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I don't think customers were ever paying extra for that. Sears had good customer service, Bell Telephone had good customer service, discount retailers like Two Guys had good customer service. When were people paying a premium just to be able to reach someone?
For the past 70 years, retail has been marching inexorably towards either:
a) Low value-add (very low-cost & scarce customer service), low gross margin on product sales
b) High value add (very expensive & plentiful customer service), high gross margin on product sales
There is no business model to profitability attempting to play in the middle. Trying to be in the middle leads to bankruptcy - note your examples of Sears & Two Guys went bankrupt a long time ago. Bell Telephone was a monopoly and as such was allowed to set tariffs so as to recoup their massive fixed costs.
Indeed, I remember business school professors referring to the middle ground as "The Valley of Death." Either you compete on price & availability, or you compete on value-added problem solving & service coupled with high prices to pay for the infrastructure.
A local restaurant now says if you want a reservation, you MUST use Open Table (an app). Walk-ins are accepted first-come, first-served. If you walk in or call on the telephone and talk to the hostess asking for a reservation for next week, she will tell you staff has been told they will be fired for taking a reservation; all reservations MUST go through Open Table. That's yet another example of a business focusing on what it does best (preparing and serving food) and outsourcing the administrative tasks to another company.
It appears a lot of things changed in the last decade...Nowadays they barely do anything and even lobby city council and state politicians for mandatory bag fees so its either pay up and they pocket it or leave with a armful or cart ful of loose groceries in the pouring rain.
Anyone agree or have similar experiences? Do you think aside from a few exceptions its likely the change in business models via MBAs as well as just times have changed?
It's a "have it our way, or the highway" business model.
It's a result of population. Big business has essentially kicked out the small businesses, put up barriers of entry to new small businesses, and utilized technology to remove the need for skilled labor. They treat their employees so poorly that many if not all of them are surly at the worst of times, and tolerant at the best. Because there are so many of us, they don't care about individual customers. If you don't like their way, good luck finding a competitor.
Partially it's our own fault for letting price be our guiding principle.
I don't think customers were ever paying extra for that. Sears had good customer service, Bell Telephone had good customer service, discount retailers like Two Guys had good customer service. When were people paying a premium just to be able to reach someone?
Sears was totally destroyed by Eddie Lampert, the the Board of Directors just let him have his way. More than a century of Goodwill destroyed over a decade or so.
It's a "have it our way, or the highway" business model.
It's a result of population.
Population has nothing to do with it.
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Originally Posted by LookinForMayberry
Big business has essentially kicked out the small businesses, put up barriers of entry to new small businesses...
Incorrect --- except for inside Barnes & Noble. Specifically, on the Fiction aisle.
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Originally Posted by LookinForMayberry
and utilized technology to remove the need for skilled labor.
Also untrue. Technology supplants the need for low-skilled labor. But only because low-skilled labor fails to compete successfully with technology, and only because the Federal Government and the various State Governments attach a boat anchor to the ankles of low-skilled labor prior to the competition.
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Originally Posted by LookinForMayberry
They treat their employees so poorly
False. Large businesses must compete with their smaller and more nimble competitors, and do so by treating their employees like Royalty. Backrubs, on-site laundry services, on-site childcare services, on-site after-school enrichment services, lavish employee dining rooms with food crafted by licensed nutritionists and prepared by skilled chefs, valet parking, elaborate Monday morning spreads, elaborate Friday afternoon beer-bashes, Christmas parties featuring top live bands (I remember one Xmas party where my employer rented the Convention Center, and had Huey Lewis and The News on one floor, with The Pointer Sisters on another floor), etc, etc, etc.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LookinForMayberry
that many if not all of them are surly at the worst of times, and tolerant at the best.
Far too many employees in this country are self-entitled, have an exaggerated sense of self-worth, and have been conditioned not to pull their own weight. I look forward to a recession where the dead-wood is cut loose. Sadly, the dead-wood also is looking forward to being cut loose, as they can return to playing video games in Mom's basement, all the while receiving the inevitable fat unemployment checks and Congress-distributed special largess because, well, they buy votes.
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Originally Posted by LookinForMayberry
Because there are so many of us, they don't care about individual customers. If you don't like their way, good luck finding a competitor.
Competition is brutal. Competitors are everywhere.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LookinForMayberry
Partially it's our own fault for letting price be our guiding principle.
If you want premium oats, expect to pay a premium price. If, in the alternative, you are willing to accept oats that have already been processed by a horse, you can pay a much lower price. The choice is yours.
People do still pay big bucks to Walt Disney for a day experience, day tickets and park concessions well exceeded inflation. Despite it declining in quality. And Disney now bend down to those eco greenie folks as well and cancel culture is in full swing.
THIS is going to be a problem for Disney, long term.
THIS is going to be a problem for Disney, long term.
