If I could offer men any advice...

If I could offer business men, and men in general any advice, it would be-

Shave the back of your neck!

This irritates me so much, everytime the hairy ex bf got back from whatever port he'd been working in, I would make him go out on the porch so I could shave his neck.  The smart ex, everytime I'd show up would get a haircut.  The pretty one, was high maintenence enough that he got his haircut frequently.

Seriously, if you are working with anyone on a daily baisis, KEEP YOUR HAIR CUT.

It grosses me out to no end.

First Citizens, you get mad props...

I was reissued all of my business cards. Apparently First Citizens had a breech, and immediately sent us all new ones.

That is fine and dandy, until I try to login to www.yourbankmiles.com and none of my accounts work. I had numerous free tickets and almost free tickets on various accounts. I was not happy about this.

Today, I call the number on the back of my card, expecting them to think I am crazy. The first pleasant thing that happened "Press zero to speak to an operator." Seriously? That easy? I don't have to "Press one for English?" only to get someone who doesn't really speak English?

I got this VERY nice woman, after maybe four rings. She knew what my issue was, tried to fix it, had to make a phone call and will call me back shortly. She spoke English. She may have even been in Roanoke (where FC is out of) and spoke southern!

So, today First Citizens, I am tickled with you :)

Are you kidding me?

Thank goodness today it was released that the Specialty Sleep Association will hold a meeting defining "natural" in the mattress business.

Just yesterday, I was talking to a particular rep, from a particular "S" brand, with a popular natural line up. I've always been known to ask pointed questions, not usually on purpose, but more so out of curiosity. So, I said "If this mattress is so natural, how does it pass FR?" (FR has to do with our fire laws on mattresses). I was expecting his answer to be "A wool sock," because that is how most good natural lines pass. No, he said "With Teflon." Are you kidding me? You must be joking right? The newest chemical that is supposedly killing us, is the SECOND LAYER IN THIS BED?! On top of the NATURAL latex layers?!@ I don't know that I said anything else to him. I'm sure that I just looked at him like he had lost his mind.

It gives me goose bumps to think about it. I will not have this product in my store with the word "natural" on it, when the second layer is Teflon. I look forward to the SSA meeting, even though it is going to cost me an extra arm and leg to stay another day in FL for it (it is right after another big industry event).

I really want to e-mail the spokesperson for this product, that I am pictured with in a previous FT article, and ask him if he knows this. That may just be upturning the applecart, but, I don't know that he would want his face on it if he knew.

Call me a coward if you must,

but if a customer calls me, almost yelling at me. Then gets in to "I NEED TO SPEAK TO THE OWNER." I don't tell them that I am as close as they will ever get to speaking to the owner.

I just told this guy "I don't know how to help you with that right now sir, let me get *sales person* to call you back."

Well, come to find out, he has buyers remorse. He supposedly found the product somewhere else for less (lie, we have MAP pricing on this product, and it isn't marked up. So, if he did find it somewhere else for less, some one is in big trouble). I said "Sir, where did you find it for less?" At which time he yelled at me "I'M NOT TELLING YOU." Ok, right. Because you are not telling the truth.

"Customers are always right." Bulllll. Customers are out for themselves. Customers lie.

I prefer "Take care of the customer."

Anyway, Mr. Customer, you were yelling at the person who can help you the most, and that probably isn't going to work out for you.

I know a thing or two about food marketing...

I was in the top 20 in the Nation in food marketing in high school. I know how to identify almost every part and piece of a grocery store. Don't ask me how I ended up there, I have no idea. I do know my grocery stores.

Back in the fall, Food Lion did this rearranging of their stores, to make them look more like HT. Well, that is all fine and good, but now I can't find ANYTHING. Nothing. I forget things, because after I tire of searching for them, I give up. Before this disaster, Food Lion's were logical. Now, you get your bread three aisles before your milk that you can place on top to squish it. Beer and toilet paper on the same aisle, as it was before was quite logical. Now there are random toys in the middle of the store. Magazines with the bread, and God forbid you try to find crackers. They are with the juice boxes.

