Won't you come home, Bill Bailey?

As I mentioned yesterday, I do wish someone would pick up the mantle of the old local bubble blogs.

Anonymous and open to all comments.

I'm probably being hypocritical here. Not wanting to host such a site, yet wanting someone else to do it.

The bust from the boom is going to take years and years....and years. There are going to be significant developments from here on out.

An "open source" type blog would be very useful still.

In my own plans, I've more or less tacked another year onto the length of the downturn; and wouldn't be surprised to have to do that next year, too.

Lots of weird stuff yet to happen.

Bend Developer shot by wife.

We need the old bubble blogs, I tell you!

I just don't feel like I want to comment on this story:

From KTVZ:

BEND, Ore. -- A well-known Bend developer was shot and critically wounded by his wife at their home on Bend’s Westside early Wednesday. Police said she told officers she was awakened by a noise and sent her husband to investigate, then thought he was an intruder.Stephen Trono, 60, was in critical condition at midday at St. Charles Medical Center-Bend, officials said.Bend police Lt. Ben Gregory said officers were called to a home on Mount Shasta Drive, off Shevlin Park Road, on a report a man had been shot. Angelicque Trono, 39, was awakened by a noise and sent her husband to investigate, Gregory said.“At some point, Stephen was shot by Angelicque, who (said she) thought her husband was an intruder,”

***********

"In late 2005, he proposed the Mercato, a mixed-use project in the Old Mill District, on the site of the Brooks-Scanlon “crane shed” torn down amid controversy by the site’s previous owner, Crown Investment Group.But the project stalled as the real estate market and economy soured, and Medford’s PremierWest Bank filed suit in March against Trono and his firm, seeking repayment of the loan securing the property, modified several times and totaling 3.8 million.

On The Trono Company’s Website, which listed an “expected completion date” of the Mercato project of last summer, it said Trono and his wife of 16 years “are the proud parents of five children ... and serve their community by helping multiple charities and churches in Bend and across the Pacific to the Philippines.”

The background statement concluded: “What we vividly imagine, ardently believe and pursue with joy and determination, will inevitably occur.”

************

Hey, didn't you wear that yesterday?

The experiment of wearing only six items of clothing for a month -- and no one noticing! -- doesn't really surprise me.

See, I think you can live a 'middle class' life-style, at least to all outward appearance, on a minimum wage level.

Pegasus Book had a good stretch of business between 1987 and 1996, in fact the highest sales totals in our history. (We peaked at 4 stores.) Our profits were also higher, though that included payments on loan principle as profit, so our take-home pay was probably less than today.

Anyway, when we went to Consumer Credit Counseling in 1997, (for the next 6 years), I realized that we had pissed away a whole lot of money on meaningless crap. I'd grab a 20.00 out of the register every day, and buy myself lunch, or chips, or soda, or candy and donuts, or beer and wine, or fast food dinner, or whatever. I know that very little of that 20.00 made it back to the register.

I figure Linda was probably doing about the same thing.

But just consider taking about 15.00 per day, just for me. That turned out to be about 5000.00 per year, for ten years. 50,000.00. Which is actually more money than we owed on our credit cards.

I made a rule. I never took money out of the register for personal spending. If I did, it was earmarked for a specific purpose. I started brown-bagging my lunch, and I stopped dropping by the 7-11.

It's also amazing how driving an older Toyota, (great gas mileage), and not trying to be a clothes horse saved money. Our entertainment was movies and cable; we had all the reading material we could ever need through our stores; our vacations consisted of camping and/or staying with friends and family. By doing this, we could pay for our essentials -- rent, overhead, food, clothing, etc.

To most outward appearances, we were living a solid middle-class lifestyle.

I maintain that no one notices what shoes you're wearing. And frankly, if they did and they judged me on them, I don't care to know those people anyway.

One of the shocking things, was reading "whoa is me" stories in the paper about "poor" families, and realizing that they were making more money than us!

It's been hard, actually, now that our profits are up to actually spend money. We eat out more, we stay at motels, we buy more clothing and snacks, we have better cars. But...frankly, it wasn't that hard to stick to austerity. The debt load hanging over our head was stressful, for sure. For most of those six years of C.C.C. we were paying about 40% of the gross profits from Pegasus Books on debt alone -- and it didn't leave anything for anything.

