I did hear bad jokes (How do you tell who is man's best friend? Place your dog and your wife in the trunk of your car and drive around on a bumpy road for an hour. When you open the trunk, which one is happy to see you?) I heard a lot of baseball talk (Mets good, Yankees bad). I heard from old friends (Didn't you used to work around here?). I didn't hear doom and gloom in the glass business.
The Glass Expo was on Long Island last week. It was probably the most well attended regional trade show I have seen in five years. The show floor was expanded twice, and still sold out. I spoke with many vendors and they spoke of business picking up from its low point. There were no thirty story jobs in the offing, but many small shopping centers and and store fronts were going in. Shower doors held strong. New residential was quiet, but refurb and remodel seemed very strong. Mirrors seemed to have fallen off the table, but energy-efficient glass seemed to more than have balanced that out. And on and on.
The glass shop owners were not negative. They were neutral or even up-beat. I spoke with maybe a hundred owners, and I can remember only two people who cried the blues, and these same two cried the blues five years ago when everyone made money.
This may not be the scene around the rest of the country, but I am guessing that glass shops that are aggressive in their service and their self-promotion are going to survive this recession. It all starts with one person having a positive attitude; that will become infectious throughout your organization. You have already cleaned house, now is the time to start rebuilding...look for new products to sell, look for quality people to upgrade your staff, look to yourself to be the spark plug.
As far as new products are concerned, there was a big crowd around a booth from Elmont Glass, (elmontglass.com) that was watching switchable glass. This is glass that is opaque or clear, with the touch of a button. Yes it is very expensive, and yes it is not normal. It is new. When a customer asks you what's new, you should know about this. You should have this, and many other products in the back of your mind. You never know when the possible sale will come up...but it will never come up if you have your mind closed!
There was a strong presence of fire-rated glass products. Yes, it is expensive, yes it is different. Get the picture?
If you keep up the same and steady, you will not pull through this recession. Do you know what a "Glassasaur" is? It is a dinosaur who operates a glass shop and will become extinct because of looking backwards instead of forwards.
See you at the next Expo.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Some Sage Advice From Gene
Who the heck is Gene? Why should we listen to his advice? What is it going to cost us to get his advice?
Gene is Eugene Negrin of Galaxy Glass and Stone, Farfield, NJ. Yes, you should listen, as he is one of the most successful owners of a glass shop in the Northeast. His advice is free, as long as you read on.
When you read articles like this, there is sometimes a disclaimer on the part of the author, if they have a private interest in what is happening. I do. Every year Gene sends his vendors and his customers a tin of rugelach (a traditional Jewish food eaten on Holidays). Gene promised me a tin this year. So, I can be bought for a tin of cookies...and in fact, I have been.
But, Gene has good advice. A little background first. Gene started his business and focused strictly on quality. He did auto, flat glass, and nurtured the fabricated/furniture glass part of his business. Gene's attention to detail and quality are legendary. He just did not deliver bad glass to his customers. Gene once told me that he spends more up front on every piece of glass, checking and rechecking, but makes up for it by reduced or even zero callbacks. His word-of-mouth referrals drove his company to greater success each year. Gene was not satisfied with the quality of the fabricated glass he was receiving, so he started edging and beveling in his shop.
Gene then looked in his crystal ball and saw that granite and marble were growing as a design feature in homes and offices. Gene also saw that handling slabs of stone was no different than handling lites of glass. In fact, many of the stone edging and griding machines are made by the same companies that make glass edging equipment. So, Gene became Galaxy Glass and Stone and saw his business grow further. He kept his strict attention to high quality, and grew a reputation as the go-to guy for intricate and complicated high quality glass and stone work in the New York City area.
Gene kept training his people to think quality and to think neatness in customer's homes and offices. This was the key to Galaxy's success. Oh, along with hard work, long hours, and feeding the troops the rugelach helped.
I was speaking with Gene in January when he passed on these words of wisdom. We were talking about what we were seeing in the economy as relating to the glass industry. Here, roughly, is what he said:
Don't go into panic mode and start giving work away. It is destructive to your business, further eroding any chance at profitability. You have to know your costs of doing business, and selling below your costs will fatally hurt you and the entire industry. Don't give GC's and building owners a window into your costs.