I HAD to go to Food Lion today, because my Surf City IGA doesn't have as many Healthy Request soups as I would like them to. The rest of the time, I go to IGA. Less selection, but much better prices on most things. When you need to buy in large sizes though, sometimes Food Lion is a good choice. IGA is little, it caters to the little consumer, all of us single people who live here in the winter. We don't always need a box of Tide to do 400 loads. When people come in the summer, they don't need HUGE amounts of anything (except sunscreen, but they carry big bottles of that), because they're usually leaving in a week. IGA also does a local's special every week which gets emailed to me. I love it. Today is local day, but I didn't need anything on todays only specials. My other things on special I can pick up later. Two weeks ago honey was on sale, so I stopped and picked up two bottles of it, it made me very happy.

Today as I was standing at Food Lion looking at chicken breast, I thought "I should just go back to IGA. Or I could just boil the chicken off the bone that I have now. No, I'm here, stopping to save $.50 isn't really worth it." I did take note though, I got 12 chicken legs on special at IGA the other day for $3.17, Food Lion had the same thing for $3.70. Uh huh. I do love IGA's meat. They do such a good job, and have never had a meat scandal!

Anyway, Food Lion, your new arrangement is horrible. Drink mixes need to be with beer. Wine, needs to be with beer. Wine also needs to be after the meat, not before like you have it, because I can't pick my wine until I pick my meat. There is too much stuff in the aisles, I keep running in to people. The bread needs to be the last thing you pick up, not the 5th from last. I don't like dairy squished bread. It saddens me that I now have to empty my own cart onto the conveyor, it was so much more customer service oriented before. Now I just avoid you all and self check out.

Whoever you hired to advise you, that you probably paid millions, you could have checked out all the marketing kids that competed with each other for three years over these things. I'm sure none of us would charge you millions. Here is my free million dollar idea that won me a trophy- Put your cookies near the milk. I hate to say it Food Lion, but you would not have even placed with that layout.

My sales reps

I love most of my sales reps. I even enjoy talking with reps that do not work with my business. Actually, some of my favorite reps in the industry, I don't even do business with!

I was in the process of writing a thank you note to the boss of reps that I had dinner with at market. I then realized, I'm not really sure that he is their boss. I swear I think he is, but I'm not sure. So do I send this letter anyway? I hate to e-mail the guys and be like "Hey who is your boss?" I seriously need a chain of command on the website.

Industry chains of command are notoriously complicated. I have a good friend who when we were in high school would ask me what his Dad's position was, because as a retailer, I knew. As his son, he never knew.

The big problem is we have 24590834 Vice Presidents in this industry. There are VP's that mean something, and others that just have a title. That is confusing. People tend to ask "You are the VP of...?" To which I usually reply "The whole thing. I'm the only VP."

Hopefully, the National Sale's Manager and National Product Manager's thank you note should go to the VP & GM. (Thank GOD I keep an old conference guide in my desk, because I couldn't have told you what they did until I looked it up. It is pretty much the who's who of the industry).

To sum this up, if you are repping for someone, make sure your contacts know who your boss is. Especially if they are the kind of person that will use it for more good than bad.

Business Attire...

I am thankful that I grew up in DECA and at High Point Furniture market.

The lessons DECA taught me, I still use everyday. When preparing to leave for my Vegas business trip, it occurred to me that we had strict rules on travel attire. Just for fun I looked it up. DECA would have never allowed for me to wear jeans on a trip. No matter how nice I looked in them. Sorry Mrs. Gantt I wore blue jeans on the way out and sweat pants on the way in. That wouldn't have been acceptable at all. I also wore sneakers both directions. I would have never made my Charlotte connection in pretty shoes. There is a lot that can be said for comfort in travel. Even flip flops had no place in DECA. Mind you, I never wore my flops in any showrooms. I only wore them in the hallways at market. The sweatpants were for a red-eye. I wish I had a picture of me getting off that plane. I looked like death.

Everyday though, I had on a jacket. Blue blazer. Everyday, I had on khakis or some other type of nice slacks. It really made a difference. It is hard being in a mostly male industry. To be respected, you can't be in "cute" business attire. I was complimented both days on my nice shirts and blazer. Day one I had heels. Day two I had flats. I rarely took off my jacket, which is something DECA and a close friend taught me the importance off.

I was taken back at the amount of "designers" with jeans on. Also the amount of important people in golf shirts was astounding. Call me a classic High Point market girl if you must, but that is not the way we did business in North Carolina. I mentioned it to various people to hear that "You should see it at summer market!"

