by stevenpdennis | Nov 18, 2024 | Leaders Leap, Disruption, Transformation
I grew up in the outlying suburbs of New York City in the 1960s and ’70s. Like other middle-class kids from the area, I spent many a weekend being dragged around by my mother to go shopping at stores like Abraham & Strauss, Caldor, and Bamberger’s. On family road...
by stevenpdennis | Nov 2, 2021 | Being Remarkable, Disruption, Innovation
There was a time, not all that long ago, when being very good–or even slightly better than average–worked pretty darn well. When most consumers didn’t have easy access to just about anything they wanted from just about anywhere in the world just...
by stevenpdennis | Jun 29, 2020 | Being Remarkable, Disruption, Innovation
The bullets that killed RadioShack, Sports Authority, KB Toys, Sharper Image, and many other once iconic brands were fired long before their respective downward spirals of cost cutting and store closings began. They weren’t legislated out of existence. Consumer...
by stevenpdennis | Jun 16, 2020 | A Really Bad Time to Be Boring, Disruption, Innovation, Retail
The following is an excerpt from Chapter 4 (“The Collapse of the Middle”) of my new book. Last week, nearly a year later, I went back to the mall that is referenced below. Sadly, nothing has changed. I guess the Austin area is immune from the forces of...
by stevenpdennis | Jun 1, 2020 | Disruption, Innovation, Leadership
“How did you go bankrupt?” Bill asked. “Two ways,” Mike said. “Gradually, then suddenly.” ERNEST HEMINGWAY, THE SUN ALSO RISES There are plenty of times when events catch us completely by surprise. Maybe what happened was completely...
by stevenpdennis | Apr 24, 2020 | A Really Bad Time to Be Boring, Disruption, Remarkable Retail
The following is excerpted from my just released book Remarkable Retail: How To Win & Keep Customers in the Age of Digital Disruption, which I finished writing and editing at the end of last year. Many people believe that the COVID-19 crisis is the proximate cause...