Someday, (maybe for two tins of rugelach), I will do a longer interview. But here is the good news. I bet Gene will be attending the Glass Expo coming this week on Long Island. If you see a handsome man, dressed in a jacket and tie, with polished shoes, it is Gene. You should print a copy of this blog, ask him to autograph it, and place it on your wall. Someday, maybe, it will be worth something.
When you see chubby, bearded guy walking around the show, it is me. Print a copy of this blog, and ask for my autograph. It will be good for a laugh. By the way, wasn't this a great way to plug the Glass Show North East coming up on Wednesday and Thursday? See you there.
Gene is Eugene Negrin of Galaxy Glass and Stone, Farfield, NJ. Yes, you should listen, as he is one of the most successful owners of a glass shop in the Northeast. His advice is free, as long as you read on.
When you read articles like this, there is sometimes a disclaimer on the part of the author, if they have a private interest in what is happening. I do. Every year Gene sends his vendors and his customers a tin of rugelach (a traditional Jewish food eaten on Holidays). Gene promised me a tin this year. So, I can be bought for a tin of cookies...and in fact, I have been.
But, Gene has good advice. A little background first. Gene started his business and focused strictly on quality. He did auto, flat glass, and nurtured the fabricated/furniture glass part of his business. Gene's attention to detail and quality are legendary. He just did not deliver bad glass to his customers. Gene once told me that he spends more up front on every piece of glass, checking and rechecking, but makes up for it by reduced or even zero callbacks. His word-of-mouth referrals drove his company to greater success each year. Gene was not satisfied with the quality of the fabricated glass he was receiving, so he started edging and beveling in his shop.
Gene then looked in his crystal ball and saw that granite and marble were growing as a design feature in homes and offices. Gene also saw that handling slabs of stone was no different than handling lites of glass. In fact, many of the stone edging and griding machines are made by the same companies that make glass edging equipment. So, Gene became Galaxy Glass and Stone and saw his business grow further. He kept his strict attention to high quality, and grew a reputation as the go-to guy for intricate and complicated high quality glass and stone work in the New York City area.
Gene kept training his people to think quality and to think neatness in customer's homes and offices. This was the key to Galaxy's success. Oh, along with hard work, long hours, and feeding the troops the rugelach helped.
I was speaking with Gene in January when he passed on these words of wisdom. We were talking about what we were seeing in the economy as relating to the glass industry. Here, roughly, is what he said:
Don't go into panic mode and start giving work away. It is destructive to your business, further eroding any chance at profitability. You have to know your costs of doing business, and selling below your costs will fatally hurt you and the entire industry. Don't give GC's and building owners a window into your costs.
Someday, (maybe for two tins of rugelach), I will do a longer interview. But here is the good news. I bet Gene will be attending the Glass Expo coming this week on Long Island. If you see a handsome man, dressed in a jacket and tie, with polished shoes, it is Gene. You should print a copy of this blog, ask him to autograph it, and place it on your wall. Someday, maybe, it will be worth something.
When you see chubby, bearded guy walking around the show, it is me. Print a copy of this blog, and ask for my autograph. It will be good for a laugh. By the way, wasn't this a great way to plug the Glass Show North East coming up on Wednesday and Thursday? See you there.
Monday, March 16, 2009
What Happens When You Try To Hit A Home Run?
A customer walks into your shop, and needs something special, something hard to do, and, of course, they want it yesterday. Your heart starts racing, your head is calculating and you think you have hit the lottery. Your customer says "YES" to the number you throw at him. Now all you have to do is: convince your fabricator to change their entire production schedule just to take care of your home run.
Let's put some numbers on this. On a regular basis, this piece of glass would normally sell and install for, let say, $975. You quoted $1,975, and you have three different ways to spend the extra grand. Your fab supplier's normal price would be $315. You're going to spend a little extra for O/T for your install, so what, that grand is burning a hole in your pocket. The deposit of $985 guarantees you will not loose, no matter what.
Now comes the hard part...you call your #1 fabricator, and give them the order on a rush basis, but they cannot meet the schedule your customer needs. You tell them this is an important customer, and that you hardly ever ask for specials, but they stand firm. Now, you waffle over the idea of paying them extra for their rush service, but that grand has been spent three ways.
Most fabricators do have programs like this, where for a fee, you can purchase expedited service. It usually is fairly steep, but is it worth it?
