A Personal Reflection:
Become a Retail Patriot

– Don Capman, President,
   J.D. Associates

At the end of one year and the beginning of another most of us like to reflect on the events and accomplishments of the year past and set some goals for the year coming. This year, because of a recent event, I decided to make a personal reflection on the life of a decent man who brought some pride and dignity back to a hurting nation during a very difficult time.

It was Patriots Day 1976, the year of the bicentennial of the United States of America. With the specter of war in Vietnam still fresh in our memories and the people of the United States having gone through the endless televised hours of the Watergate scandal, there was a definite malaise in the country. The Nixon administration had brought shame upon the nation, and it seemed that the government would never regain any integrity. As depressing as that time was, several of us decided to go to the Old North Bridge in Concord, Massachusetts where “the shot heard round the world” was fired.  I remember the day to be very cold and dismal, but, after all, it was the bicentennial, and we all needed a dose of patriotism.  I also remember having to park miles away from the bridge and hike with a backpack containing lunch.  But, what the heck, we were young and wanted to see the featured speaker, Leslie Lynch King, Jr., a.k.a. Gerald R. Ford, the 38th  President of the United States of America.  The battlefield was packed with people, some cheering, some jeering.  Those who were cheering in the crowd expressed a new sense of optimism which had been absent for years. Those jeering in the crowd expressed extreme displeasure for President Ford’s pardon of Richard Nixon.  I really don’t remember exactly what the President said that day, but remember feeling that we were standing in front of a decent human being who possessed integrity and brought hope to a brow-beaten nation. For the first time in years, I remember people again feeling proud to be an American. Gerald Ford’s leadership under very difficult circumstances changed the national psyche.

What does all this have to do with retail, you ask? Whether or not you realize it, leadership has a very strong impact on the overall atmosphere of a store. If the store owner or manager hates customers and sees them only as a necessary disruption to their day, many of the employees will adopt the same attitude. I'm sure you have all shopped in stores where you felt like you were bothering those same employees who were supposed to be helping you. I know I have. Did I want to go back? Of course not. On the other hand, I'm sure you have shopped stores where you were treated with an enthusiastic welcome and provided with outstanding and personal customer service. You definitely wanted to return to those stores. Hopefully, your store fits into the latter scenario.

While in our public and personal lives we might not always do or say the right things, I strongly feel that integrity, fairness, and decency can only help us achieve the goals we set for ourselves and our businesses in the coming year. Sometimes when we have to deal with “the customer from hell”, it helps to take a step back and preserve our integrity and decorum. Retail is a very difficult profession where we can run into unscrupulous and rude vendors and customers. It's how we respond to these people that will make the difference. If our employees perceive us to be decent, fair, and scrupulous, those virtues will be pervasive throughout the business and customers will want to shop in our stores. If President Ford was able to bring integrity to an entire nation during some very challenging times, we should certainly be able do so in our small corner of the world.

On behalf of all of the staff at J.D. Associates, I would like to wish you and yours a happy, safe, and prosperous New Year.