business
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SPLASH RETAIL HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU CONSIDered taking on a new product line—only to find out that you can’t? You may be wondering how that can be. The fact of the matter is that changing an entire product line is quite a feat. You may have contracts with a supplier in the form of purchase order commitments, upwards of $4,000 of current inventory, over 150 stock keeping units (SKUs) that you are finally beginning to understand, and absolutely no time to take on such an overwhelming project. Just as quickly as your enthusiasm for a new product or line is born, your logic points out that it is just too large of a project to take on right now. You rationalize that you will consider the transition again when things let up a bit, business gets stronger, etc. In the end, year after year, you end up with what you have—such is life. Studies have shown that it is human nature to stick to what we are doing now—regardless of how unsuccessful that November 2012 • Les Nouvelles Esthétiques & Spa
AGILITY, FLEXIBILITY AND INDIVIDUALITY
may be, rather than go through all of the work of making a real change, as real change represents risk. The question that I pose to you now is this: What is riskier, consistent failure and mediocrity … or a new opportunity to succeed?
A new culture Experts have studied, observed and written about the massive culture changes that have evolved over the last decades, and have come into full blossom during our most recent economy shift. The study of this new culture is quite broad, however. In short, it suggests that we as a culture require more agility, flexibility, and in turn more individuality. This concept is applicable to the way a business is run, how it interacts with its team and how it selects its vendors and suppliers. Hence, it also assesses how the business then brings this new culture to its customers. continues
IF OPTIONS ARE NOT AVAILABLE FOR THE CONSUMER IN OUR BUSINESS, THOSE CONSUMERS WILL FIND THE OPTIONS ELSEWHERE.
BY DAVID SUZUKI
www.LNEONLINE.com • Page 83