This depends on how badly you need the product. My experience, from a fabricator's point of view, is that no matter how high we set this rush service charge, it was never high enough to cover the over time needed. For one piece of tempered, we had to keep a six person tempering team overtime for two hours. Sure, they might have been busy on other work waiting to get the item cut, polished and washed, but what happens to the profit model when the piece comes out of the oven with a warp, and it is another hour to get the replacement.
Still, we felt the need to offer this service, as so many customers had legitimate needs for rush service.
So, now Mr. Home Run Hitter calls fabricator #2, asking if they can do this piece on a rush basis, but that he doesn't have enough money in the project to pay for rush. But, Mr. Hitter says, "I'll start giving you more business if you do this for me", his sure-to-win-your-heart pitch to get this at no extra charge. Fab #2, says no thanks. You, Mr. Homer, start to panic.
You have wasted three hours of lead time, trying to protect your grand, and you see it starting to slip away. Finally, not wanting to go back to #1 or #2 and admit you were wrong, you give the order to #3, pay the up charge, get a piece of glass, that reminds of why this fabricator is #3, and you keep only $800 our of your grand. Also, the customer is disappointed in the quality of the piece, and the customer says you won't get the next piece because of poor quality.
Many glass shop owners will pay the premium price to their #1 fabricator, and keep a lesser amount. But, I suggest an even better option. When Mr. Homer quoted the job, and he had his heart set on making a grand, he should have set the up charge at $1500, reserving some extra money for the fabricator. What if the customer won't pay that much? Here is where Mr. Homer has to make a business decision...what would you do?
Let's put some numbers on this. On a regular basis, this piece of glass would normally sell and install for, let say, $975. You quoted $1,975, and you have three different ways to spend the extra grand. Your fab supplier's normal price would be $315. You're going to spend a little extra for O/T for your install, so what, that grand is burning a hole in your pocket. The deposit of $985 guarantees you will not loose, no matter what.
Now comes the hard part...you call your #1 fabricator, and give them the order on a rush basis, but they cannot meet the schedule your customer needs. You tell them this is an important customer, and that you hardly ever ask for specials, but they stand firm. Now, you waffle over the idea of paying them extra for their rush service, but that grand has been spent three ways.
Most fabricators do have programs like this, where for a fee, you can purchase expedited service. It usually is fairly steep, but is it worth it?
This depends on how badly you need the product. My experience, from a fabricator's point of view, is that no matter how high we set this rush service charge, it was never high enough to cover the over time needed. For one piece of tempered, we had to keep a six person tempering team overtime for two hours. Sure, they might have been busy on other work waiting to get the item cut, polished and washed, but what happens to the profit model when the piece comes out of the oven with a warp, and it is another hour to get the replacement.
Still, we felt the need to offer this service, as so many customers had legitimate needs for rush service.
So, now Mr. Home Run Hitter calls fabricator #2, asking if they can do this piece on a rush basis, but that he doesn't have enough money in the project to pay for rush. But, Mr. Hitter says, "I'll start giving you more business if you do this for me", his sure-to-win-your-heart pitch to get this at no extra charge. Fab #2, says no thanks. You, Mr. Homer, start to panic.
You have wasted three hours of lead time, trying to protect your grand, and you see it starting to slip away. Finally, not wanting to go back to #1 or #2 and admit you were wrong, you give the order to #3, pay the up charge, get a piece of glass, that reminds of why this fabricator is #3, and you keep only $800 our of your grand. Also, the customer is disappointed in the quality of the piece, and the customer says you won't get the next piece because of poor quality.
Many glass shop owners will pay the premium price to their #1 fabricator, and keep a lesser amount. But, I suggest an even better option. When Mr. Homer quoted the job, and he had his heart set on making a grand, he should have set the up charge at $1500, reserving some extra money for the fabricator. What if the customer won't pay that much? Here is where Mr. Homer has to make a business decision...what would you do?
Sunday, March 8, 2009
It's Only 236 Sq Ft of Glass
It is just about the most exciting 236 square feet of glass in North America, and I have seen a lot of North American glass installations.
I am in Toronto, Canada, attending the World Baseball Classic (more on this later). I visited the CN Tower where the floor includes 236 sq. ft. of glass. This floor just happens to be 1122 ft. above ground. Wow!!!!!!
The CN tower is a tourist attraction that really attracts: an obligatory rotating restaurant, a TV transmitter, and video games. But to me, the floor was awesome--watching the people put a toe on the floor and then slowly stepping on to it, like it was thin ice; seeing one member of a family who would not step on no matter how many other people were on it. When you stand on this floor, looking down, it is impossible not to be impressed. You can barely make out people walking, and a train going by looks like it was made by Lionel.
