Tag Archives: small business

Aug15

superior service.

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while recently at my friend’s lake house

we made this beautiful puzzle

of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula

 she purchased during her recent visit to the northern regions

 beautifully made of wood, precision cut, and challenging

but together we managed to complete the puzzle

except

for one piece

that I tried to jam in

 I broke it

our ‘gluer’ didn’t put it back together quite right

so we accepted that it was finished without it

but I felt bad

so I wrote to the company

to see if they could possibly replace the piece

I took photos of it and where it was supposed to be

always worth a shot

the artist who made the puzzle

also the company owner

said she would replace it

(talk  about customer service!)

 I thanked her

 excitedly waited for the piece to arrive

within days it showed up at my house

 what should arrive at my house

all the way from the upper peninsula

but an entire puzzle

at no charge

from the artist herself

as her and her husband

are the small business owners

of their own family owned company

she is a Ukranian artist

who makes the puzzles

among many other things

 he is an American veteran

 I was so amazed by their kindness

that I’d like to publicly thank them here

by sharing a connection to their business

I will certainly buy puzzles from them myself

thank you again for reminding me

that there are wonderful people out there in the world

and for your beautiful work

(all links are below)

Artist, Kateryna Nelson

https://www.facebook.com/artfactorytwinportsWIMNMI

https://www.artfactorytwinports.com/shopall

https://www.etsy.com/shop/ArtFactoryTwinPorts

artfactorytwinports.com

Gwinn, MI, United States
artfactorysuperior@Gmail.com

—

“customer service is an opportunity to exceed your customer’s expectations.”

-John Jantsch

*John Jantsch is an author, speaker, and marketing consultant who specializes in assisting small businesses. He is the author of Duct Tape Marketing, The Referral Engine, and The Commitment Engine.

Oct7

apples, lumber, and shiny rocks.

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drawn in by a homemade sign, a wave, a hi

to my favorite kind of store

some kids, a table, and some stuff

selling

apples, lumber, and shiny rocks

they had not sold anything

i’d love to be a customer,

but i’ve no money with me, i said

it’s okay, take some things and pay us tomorrow

we might even have juice then, too

they gave me credit!

—

“without hustle, talent will only carry you so far.” 

— Gary Vaynerchuk

Nov9

big news.

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small business jeopardy

big news category

one has left and which one is coming?

more to be revealed 

day by day.

any guesses?

“in the business world,

bad news is usually good news

– for somebody else.”

-james surowiecki

 

Jan6

pie.

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p

j. leach

local english teacher and writer

has launched

a wonderful new business in my town called,

‘why not pie?’

it’s a virtual bakery

where she

creates homemade pies

each week

for pickup or delivery.

she’ll try most any flavor you request

using locally-sourced ingredients whenever possible.

this is really a win-win situation in my eyes

and i can’t wait to try one.

or more.

—

http://whynotpie.com

—

if you wish to make an apple pie from scratch,

you must first invent the universe.

– carl sagan

—

credits: current magazine, reddit.com, whynotpie.com

Jul17

nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. – ralph waldo emerson

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IMG_0797

met this group of young entrepreneurs

while walking back

from the downtown art fair

found them

just on the perimeter

in a safe zone

for guerilla marketing

and a cash business

in a bright spot

future lemonade magnates

with

a plan

a happy disposition

and

a wagon-load

full

of quiet enthusiasm

they had made sixty dollars

on the day before

while

rotating jobs

one sign-holder

three salesmen

at street level

offering up cool cups

of

sweet relief

to all who wandered by

with shy smiles

and  a price you couldn’t refuse.

Jul29

the only reason for time is so that everything doesn’t happen at once. – albert einstein

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longs drugs 1938

stopped by

a local independent pharmacy

with a name that ends in ”II”

even though

they have no store with “I”

after its name

and

fell into a time warp

salvador_dali_time

i was

in an old five and dime and drug store

both rolled into one

the aspirin

and many other things

looked like

they had been there for ages

with a slight yellow tint to them

 some

were the only ones

left on the shelves

time stood still

in that little store

nothing had changed

in years

it had slipped

through the cracks

and then

i looked closer

and

 saw the rest

4f1b03fb64f77997d75483088884e85b

there were

tiny glass animals

 titanic coloring book

wild buck notecards

men’s dress socks

magic tricks

meercat attack animal warning signs

amazon.com

chocolate milk

grill mitts

mermaid activity books

comfortable chairs for waiting at the pharmacy

golden books

necco wafers

animal suction cup toothbrush holders

a metal cigarette box

with an exotic woman on it

saying

‘i stole your boyfriend’

face powder

 ceramic neon sandal

fax service

 how to tie nautical knots book

 prescription delivery sign

kitten puzzles

postcards with puns

whitetailed_deer_note_cards_pk_of_20dream catchers

a grab bag for $1.00

filled with

old greeting cards

you had to take your chances

it was all whimsy

and old-fashioned-ness

mixed with

medical supplies and drugs and novelty

and a dash of

twilight zone

 i loved discovering

all of

the special things

about it

and the best of all

was

 the tiny woman over 80

standing vigil at the front register

who rang up the order for a total of

$3,403.26

getty_rm_photo_of_antique_cash_register

a young manager

quite pregnant

 on her way out

stopped

when she called to her for help

 came back

to fix the slight overcharge

and said,

‘now, don’t give her change for $3,400, she didn’t give you that much’

it was

$1.75

for my tiny glass giraffe

she nodded

so

  sweet

unruffled

full of grace

her hair was done

wearing

matching earrings and necklace

 the beautiful older woman

was relieved

when i paid cash

i gave her 2 worn singles

 she gave me

a shiny quarter back

wrapped my animal

in tissue paper

folded it into a little bag

she smiled

and told me to come back very soon

 i will.

—

time flies over us, but leaves its shadow behind.
– nathaniel hawthorne

—

image credits: longs drugs 1938, salvador dali, persistence of time 1931, getty images

Apr26

Small business isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s for the brave, the patient and the persistent. It’s for the overcomer. – Unknown

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Washtenaw Dairy has been many things to many people in the community, and a home away from home for the neighborhood for almost 80 years.  what began as a dairy, has continued on as a family-friendly gathering spot for locals and visitors from all over, with ice cream and home made donuts and coffee and smiling faces, always happy to welcome in anyone who stops by.

Image

when they proposed raising the price of a cup of coffee by 10 cents, topping out at over a dollar,

to at least break even, some of the morning regulars were upset,

so they decided to keep selling it at the old price,

and see it as a service to their loyal community. 

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with the second generation of owners, one in their 60s, and his partner in his 80s, their quote sums up their approach “We won’t put on airs, we’re pretty much just workers,.” The workday starts early to make sure everything gets done. The first employees get to the store at two in the morning, the managers follow at four, and doors open at 5 a.m. “every day but Christmas.”

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While ice cream is a big part of the business, the store also sells 150 dozen donuts a day.

“we don’t even know how to turn on a computer, we missed the whole tech thing and for us it’s really hard to get into.” despite the owner’s lack of technical know-how, they’ve been a major presence in the community for a long time. they donate ice cream or money to several hundred causes a year ranging from a the zen buddhist temple to the local high school hockey team. “we support the community, because the community supports us. that’s why it’s worked all these years. it adds up on your bottom line, but these same people come down with their families and buy ice cream. they’ve come for years and supported us.”

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The important thing is not being afraid to take a chance.

Remember, the greatest failure is to not try.

Once you find something you love to do, be the best at doing it.

– Debbie Fields