Brand-name versus no-name

As I am comparing the price of moleskine journals and no-name brand I am wondering how on earth are these are the most popular journals on the market right now. They are expensive pieces of paper bonded together, but clients keep asking for them. So I asked myself what is the true benefit of buying this moleskine journal over the …

New Collaboration to Serve First Nations & Beyond

A collaboration between two companies aims to serve First Nations communities across North America with the best designed, sourced and priced promotional products, apparel, gifts and swag.  The collaboration was announced by Shoreline Swag principal Trevor Martin and Rich Patterson of PBJ Merch Co.. “We are excited by the opportunity and the honour to serve First Nations,” said Mr. Martin.  …

Bullish Biz gets Trumped

Well, its the day after.  Hard to believe, but the reality is our U.S. friends chose a new President, Mr. D. Trump.  One of my favourite colleagues in my industry wrote a really nice post today about coming together and seeing our likenesses instead of our differences.  A great sentiment, for sure. But the pragmatist in me has been anxious …

I’m Alumnus of QVC-U! Home of the Running Retailers!

My phone screen showed an incoming call from Roots Canada’s CEO — my boss, mentor, and friend! I excitedly answered the phone only to hear a croak at the other end of the line. “Richie, I’m sick as a dog. You gotta do me a favour: fly out to Phillie tomorrow morning first thing and appear on QVC for me.” …

Change is Good by Beth

We are so fortunate to have long-time client and friend Beth Wolfe step in to fill the shoes of Jayne Ircha, who recently went on Mat Leave to welcome baby Hugo (yay!) into the world.  Below, Beth shares some insights on career and managing change. ___________________________ Change is good.  We all give it lip service, some believe it more than others, but it …

Airplane Lavs and Intuitive Design

On my 9-hour flight home from Germany yesterday I got bored, so what initially began as amusement at the constant flow (pardon the pun) into the lavatories near my extended-legroom aisle seat, turned to frustration at the lack of intuitive design. Have you ever noticed: airline lavatory doors open counterintuitively. You have to push the spring-loaded bi-fold door in while …

Three B2C lessons I use in my B2B world

Here was my experience transitioning from marketing B2C to my current role as owner of a B2B company.  From 1996 to 2004 I was in several senior marketing roles with Canadian brand powerhouse Roots http://canada.roots.com/ Here are the top 3 lessons I took from my time as a B2C marketer that I use daily in marketing my B2B business: a) You …