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A Parade of Failures Led to the Success of This Entrepreneur

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BIGG Success from a parade of failuresHe started a store. It failed.

He started another one. It failed too.

He tried for the third time. No success.

The fourth time put him over the edge. He filed for bankruptcy protection.

Listen to this post! Click  a player to hear George & Mary-Lynn on The BIGG Success Show Podcast (Duration 3:09).

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If his story ended there, we wouldn’t be talking about him today. He learned from all his failures. Then he tried for a fifth time.

His fifth attempt was a BIGG success! R.H. Macy opened the now famous department store.

Which brings us to our first point – you know about Macy’s. But did you know about the founders’ four failures? We didn’t.

Nobody cares about your failures once you are a BIGG success.

We also thought it was interesting that he opened his store way north of what was considered the retail district. If you want to be a BIGG success, find an un-served or under-served market.

Sometimes this means moving further from your competition – physically or in some other sense. In other cases, it means getting closer. For example, have you ever noticed that restaurants tend to cluster? They all attract customers to a specific area.

Outside the world of restaurants and retail, tech companies often cluster as well. Think Silicon Valley. The infrastructure is there. The people are there.

Now let’s talk about what inspired this post – the world renowned Macy’s Day Parade. The idea for this parade came from the employees.

Stay close to the front line to be a BIGG success as an entrepreneurial leader.

Many of Macy’s employees were recent immigrants. They were proud Americans but they missed some of the traditions and festivals of their homeland. So they decided to do a Thanksgiving parade to kickoff the Christmas season.

Over 250 thousand people showed up to watch it that first year. Of course, today more than 44 million people watch it on television every year.

It’s one of the best promotions anyone could ever imagine. And it reminds us all – do something BIGG if you want to get attention.

And don’t forget – this success story started with a parade of failures that led to one of the greatest parades of all. That’s BIGG success!

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Entrepreneurs Can Be Too Skinny

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measuring tapeThe weight loss industry generates over $60 billion a year in sales. And, of course, losing weight is one of the most commonly cited New Year’s resolutions.

But for entrepreneurs, being too skinny may cost you money – at least when it comes to your point-of-view.

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Who cares about the product?

Take the salesperson we know who became the Sales Manager and then the General Manager of the local branch of a large public company. There’s just one problem – he’s running a creative business but he has no respect for the artists! It’s all about sales for him.

He’s agnostic about the product. He thinks the customers don’t care either. So he doesn’t show any interest, care or concern for the people who create the product. He just expects them to do more and more and more.

Morale is low. He keeps cutting costs because sales are falling. And everyone wonders why. This is a true story. The names have been omitted to protect the guilty!

Who cares about profit?

Let’s not single out sales people – it could be someone from another functional area of the business. It costs you money to keep a skinny point-of-view.

Even if you somehow manage to make a profit, you won’t make as much as you could if you were more broad-minded. And you’ll lose money when times get tough.

Who cares about shareholders? Or customers?

Finance types talk about maximizing shareholder value. Marketers remind us that we need to be customer-centric.

They both get so busy promoting their point-of-view that they fail to see the BIGG picture: They’re both right. And they’re both wrong.

Maximizing shareholder value is a worthy goal. Theoretically, shareholder value is maximized by balancing the interests of the various stakeholders – customers, employees, suppliers and investors. However, this isn’t necessarily the case. In the short run, the share price can rise by short-sighted actions which lead to short-term profits that aren’t sustainable.

Focusing on the customer is also critical. You must find a group of people or businesses looking for a solution to an unsolved problem in order to succeed. However, you have to be able to deliver the solution profitably. Otherwise, the better you are at marketing, the more money you will lose.

Who cares about delivering on promises?

This all leads us to our final point – you have to understand the operational side of your business to succeed as an entrepreneurial leader. Everyone makes promises. Most of the time, Operations has to deliver.

You can promise the world. You can crunch numbers until blood comes out of them. But it doesn’t matter if you don’t deliver upon your promises.

Who cares about the BIGG picture?

As an entrepreneurial leader, you deliver upon your promises by first understanding the BIGG picture. Then you can make sure all of your leaders understand your whole business. And then they can help your employees get on board, too.

When everyone has a broad view of your business, they can weigh in with more substantive ideas. It’s not a skinny view but it is a view that will fatten your wallet!

A new program to bulk up your bottom line

We have a complete e-learning program for Chambers of Commerce to offer their members as part of the dues they’re already paying. In other words, it doesn’t cost Chamber members a single penny.

We have a great group of experts writing articles on all areas of business, all designed to help you make more money and grow your business.

At this time, we’re only offering this program through Chambers in the United States. If you’re a Chamber member, send us an e-mail at bigginfo@biggsuccess.com.

Tell us the name of your Chamber and we’ll help you get access to this e-learning program for small businesses. It will help you bulk up your bottom line!

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Direct link to The Bigg Success Show audio file:
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Image in this post from Lusi