Dave Moore gives us an authentic look at all the rust, dents and scrapes inside the Ethan Allen brand of retail. The changes happening at the speed of retail were sometimes inconsistent and the impact was becoming apparent to Mr. Moore.
He had an epiphany. He wrote a story.
The answer was design.
Much more so than any of their competitors, Ethan Allen had a design story to tell. And, following Dave Moore's catalog cover story about design, March was the best sales month in a very long time.
Designed for life.
>> Built to last. For the life you want to live.
>> Designed for an eclectic life. Designed for a [fill in the blank] life.
This new language formed a foundation for the Ethan Allen brand. Now, Dave gives us a concise list of thoughts and ways to live inside retail or any fast moving culture.
Lessons:
- Learn to drive a stick. Automatic doesn't work well in retail. Great metaphor for how retail changes by the minute.
- Drop the deck. No time for anything but the work itself. The presentation deck is not worth the time and effort. Put time into the work of moving at retail speed.
- Know your competition. The sawmill was funded instead of one of his initiatives. Sometimes the sawmill wins.
- Know how your boss rolls. Know how your boss bets so you can be there to help the brand win. Retail leaders are often taking a bet, rolling the dice.
- Make friends with Data. The emerging power of data and measuring effectiveness. Data has magical powers if you go deep.
- Junk can be beautiful. DM, Promotional, Digital junk works. Apply design to these lowly mediums and it can be beautiful.
- Once a week turn your to-do list upside down. You'll never get to the bottom of it, unless you do. This is the best one on his list. A great simple lesson for everyone.