Granted, most of these people were not in the exact industry I'm in, but they were still there to do business in jeans. Yes, you have to walk miles a day, but jeans?!

My Dad has this theory that once you are important you can wear whatever you like and get away with it. I think that is true in your personal business, I do not think that is true when doing business with other people.

I do not have any good photos to illustrate my business attire without calling out some fellow industry people for the polo shirts.

My great grandfather was known in Greensboro for wearing a three piece suit everyday and always having a flower in his lapel. I'm fairly casual in my own business, but when it comes to business with others or big industry events, you have to look nice. Especially if it is the first time you are meeting people.

Another thing about women in business. The big hair is distracting. Really, it is. You need to be toned down. Now is not the time to be "bold." It is the time to take care of business.

Here we go again...

So there is this yellow page company... I won't call any names. They've been trying to get me to do an internet video now for weeks. Keeps getting put off. Well, I just KNEW, it would finally get done today. I got my hair blown out, my make up professionally done (you know the too much so you look good on TV kind).

THEY SENT THE CREW TO RALEIGH.

"Oh we can drive down..." No. You will not. 1pm is the best time to take pictures or do other things like videos. You're the least swollen that time of day.

You make an appointment, you call, you confirm, you follow up.

No, not this company. *in an Indian accent* "Thank you for calllling, %$&$."

East Carolina Univeristy...

May teach us how to run a business, but they sure aren't one.

Let me start with a few days before school started. I pulled up my book list from onestop and bought my two books. About a week in, I realize I have the wrong Visual Basics book. That is a programming book. Something you KIND of have to have. It will finally be here from the bookstore TOMORROW. The university ordered the wrong books. Great.

Now, bring us to today, I am working on my MS Office class, which is BS if you ask me, but that isn't the point. I'm looking for the exercise that is due tonight. Guess what? I have the WRONG F-ING BOOK AGAIN!

ECU didn't ask me to get one wrong book, but two. Now, if they were a business, they would be held accountable for this mistake that is costing me grades. Who is there to hold accountable?

In a way, it is my own fault for not comparing the ISBN to the one on the syllabus, but then again, who expects the university to assign you the wrong book?

Don't kid yourself, they are the right titles. Even the right content, but when it comes down to doing exercises in them, THEY AREN'T THERE.

I cried. It didn't help. I would feel better if I could strangle someone.

Well, this is how I do business...

I realized I had been in Wilmington a bit too long while in a bank in Raleigh the other day.

There I stand in my Brooks Brothers polo, khaki skort, and Rainbows. I had my hair in a pony tail on my head. My big ass sunglasses on my head.

I walked in to the First Citizens on Edwards Mill. Which is a VERY nice FC. Even nicer than the branch that caters to Figure 8 at Porters Neck here in Wilmington. I have never felt so out of place in a bank. Everyone around me was wearing slacks, heels, knee length skirts, etc. They had all spent at least 20 minutes that morning putting on make up and doing their hair. I had gotten up, gone to work, driven to Raleigh in a tizzy, and some how ended up in the bank.

Then, they realized by my tan and raccoon eyes that I was not from around there. Funny thing is, I am from around there, but not anymore.

There was no one in line speaking to each other about how hot it was. No one commenting on how bad traffic was. No one asking you how you have been. Of course, the teller didn't know me from Adam, but took my money anyway. I am so happy to have moved to Eastern North Carolina. Where they greet you with a smile, whether they know you or not. I should have just got to the FC in Garner... They're far enough east that they are nice too.

Note to self- When in Raleigh, around Lawyers row, you MAY look out of place.

Business and Religion

Ok, this is a tough one.

I grew up Southern Baptist. I was in church as a child, much more often than I was out of church.

When it comes to business, these things are separate. I still consider myself a Christian, but I am far from being in church every Sunday. Most of the better people in this world do not feel a need to be in church every Sunday.

To make myself clear- I have been screwed in business by more "good Christians" than I have anyone else.

I cannot stand when someone hides behind the cross. They will lie, cheat, and steal, only to ask for forgiveness on Sunday.