The sign board describing the floor doesn't give the makeup. It does say that the floor will hold fifteen hippos. So, all jokes aside, I was safe. (Stop snickering now.) I don't think too many people asked the tour guide what the thickness of the glass was, but she didn't know. She looked at me like I was some kind of glass nerd...OK, she got that part right.
An installation like this speaks volumes about how great our industry is. There were hundreds of visitors, most from out of town, and even though the view through the windows was more than thirty miles, it was the floor that caused the most comment. Many people spent time looking down rather than looking out. I didn't see any kids jumping up and down; I guess the parents were too fearful to let this happen, but I knew they could.
I was proud of our industry. I was proud that an architect or designer had the faith in our product to make this a significant part of the most famous landmark in Ontario.
OK, the World Baseball Classic is a contest of sixteen teams from sixteen countries that play a double-elimination tournament to name the world champion. At the last classic, in 2006, the US was beaten in an early round and Japan wound up the winner. Saturday, we saw two games: the US barely squeaked by Canada, and Venezuela thoroughly stomped on Italy. On Sunday we saw the US have a big day over Venezuela. The crowd at Sunday's game was 90% Venezuelan and they really had the place jumpin'. It was unlike any other game I have attended.
Early round matches are here in Toronto, Mexico City, Japan, and in San Juan. The second round matches are in Miami and San Diego, and the finals are in Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. It is like watching the All-Star game. The players are just the best from around the world. What a thrill.
The teams are from: China, Chinese Taipei, Japan, Korea, Australia, Cuba, Mexico, South Africa, Canada, Italy, USA, Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Netherlands, Panama and Puerto Rico.
Stop laughing. In one upset yesterday, the Netherlands beat the Dominican Republic.
There are some really great players out there, and, to the world, this is the most important tournament after the Olympics. The players are here to play and meet the big leaguers that they all read about. Derek Jeter earned the most cheers and the most boos at yesterday's introduction. But, when he was signing autographs, there were thousands of people trying to reach him.
The best part of this...my son and my daughter are here with me enjoying this trip to fantasy land. It just doesn't get better than this.
So now you now way too much about me...I get my thrills by seeing a glass floor and by watching grown men play a game. Throw in great hot dogs, and life could not get better.
I am in Toronto, Canada, attending the World Baseball Classic (more on this later). I visited the CN Tower where the floor includes 236 sq. ft. of glass. This floor just happens to be 1122 ft. above ground. Wow!!!!!!
The CN tower is a tourist attraction that really attracts: an obligatory rotating restaurant, a TV transmitter, and video games. But to me, the floor was awesome--watching the people put a toe on the floor and then slowly stepping on to it, like it was thin ice; seeing one member of a family who would not step on no matter how many other people were on it. When you stand on this floor, looking down, it is impossible not to be impressed. You can barely make out people walking, and a train going by looks like it was made by Lionel.
The sign board describing the floor doesn't give the makeup. It does say that the floor will hold fifteen hippos. So, all jokes aside, I was safe. (Stop snickering now.) I don't think too many people asked the tour guide what the thickness of the glass was, but she didn't know. She looked at me like I was some kind of glass nerd...OK, she got that part right.
An installation like this speaks volumes about how great our industry is. There were hundreds of visitors, most from out of town, and even though the view through the windows was more than thirty miles, it was the floor that caused the most comment. Many people spent time looking down rather than looking out. I didn't see any kids jumping up and down; I guess the parents were too fearful to let this happen, but I knew they could.
I was proud of our industry. I was proud that an architect or designer had the faith in our product to make this a significant part of the most famous landmark in Ontario.
OK, the World Baseball Classic is a contest of sixteen teams from sixteen countries that play a double-elimination tournament to name the world champion. At the last classic, in 2006, the US was beaten in an early round and Japan wound up the winner. Saturday, we saw two games: the US barely squeaked by Canada, and Venezuela thoroughly stomped on Italy. On Sunday we saw the US have a big day over Venezuela. The crowd at Sunday's game was 90% Venezuelan and they really had the place jumpin'. It was unlike any other game I have attended.
Early round matches are here in Toronto, Mexico City, Japan, and in San Juan. The second round matches are in Miami and San Diego, and the finals are in Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. It is like watching the All-Star game. The players are just the best from around the world. What a thrill.
