seth's post has just inspired me to do just that I hope it does the same for you too.

Happy New Year

Are all these business going under just inevitable?

Morgan has just filed for administration in the UK. They join a long list of companies going under, now I now we're in a recession but don't you get the feeling that a lot of these were inevitable? Woolworths have been going down hill for a long time, Zavvi had a bad business model since they bought it, why do you think Branson sold it?

The time has come to pass when the public will no longer stand for companies wearing the "Emperors New Clothes". The outcome is that weak businesses will go under and the recession is just a convenient cover for a badly run company. Its going to hurt, but the horse has already bolted and tidying up the pile of shit left behind is only good for the roses.

Are printed directories dead?

It's a long tradition I know but is there really any need for printed directories? I mean as soon as they are printed they're out of date plus they cost an absolute fortune to print and distribute.

The main culprits, at least in the UK, are phone directories Yellow Pages and Thomson. Every year they print one for each house in the UK about an inch thick and rammed with as many number and ads as can be printed on the toilet roll paper they use.

And what happens to them? They go on a shelf and stay there for a whole year until the new edition arrives.

The main purpose of these directories is to give you access to numbers and services you need, mainly its Pizza/Curry/Chinese take-away restaurants, when you're drunk.

But stop just there, don't you like me get at least 4 menus shoved through your door each day. And not only do these have the contact numbers on they also have the whole menu. So no need to call up and guess what they can cook for you.

I'm sure there are advertisers who will say that directories work for them, they must they continue to use them. But for the vast majority of business they are next to useless.

In a time of recession being front of face and shouting that you're the best fit for a customer, and then delivering are vital. Do you think this can really be achieved from a page of loo role left on a shelf?

It's all about the added service

When times are tough like now do you remember the business that gave you an ok product but left you feeling a little let down and tell your friends about it? Or do you think of the companies who gave you that little bit extra and made you smile?

Even the smallest company can do a lot to ensure that their good deeds are passed on. Here's a small example of how a humble fish and chip shop could have left a great impression on my friend but instead left her really annoyed.

Feeling peckish she entered the local Fish and Chip shop, which by the way has a great reputation for good food, and sat at a vacant table. After sitting a while she was asked to move tables as they were expecting a lunchtime rush and as she was sat alone the tables wouldn't be used efficiently. A simple enough request. Just badly handled by the staff member making the request. Because as it turned out the rush never happened.

My friend ate her fish and chips and left, there was no apology for making her move for the phantom lunchtime rush, no free cup of tea, no extra slice of bread and butter, no voucher for her next visit, nothing other than a disgruntled ex-customer who may well have gone on to tell all her friends about the amazing way she's been treated in the Chip Shop.

But now what does that chip shop have? One less customer who's already started telling people about her experience. And each one of them will think twice before visiting that chippy again.

I guess the lesson is when times are tough turn up the service to 12. Empower your staff to go that extra mile because every customer counts now. There's no room for bad products or service anymore.

What if... We all refuse the recession

Each morning on Radio 4 more and more news comes in of the world wide recession. In reality there's not much I alone can do about the recession.

I realise that I'm only small and even if I put everything and every penny I've ever made or am likely to make into a bank or business it would absolutely no difference at all. I like most people of the world am small fry.

But what if...

But what if all us small people did something amazing. What if we all refuse the recession? I know it sounds fanciful and impossible but think about it a bit more. All this mess has been made by only a few people who someone gave a load of cash and power to. What if a huge number of people got together and collectively made a difference. What if we all refuse to have a recession or change how we live so that we don't care and don't let the recession effect us? What would all the big wigs do then? How would they cope with the fact that their cock-ups and messes didn't matter to us because we just got on with life and supported each other?

I'm not saying I have any answers. What I am saying is that there's a recession because they told us there was one and there telling us that we're all going to hell in a hand cart and what do we do we sit here and take it!

My profession has a lot to answer for Marketing as a whole has a way of putting spin on everything. Government now runs on marketing, it'll tell you what's good for you, doesn't matter which party it is or even which country.

My mantra is that marketing and everything in life should be used for good, there's no reason why not. So let's market ourselves mentally and physically out of the recession. Positive Mental Attitude is what's needed.

Keep looking for glimmers.

£946 Million Profit for Lloyds of London!!!!!!

Listening to the news today a warning came from Lloyds of London the insurer. They have issued a profit warning they've only made £946 Million profit this year. Which is apparently down about 50% on last year (I was driving so please excuse any inaccuracy here).

Somehow I find it really hard to feel sorry for them!

The end of the recesson has been announced

I said it would come didn't I! I was just reading the BBC website a guy from the Nationwide said that UK house prices would drop by 25% from their high point but that all would be better by 2010.

All reported by the BBC wrapped up inside a bad news story.

The media announce the beginning and the end of the recession in one fell swoop!

Recession? Or just a trick of the mind?

I'm no financial expert, if you could see my bank balance you'd know that.

But I'm sure this recession is fueled by the media. Sure there have been issues with Sub-prime mortgages, but they have been coming for a while. Why suddenly in the last month or so has the recession word come to the fore?

In my opinion it's been fueled by the reports in the media, if the public are told enough times that there's a recession then they believe it and stop spending. They then spread the message that there's a recession and the whole thing spirals.

In about a years time the media will report that the recession is easing and that the signs are looking better. Coming out will take longer than getting in. People believe bad news quicker and start to spread the word. Good news is harder to sell in as people don't want to feel fooled.

But the message will start to eek it's way out and before you know it it'll all be over. Not much will actually change only the message.

I think this is what's called a self fulfilling prophesy!