I really don't think it will be, for the primary reason that Disney really has no competition. There are other parks and resorts, certainly, but they aren't Disney, they aren't geared to little kids, they don't have the characters kids want to see.
Disney is more expensive than ever, but still selling out and 3 hour lines. I don't think many are going to care enough to deprive their kids and themselves that it will make a dent.
Disney has always been gay friendly, that's nothing new. In fact it was actually DeSantis who was guilty of cancel culture when it comes to Disney (as well as banning books, but that's a different thread topic).
I would love to see demand go down personally, because I can't afford to go with costs as high as they are now, and don't want to stand in hours long lines, but I really doubt it will.
I really don't think it will be, for the primary reason that Disney really has no competition. <snip>
I would love to see demand go down personally, because I can't afford to go with costs as high as they are now, and don't want to stand in hours long lines, but I really doubt it will.
I'm an hour away from D'Land, so I can go anytime I want to. While it's not cheap, it's also not really worth it. Spending 1 to 2 hours in line, for each ride, allows for 5 or 6 rides per visit. And that's for a long day.
Figure it's about $20 per ride, just doesn't seem like it's worth it to me. I suppose it would, if I hadn't been there so many times before. But, once you've been 50ish times, it just isn't as special as it was 30-40-50 years ago. Also, the last time I was there (10ish years ago) I noticed deterioration in numerous places within the park. These may have always been there, but this was the first time I noticed these things. (Lack of maintenance, mostly.)
I'm an hour away from D'Land, so I can go anytime I want to. While it's not cheap, it's also not really worth it. Spending 1 to 2 hours in line, for each ride, allows for 5 or 6 rides per visit. And that's for a long day.
Figure it's about $20 per ride, just doesn't seem like it's worth it to me. I suppose it would, if I hadn't been there so many times before. But, once you've been 50ish times, it just isn't as special as it was 30-40-50 years ago. Also, the last time I was there (10ish years ago) I noticed deterioration in numerous places within the park. These may have always been there, but this was the first time I noticed these things. (Lack of maintenance, mostly.)
I will say, that "Club 33" is unique though....
What's your favorite ride/attraction?
My favorite are the 3D movies. Last time I was there it was 3D Muppet Adventure. It’s totally different 3D than the movies theaters show in 3D, truly magical! Reaching out to touch the tiny little creature floating right in front of my eyes as he stares in my eyes and says “I’m only talking to YOU” lol. Looking around and serious g everyone reach for him, because he’s right there, lol. Plus it was funny with some jokes I’m sure went over kids heads.
I also love hotel hopping. We went between Thanksgiving bad Christmas, which is value season but all the Christmas decorations were up. We’d go look at the different trees the hotels had, sit in the lobby of the Grand Floridian and be served cocktails while looking at the 40 foot tall tree and listening to classic music by the ensemble on the third floor balcony, then take the monorail to the next one down and have dessert there, etc. We had a dessert sampler at one, where we were given small slices of every dessert they had!
I have heard it’s much more restricted now though. If I can’t do the hotel hopping it would be a big disappointment. I heard now even with Park Hopper pass, you now can’t go to the second park till 2pm, and that you have to reserve a time at each park! All of that is a turn off to me. I don’t want to have to plan every second. So I think now I would probably leave disappointed and thinking it’s not worth it.
There were also the days when Grocers not only bagged your groceries in the bag of your choice but also offered to help out automatically if they see you bought a lot of items. Nowadays they barely do anything and even lobby city council and state politicians for mandatory bag fees so its either pay up and they pocket it or leave with a armful or cart ful of loose groceries in the pouring rain.
It’s a matter of compliance with/regulating usage of single-use/plastic film bags. Point being, why wouldn’t you simply bring your own recyclable bags? Many stores, such as Ralph’s or Whole Foods, will credit you for such.
In other words, how is it the store’s fault if you (or anyone) chooses to leave with an armful of loose groceries in the pouring rain?
It’s a matter of compliance with/regulating usage of single-use/plastic film bags. Point being, why wouldn’t you simply bring your own recyclable bags? Many stores, such as Ralph’s or Whole Foods, will credit you for such.
In other words, how is it the store’s fault if you (or anyone) chooses to leave with an armful of loose groceries in the pouring rain?
I agree. I have them sitting on the backseat all the time. And some stores now (CVS) offer free paper bags if you ask. But they are also good about letting me take the basket outside to put my stuff in the car and then bring it back in, on the occasions I forgot to bring my bags in.
I do want to say, I think it's a silly ban. From what I have seen, it actually takes more energy to make the heavier resusable bags and to get rid of them. BUT I don't think it's as hard to deal with as many make out. It's inconvenient at times, that's it.
I was an Aldi's shopper way before the ban too though, and you always had to bring your own bags there (as well as a quarter if you want a cart).
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