By Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems
OKAY, I ADMIT IT: I OWN A LOT OF ROBERT GRAHAM SHIRTS. Back in my plant days, there were no $300-$500 shirts and my father would think I am nuts to pay that kind of money for a shirt. Maybe you do, too. But the fact is, they are out there and your customers have them. You can frown upon them or you can seize the money- making opportunity they represent. I very strongly encourage the latter.
Continue reading “Above-Average Shirts Need Above Average Care”
By Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems
As we struggle to return our businesses to a feeling of normality and try to pretend the past couple of years have been a bad dream, we must remember we cannot leave it all to chance. When we compete for market share, we often do the obvious things to stay we are a step ahead of our competitors. We guarantee on-time service and quality work. We spend money on store beautification, employee training, DLI classes, and modern equipment. These are all key expenditures and highly recommended but we can also run out of ideas. We can look around our brand-new plant with brand-new, state-of-the-art equipment, stocked full of terrific, fully-trained, dynamic employees and think, “What now?”
By Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems
Maybe this whole COVID thing is close to being behind us. Hopefully the lessons learned will stay with us for a lifetime. Whenever something monumental occurs, it is very important to gather some sort of lesson from it. Sometimes it can take a very long time, especially when a lot of healing needs to happen first. When 1,500 people died on the Titantic in 1912, it took a long time for people in that era to make sense of the tragedy. Similarly, COVID-19 has killed more than four million people at the time of this writing. Eventually, we will want to know how many people it has saved. On a more local level, COVID-19 has cost you a lot and there needs to be a lesson in there somewhere. Twenty years ago I published a piece about 9/11. Here is what I wrote then:
Formulate Your Way to Success
By Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems
I received an interesting telephone call today that prompted the idea for this column. It’s all about math. You probably hated math in school and never thought you’d really need it. When the pocket calculator came out in 1974, you probably became certain that even if you did need math, you wouldn’t have to struggle with formulas. Sadly, neither Casio nor Radio Shack have built-in functions for g-force or moisture retention or anything else important to you. Continue reading “Formulate Your Way to Success with Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems”
I was once at a drycleaner’s store who had a sign in the window:
Continue reading “Extra Services Bring Extra Orders – by Don Desrosiers”
by Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems
What’s the difference between the drycleaner who offers all garments for one low price and the drycleaner who charges full retail, along with upcharges for designer brands, delicate fabrics, stains and special handling?
What’s the difference between the drycleaner who offers all garments same day and the drycleaner who learned long ago that buying drycleaning service is completely different than buying a quart of milk or a loaf of bread? If the goal is to make garments ready to wear for customers, it just may take more – and dare I say much more – than the confines of an eight-hour day. If that is the goal, what is the difference between the top-service drycleaner and the one who guarantees all garments same day?
Continue reading “Striking Your Perfect Balance Between Cost, Price, and Quality”
Adapting, Overcoming, and Improvising, Into the “New Normal”
By Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems
You probably said it to someone today. Surely, you said it to yourself within the past couple of weeks; “I can’t wait for things to go back to normal.” Me, too. But, what exactly is “normal”?
Let’s look at our quality and see if we can raise the bar. Or, in the words of my famous cousin Emeril Lagasse, “Let’s kick it up a notch!”
When we justify higher prices to ourselves or our customers, we say we produce a higher quality product than the discounter around the corner. However, we render ourselves speechless when we mystery shop that competitor and learn they do a darn good job.
Continue reading “Kick Your Quality Up a Notch by Don Desrosiers”
By Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems
Maybe you haven’t realized this yet, but business has an evil, cruel underbelly. The secret to success in business is to provide quality and service at a palatable price. This is true regardless of your product. Customers want you to do it right, do it fast, and do it cheap. Maybe that’s too crude for some, so I led with: they want good quality, good service at a price that they think is affordable. You can pick any two, and it won’t be so difficult. Doing three is the challenge.
For most school systems, 65% constitutes a passing grade, just barely. If doing two out of three is your choice, you pass but just barely with a 66% grade. As Meatloaf said, “Two outta three ain’t bad.” But it isn’t great, either. However, three out of three is a Herculean task, let me tell ya!
Continue reading “Defend Your Business Through Self-Reinvention”
By Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems
A long time ago, someone probably told you, “Two wrongs don’t make a right.” It’s the kind of wisdom everybody knows, but still you must hear every now and again as sort of a reminder. It’s true, you know. Two wrongs, never make a right! But guess what? Employees think two wrongs do make a right and they try to get us to believe they are right. This is one of the reasons why management makes us crazy. Here are some examples: Continue reading “Management Can Drive You Crazy”
