David Squires

Mad About You

Meet some of your peers in this month’s issue (oh, and three more things …).

Published

15 years ago

November 19, 2009

David Squires Instore December 2009 Issue

YOU KNOW how we at instore love our tips leads — 50 Ways To Do This, 99 Techniques To Prevent That, 10 Actions To Ensure the Eventuality of the Other Thing, etc. But what we love even more is writing about you. And we don’t mean writing about you as businesspeople with interesting stores. We mean writing about you as individuals. That made this month’s lead one of our absolute favorites to produce.

In “Characters,” we introduce you to some of the one-of-a-kind personalities we’ve met over the years. Meet “The Creator” whose business skyrocketed when she devised a campaign of almost too sexy urinal advertisements for local restaurants. Or “The Author,” who has written three popular novels (and counting) between waiting on customers. Or “The Optimist” who regards her business as “a love affair” and whose sunny disposition has made her an industry legend. And finally, “The Perfectionist,” who still sends our editors a list of every typo and grammatical error in instore each month. (Thankfully, fewer than there used to be.)

You’ll meet many others in this fun, revealing story. Hope you enjoy it.

If you do, and you’re feeling like you like us, really like us (in the Sally Field, Oscar-winning sense), thank us by doing one or more of the following things:

Renew your mag subscription at instoremag.com/subscribe
Join instoremag.com at instoremag.com/register
Save a spot on your calendar in April for instore’s the smart jewelry show, to be held at Chicago’s Navy Pier from April 24-26, 2010

Wishing you the very best business,

David Squires

Find me in the INSTORE community!

Family Legacy, New Chapter: How Wilkerson Turns 89 Years of History Into Future Success

After 89 years of serving the Albany community, Harold Finkle Your Jeweler faced a pivotal decision. For third-generation owner Justin Finkle, the demanding hours of running a small business were taking precious time away from his young family. "After 23 years, I decided this was the time for me," Finkle explains. But closing a business with nearly nine decades of inventory and customer relationships isn't something easily managed alone. Wilkerson's comprehensive approach transformed this challenging transition into a remarkable success story. Their strategic planning handled everything from advertising and social media to inventory management and staffing — elements that would overwhelm most jewelers attempting to navigate a closing sale independently. The results speak volumes. "Wilkerson gave us three different tiers of potential goals," Finkle notes. "We've reached that third tier, that highest goal already, and we still have two weeks left of the sale." The partnership didn't just meet financial objectives—it exceeded them ahead of schedule.