Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM OCTOBER 2015 56 B U Y I N G G R O U P N E W S I believe the founder of Starbucks got it right. Community is an amazing thing and can be created by seemingly simple connection points. I was recently taken back much like Mr. Schultz, as I sat in the Marriott ballroom at the MEGA Group USA National Convention in Louisville, KY. As I looked around, I saw owners, buyers and leaders from all over the Country nodding their heads in agreement as Rick Bellows (president, MEGA Group USA) gave his opening remarks. The message was clear, we are in this together and we must support one another. The independent retailer is alive and well and that room was living proof. Being from an entrepreneurial family, I know the gift and the curse retail brings. I can remember seeing my mom sitting behind her desk with her face in her hands not knowing what to do next. This was the same woman who celebrated a record- breaking month only a few weeks earlier. My grandfather use to say, "Retail can make a crazy person out of any person." Retail is hard. Entrepreneurship is hard. Leadership is hard. Independent retailers are required to do all three (consistently) well if they want to survive. At the convention, there were businesses represented from all around the country. People were connecting, sharing and collaborating with one common goal in mind; winning at retail. Seems more important than savoring a simple cup of coffee don't you think? Many people may have seen business owners learning and growing, but I saw something different. I saw families contending for their legacy. The thing that makes entrepreneurs special is grit and their ability to (as my dad would say) work from can't to can. But, there is another aspect to being able to compete in the ever-changing American culture. Community. Unfortunately, community is something that doesn't always come naturally for independent retailers. When vacation isn't an option, neither is a buying group convention. But MEGA Group offers much more than business services and vendor programs, we offer community. For many retailers, community is the difference between legacy and a retirement sale. Here are three reasons independent retailers need community: 1. Entrepreneurship is lonely I once had a pastor tell me that it was his job to focus on the people, but it seemed as though no one ever focused on him. He was experiencing what many business owners experience on a daily basis. They nurture the business and the people in it, but never get nurtured themselves. They are supposed to be a super hero with unlimited strength, stamina and wisdom. But, let's face it, even Superman needed to be Clark Kent from time to time. 2. Experience is the teacher of fools Some say experience is the best teacher. True. Experience is an excellent teacher. It can also be the teacher of fools. Family businesses see the next generation only when mistakes are learned from. If every generation makes the same mistakes, the third generation is the one who usually gets to run the going out of business sale. Community keeps you from making fatal errors. One entrepreneurs' mistake is another's life-line. 3. Because you don't have to It has never been easier to collaborate, communicate and be in community with other people who are fighting the same fight as you. If you are an independent retailer, you don't have to navigate the unknown waters of retail alone. Become part of a group (like MEGA) that gives you access to a national community. Attend markets, shows and workshops. Talk to other business owners who wrestle with the same issues. Reach out on social media. No matter how you do it, connect and allow community to help you get to the next level. It's been said that community is a mathe- matical phenomenon. It divides our failures at the same time it multiplies our victories. That's the advantage of community. Doug Stewart, Director of Training at Mega Group THE ADVANTAGE OF COMMUNITY "I was taken by the power that savoring a simple cup of coffee can have to connect people and create community." - Howard Schultz RO RO

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