Yesteryear a hand shake confirmed an agreement and was considered ironclad backed by the honor of the individuals involved.
Yesterday one would make an agreement in writing, a contract which outlined deliverables as well as expectations and the signatures of both parties was considered valuable and ironclad.
But times continue to change and agreements, at best, are today mercurial, throwing families or marriages or businesses into a confusion. Yesterday you could build a company, market the products through brick & mortar, and have predictability on one’s costs to get to the market and the projected return. You knew your team, your suppliers, your manufacturers and your customers.
Then along came new systems, new channels, new media, new consumer motivations. Gone are the days when a shopper stayed true to a brand or even to a store. I was in a natural product store recently and saw a mother and daughter looking at a product on the shelf, searching on their devices for the same product, finding it less expensive online, then leaving the store empty handed. The store lost the sale whose payment would have helped cover the cost of the team member who stocked the shelf or the overhead to display the products. The manufacturer of the brand lost a store sale and likely had paid many to get it on the shelf.
These new systems have shaken up more than yesterday’s business models. Today the underlying motivation at all levels of the supply chain is how fast? How cheap? How convenient? Many in the supply chain are getting burned. Has loyalty become outdated?
And what is the value of loyalty? Loyalty is possibly one of the greatest forces there is. It incorporates trust, predictability, comradeship, true teamwork, allegiance, dependability, safety, gratitude, forgiveness, and yes, love. Loyalty does not need to be blind or fixated on a ‘petrified opinion’ (Mark Twain). Loyalty can change the world when it incorporates honesty and the personal integrity of all involved. It does not need ‘points’ or reward programs to exist. Maybe we can all learn from our dogs.
On the bright side, there are those in our community and our Gang of Good who embody the power of loyalty by providing their valuable expertise to entrepreneurs at all stages of growth whose ideas and vision are worthy of support. From our research, branding and communications team, to brokers, investors, co-manufacturers, business consultants and supply chain managers helping companies go from Dream to Mainstream and beyond. As a business owner, we value and appreciate the loyalty of our team, our clients and our friends and associates who have supported our growth and the growth of our clients nationally and internationally over the last 25 years.
Loyalty is not lost, merely forgotten.
Gillian Christie