UPDATE on the JOB FRONT
by Susan Proffitt
Hi Y’all! I must appologize for staying away so long but as John Lennon once said, “life is what happens while your busy making other plans!” SURPRISING STATISTICS ON LINKEDIN 1034 of my 4617 connections changed jobs in 2011! Over 27% This number doesn’t reflect those still looking for work, just those that no longer work for the same company. According to President Obama last night the une…
Footwear Component Sales Agent or Agency
by Susan Proffitt
Locations: Eastern Europe and Western Europe Our client seeks an individual or agency to sell their revolutionary water repellant nano-coating technology to footwear brands and manufacturers. Working with this company can be compared to getting into Teflon or DuPont on the ground floor so the financial rewards can be great. The perfect company or candidate will already have relationships with footwear desig…
Follow your heart….Live to the fullest!
by JULIA
This week marks a week that I will never in my life forget. This week has changed my life in a way that I could have never imagined….the reason for this is because I finally made the decision to listen to my heart and instincts in every aspect of my life and make changes in order to allow myself to truly emerge into what I know in my heart that I am. Not only professionally, but personally because…
Sometimes You Just Gotta Say It!
by Ken Proctor
So so so true!! Thanks to Ken for letting me know that I inspired this weeks article as well… I have to say this is something I say to myself often….basically if you are thinking about doing something there is a reason and it is up to YOU to decide to make the move to do it. It will not happen magically….BUT if you follow your gut and say, “What the F&*^??”….You might find that ma…
A Race to the Bottom
by Ken Proctor
Hmm…. I like this advice very much! I myself as a consumer am a creature of habit and I like what I like. Price is not a factor for the things that I feel necessary to enjoy my day. So I agree with Ken in the fact that if brands will focus on what their customers truly want from them rather than price, they will be able to sustain a better business. I saw this all throughout the last few years….the companies that di…
How Important is Social Media to the Success of Business
by Ken Proctor
Well this is a question I can certainly answer easily……SUPER important!! When I left my company to pursue my own business over two years ago I think I had roughly 70 facebook friends….I now have upwards of 4500 and have reached 5000 (facebooks max) three times now and had to go in and delete people so I can add people who I actually know. I have no clue how I reached that many people as I certainly did not s…
“That’s How You Become Great Man”…..
by Ken Proctor
When I emailed Ken last week to tell him that I was leaving my “business” to focus on the two things I love (my art and this website), he said that this weeks article (last weeks oops) was going to be secretly dedicated to me….well I guess not secret since I am telling you all but….I LOVE IT! My journey to the place where I am has involved a few Jerry Maguire moments… because when I first left…
The Smartest Retailer Around
by Ken Proctor
I just like the name and who doesn’t like buttered noodles!? Sometimes the simplest things are the very best for business…..I keep learning that every day! With any business it’s all about the energy you put into it and make sure you know how to engage your audience. -Julia The Smartest Retailer Around There has been no shortage of conversation lately about “Main Street” still…
Don’t Quit!
by Ken Proctor
This guy is always on point! Every week I anticipate reading Ken’s articles and every week he writes something insightful, honest and I can relate it to something currently in my life. I am sure there are many of you out there who feel the same exact way and for that, I say thank you Ken! Thank you for not quitting on Shoebizness and providing inspiration to many in the industry! I certainly appreciate it! I know…
Walk With The Lame And You Learn To Limp
by Ken Proctor
This is certainly truth! As a recruiter I cannot tell you how many conversations I had with companies about employees that were not doing a good job representing themselves or the company but for some reason they would not let them go. At a certain point you have to make a decision and stick to it. It’s like a girl complaining about her jerk of a boyfriend (or vise versa ) to all her friends but she keeps going back t…
Spring Is In and Off Broadway Shoes Has a Fresh, New Look!
by JULIA
I used to shop at Off Broadway shoes ALL the time when I lived in NC so making the connection with Beth Konney who is their PR Consultant was so much fun especially because she lives in my home town of Charlotte, NC. The memories immediately came flooding back of me walking into the store by my house and wondering what wonderful delights I was going to find! What I loved about Off Broadway compared to other discount retail…
How Many Yachts Do You Need to Ski Behind
by JULIA
I know this is a topic that comes up often, frustrates many and never seems to change! It’s unfortunate and sad. Why is it that people are obsessed with having more and more and more??? They feel because they accomplished some sort of greatness they are intitled to having whatever they see fit. Additionally unfortunate is that these people are the ones who are the loudest and are in the public eye the most and they…
Do Something Half Assed and You Get Half Good
by Ken Proctor
I wasn’t quite sure where Ken was going with this one at first based on the title and what a shocker that he is speaking to himself! I can definitely respect this decision and have found myself contemplating these things many times myself. Sometimes we think, bigger, bigger, bigger …. we want to appeal to the masses to make more money, but to appeal to the masses it means you have to dumb yourself or your prod…
Top Ten List of Why I Love Working For Myself
by Ken Proctor
Brutus enjoying his cushy bed in my office ….yes he is a boy with a pink bed but it is actually Pearls…he kicked her out!! haha I gave Ken this topic because I know first hand how hard it can be to run your own business. IT’S HARD! There are days where it seems there is no light at the end of the tunnel and you wonder why in the world you are doing this to yourself. It can be mentally, physically and emotion…
What the Footwear Industry Really Needs!!!
by Ken Proctor
I think this article speaks volumes! Basically all things that go back to the basics of really caring about business, your customers and providing service, quality and design! Ken speaks truth!! -Julia What the Footwear Industry Really Needs Please forgive me for being so incredibly crude, but our entire industry needs to take a massive dump! Thats right, a huge one. Here is what we need to dump and get out o…