It is way more valuable to be a good person all the time. Why lie? It's not worth it. It creates more problems for yourself later. Why screw people? At the end of the day, all you really have is your reputation. When you mess that up, it is over. No one will trust you again. Or if they do, you have to work really hard to regain that.

As I told Dad yesterday, "Maybe it is because I believe in God and I believe 'what goes around comes around.'"

So, if you label yourself a "good Christian," please don't tell me. Show me in your actions, not in your words. Do not continue to perpetuate hypocrisy.

Maybe I just don't get it...

CEO's confuse me.

Well, CEO's that I don't know. In our industry, they trade CEOs like baseball cards.

I will never forget sitting at the Bedding Conference two years ago, and having a CEO explain that he use to work for Chiclet and how upset his daughter was when he left there, until he told her he would get her a new bed.

So now, the new Tempur CEO is from Campbell's Soup. He use to be CEO of J.Crew, pretty awesome. He is a friend of a neighbor, and probably a pretty cool guy. That still doesn't help me understand what soup and beds have in common.

I have been in this industry my entire life, and there are still days that it baffles me. How the heck can someone from a totally different industry come in and run a corporation?

READ THE CONTRACT

I will never forget this as long as I live-

I was standing in Garner, in a house, it was probably 95 outside, and 90 inside. When my lovely Realtor (who was my ex boyfriend) hands me all these Realtor retainer forms to sign. So, I started reading them. I was mildly miffed that I would have to agree for him to represent me for 90 days, but hey, he'd been screwed before so I understood.

As I stood there sweating, and reading, he got angrier and angrier. I don't care who you are or what my relationship is with you, I am going to read something before I sign it.

This is a lesson that needs to be learned by everyone. Don't just think that because your sibling, parent, spouse, dog, whoever, asks you to sign something that you shouldn't read it. I know more people in more of a mess because they didn't read what they were signing.

Even when your attorney hands you something, I don't care if it is 20 pages long, READ IT.

While I'm on it. Verbal contracts mean NOTHING. Write it down on a bar napkin and sign it if you have agreed to something. It's best to get it notarized by an official, but a bar napkin is better than a handshake.

Re: When did it become PC to text for business?

The particular person that I had the problem with texting me...
Confused me with his girlfriend, or, whatever we may call her.

He sent me quite possibly the dirtiest message I have ever received in my life. After hearing all about his dungeon, I don't think he will be sending me text messages ever again. ;-)

When did it become PC to text for business?

As your boss, why are you texting me questions? ESPECIALLY at 2am?

Grown men have started texting Dad important things. I mean SUPER important things. Just because you don't have the balls to say it, doesn't mean that it doesn't need to be said. Go get you a pair, and pick up the phone and call. Dad doesn't "receive" texts as well as everyone else. He can't tell the difference in the voice mail icon and the text icon (it is hard even for me).

If you think that you will bother me to call me, don't even ask the question. Don't worry, if I don't want to talk to you, I won't answer. You can leave voice mail. I'll listen to it and call you back with an answer. Hoping that in the time it takes me to do that, you figure it out yourself. That is my goal, to teach others how to find the answers.

I have decided

People either have a business brain, or they don't.

Those of us that do, have so many million dollar ideas floating around in our heads that we can barely sleep at night. If we only had the funds and time to do these things that we want to do, we could rule the world.

How you don't speak to someone...

So, you call a business.

You want to speak to the manager because you have problems with your sales person.

You find out the sales person is a manager.

So, you proceed to yell at the person who answered the phone.

Little do you realize, the person who answered the phone, is the person you need to speak to, but, since you are yelling at her, she isn't going to talk to you about it at this moment. Threatening to call the news station only ads to her decision not to talk to you.

When she asks your name, it rings a bell. Then she realizes, you are a friend of a friend that we did a big deal for, because, we love that friend.

Oh no. You don't do that. If "she" had known that "she" would have yelled back.

Don't yell at someone that you want to help you. Especially if they are good friends with who you work for.

I am so tired of people not knowing how to do business

So. Here is a blog about it.

What qualifies me to tell someone else how not to do business?

I do business every day. With all kinds of people. Nice people. Rude people. The people you forget as soon as they walk out of the door.

They come in MY business. I want to do it the right way. To be nice.

When I go out to someone else's business, I expect to be treated the way that I treat my customers, with kindness and respect.