Tag: retail

  • TIL about the dramatic story of Consumers Distributing

    TIL about the dramatic story of Consumers Distributing

    The town I grew up in had a Consumers Distributing in the mall. The catalogue was the main thing. It was like Sears, but also kind of old-school Sharper Image. The store itself was tiny but the stuff they sold was amazing(ly expensive). I haven’t thought of it in a long time – it’s reached…

  • Bookstores and branding

    Even though it’s about two things I like and know a lot about, I wasn’t going to link this NYT article about Barnes and Noble as it seems like a full-on PR plant, but I’ve been thinking about it a lot since I read it. Mr. Daunt believes in local experimentation to such an extreme…

  • “I may have gotten a woman fired for less than $2 and a pint of ice cream.”

    Kira Witkin in Esquire: I Got Paid to Spy on People While They Worked. I know a lot of people that work or have worked in retail and more than a few have been fired after failing secret shopper tests. I’ve never considered the other side of the story though. The average commission is $15…