Montana Jones

Doing Business

Me:

"It has been an eventful half day. Do you want the bad news or the good news?"

L_:

blank look "It's all the same to me."

Me:

"Well the good news is that we will never have to do business with H__L again."

Like sunlight sneaking in a window a wry smile spreads across L_'s face.

Me:

"The bad news is we will have to shell out about $8,000 bucks for our own supply of widgets."

L_:

"That's not a bad thing. Taking control of our own supply can be a good thing. Like when we print our own fliers. You know that we can just print on demand and get exactly what we need. We Just shell out a bunch of money for ink is all. So what happened?"

Me:

"Well, I got a voicemail last night from W_ saying that they are declining our account. We just need too many damn widgets and they don't have the supply and we keep them out too long and our account is so small potatoes to them that they just don't want our business. They have turned down our account."

L_:

"Well you know that just saves us the trouble of shitcanning him. This is a good thing. They never could damned well figure out how our business works. We go through this with them every damn year and they are always saying how they could accommodate us and meet our needs and be so wonderful to us, just so long as we do it on their terms."

Later

L_:

"I just wanted to let you know I got the widgets ordered."

Me:

"Ohh, thank you. That is such a load off."

L_:

"Pulled it off for less than $8,000 too."

Me:

"Sweet. You have no idea how much this has stressed me today. We are meeting with C_ from A in an hour or so to handle the servicing. This is going to be a little more expensive this year but in the long run I think we are better off for it."

L_:

"Yep. We should send W_ a thank you card. This is the nicest thing H__L has ever done for us. You know, it's not just W_, but J_ before him gave us the same problems. It's in the way they do business. Any way you want it so long as it's their way. Back in '96 when I started up with them I was dealing with C_ and he told me once he tried to get them to make some changes and move to a new facility. They are working out of that same tiny space they have been using since back in the day and it is so cramped and crowded, you can't move in there, and in the summer it gets so damn hot. They have so many widgets coming and going that they can't keep their stock and supply straight. God knows how they do their accounting and inventory. We would never get back what we sent them. Well C_ kept working on them and found a nice site in L* where they could build a new facility that they could grow into comfortably. But the old guard just said 'we don't need a new building, why should we change, this is the way we have always done it; why should we change?' C_ finally got so fed up that he just sold out. Sold out and left. He has been long gone for years now."

Me:

"Yeah, I believe it. I would love to have the time and capital to start another widget business around here. I could make a killing. Ever since I first came near H__L the other year they disappointed me. Now that I have dealt with them I know they have problems. That company smells like death."

Posted by: Montana Jones / 5:39 PM