The teams are from: China, Chinese Taipei, Japan, Korea, Australia, Cuba, Mexico, South Africa, Canada, Italy, USA, Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Netherlands, Panama and Puerto Rico.
Stop laughing. In one upset yesterday, the Netherlands beat the Dominican Republic.
There are some really great players out there, and, to the world, this is the most important tournament after the Olympics. The players are here to play and meet the big leaguers that they all read about. Derek Jeter earned the most cheers and the most boos at yesterday's introduction. But, when he was signing autographs, there were thousands of people trying to reach him.
The best part of this...my son and my daughter are here with me enjoying this trip to fantasy land. It just doesn't get better than this.
So now you now way too much about me...I get my thrills by seeing a glass floor and by watching grown men play a game. Throw in great hot dogs, and life could not get better.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
All Work and No Play...Is A Lousy Way To Live
You manage or own a business in the worst recession in a couple of generations. You know that no one is going to help you, that you have to do it all yourself. You have people that count on you for their paychecks and benefits. So, you work hard. Then you work harder and longer. Then you stay up worrying about your bank loan. What's next? A heart attack, a nervous breakdown and a lousy family life.
Let's change this so that tomorrow morning you wake up healthy and ready to work.
When Mr. Obama was elected President, he met with the prior Presidents, and they urged him to keep some time for family life and some time for personal relaxation. Since his job is just about the most stressful in the world, you should take this advice for your job as well.
If you go to the office acting like you are Grumpy instead of Happy, your co-workers will pick up on this and act just the same.
So, here are things that every glass shop owner and manager should be looking at to help themselves:
Let's change this so that tomorrow morning you wake up healthy and ready to work.
When Mr. Obama was elected President, he met with the prior Presidents, and they urged him to keep some time for family life and some time for personal relaxation. Since his job is just about the most stressful in the world, you should take this advice for your job as well.
If you go to the office acting like you are Grumpy instead of Happy, your co-workers will pick up on this and act just the same.
So, here are things that every glass shop owner and manager should be looking at to help themselves:
- Get a good night's sleep. This is number one on the list. I keep a pad of paper and a pencil next to my bed. If I start thinking of something in the middle of the night, I write it down, and then forget about it until morning. Train your mind to not think of anything that you have written down on your overnight list. You can do this.
- If you want to think of something, think about an upcoming vacation, or a project you are working on with your kids.
- Open up the list of people that you share confidences with. If you have a problem at work, discuss this with another business owner, or your accountant or lawyer. Often just talking through a problem gives you the answer. Once you tell someone about your problems, they usually become less severe than the scenario you have running around in your head.
- Think of something you love to do, and then do it once-a-week. Whether it is hitting balls at a driving range, seeing a movie, reading a novel about a spy running around in Europe, or whatever...just be sure to do it once a week on a regular schedule. The more physical the better...President Obama's relaxation point is a game of hoops with friends.
- Have dinner with your kids three or four nights per week. Don't blow this one...your kids will get older, your business will still have problems of some other kind, and you will miss out on the best part of life.
- Set-up a no-interruption time zone in your calendar...if only for 15 or 30 minutes--this works. Take no calls and open no e-mail. Look at your desk to find one or two details that need your attention, and take care of them without interruption. Whether a call back to a customer, or checking invoices for payment...give yourself the luxury of no interruptions and you will move mountains.
- Write out the proposed agenda for an upcoming vacation. Picture yourself there as you write.
- Create a diversion that actually forces you to take time off; volunteer as a big brother/sister, join the local Rotary or Elks and attend the meetings. Have a standing date with a buddy for a workout at the gym.
- Each week for the next six weeks, take one task that you do, and delegate to someone within your organization. Take the time to teach and train, and you will find you have less on your desk. If you don't have the staff to do this, then take one task off your desk and drop it from your agenda. Either way, you come out ahead.
- Use email and take fewer phone calls. Tell vendors to email you during the day with answers or updates rather than using the phone.
- Most importantly, you cannot change or wish for a different stock market or banking situation. There is not a darn thing you can do other than go with the flow. The stock market always has come back, it will again.
These are just a few ideas to help you gain some time and balance in your life. Find one or two that work for you and you gain some small part of your sanity and your health. Most of us are losing money during this deep recession...don't lose your family and your mind.
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