I'm also realizing that there was a whole lot of deferred maintenance going on; you can't drive those older cars forever, your clothes really do start to fray and become noticeable out of style, you put off dental bills for years but eventually something breaks, and never buying anything nice can get dispiriting. I still never buy anything nice. I still feel guilty. It took my five years to finally spring for my big screen T.V. That's been about it, for me. I don't need or want much.

Because of the bubble, we actually bought our house with a minimum wage budget -- which is pretty amazing, when you think about it. But we have always earmarked a bigger percentage of our income toward our housing, so even at minimum wage it wouldn't have been a problem. Mostly because we've avoided debt since 1996. We still live relatively frugally.

The one thing I wish I could have accomplished earlier, that would have saved years of stress, is to get a cash-flow savings fund for the store -- so that there never was any danger of having to pay overdrafts. I paid for a lot of overdrafts during those CCC years, which is admitttedly crazy, but when you're just scraping by, it hard to hold onto a cushion.

Anyway, I think maybe the whole country is learning that they can get by on less, that it doesn't make you less happy to drive an older car, to go out to dinner a little less often, and to brown bag our lunches. At least, it didn't make me any less happy. It was fine.

Bend is a modest town. With glitter.

I'm torn about doing postmortems on businesses that are closing. I don't want to add to their angst.

Then again, I pointed out the dangers at the time they opened, and it's fair to point out that those observations were correct.

There was a period between 2005 and 2008 where a series of stores opened; the Bulletin would herald their coming, and at the same time actually trumpet the amount of money invested in these new ventures. But it was those very 'enterprise costs', the very thing that made the stores and restaurants seem so interesting, that made it all that much more difficult for them to succeed.

The amounts of money talked about, as initial investments in equipment and inventory, made me cringe. Two especially, seemed to be way more money than could ever be recouped --even by a very profitable business. Even if the business earned enough money to keep open it's doors. The Investment itself was the problem.

One of those two ventures is still open. The other, Riley's Market is closing.

I mean, could you find a more bubbly moment that September, 2007, to open? Could you find a more bubbly spot than N.W. Crossings nascent 'retail' center?

The article in the Bulletin only makes passing mention of: "....part of the closure is related to debt on the store."

They also mention paying 2.35 a foot in rent, plus not being able to sell cigarettes. (Does N.W. Crossing think residents will stop smoking if they don't have a local outlet?)

When I finally had a chance to visit the store a few months ago, they'd basically turned it into a deli.

Linda was talking about some friends of hers, who had moved here from California, and opened a farm where they sold jellies and jams and spices and vinegars. They recently lost the land to foreclosure. They found out, the hard way, that their land was too far from anywhere to get many visits.

I've often thought -- you shouldn't open a business in a town until you've lived in it for at least a couple of years. By then you will have gotten more of a sense about which locations are busy all year long, which locations are seasonal, and which locations look good but really aren't. Or, vice versa, which locations look bad but are good.

There is a tendency, I think, to just follow the crowd.

Linda and I came very close to not opening the BookMark. I mean, we wanted to but we looked everywhere for a good spot, and damned if we could find one. I kept mentioning -- "I wish that spot would come open, I'd grab it in a minute..." and sure enough, just as we were about to postpone our plans, up popped the space and we were on the phone to the landlord.

So Location is #1.

Inventory is #2. What I see happen over and over again is way too much money is spent on the furnishing and equipment and fixtures and fancy new everythings -- and way too little on inventory. You know, the stuff you're supposed to sell. But even there, start with a smattering of many types of inventory, and THEN -- by holding back on spending too much upfront -- pursue the types of product that show some strength.

#3 is labor. Why is it that most closed business I visited never had the owner working? I've been in one local business 4 times, and only once did I see the owner, who was going out the door. A business that recently called for "help."

Really, you know, the hours in a downtown business are at most 48 hours if you close on Sundays-- not so much that a serious owner couldn't work all the hours if he or she was serious about staying open. If you open a business and aren't willing to work 48 hours -- don't open the business. Really. Expect more like 60 hours (working at home, as well) for the first few years....Sorry. That's just the way it is.

#4. Miscalculation. As I said above about living in a town for a couple of years before opening, it'll give you a chance to gauge 'real' demand. Not the demand you saw wherever you came from. Not industry averages. Not the demand you imagine from watching too many Christmas movies which only show the hoards of customers in Hollywoods' version of retail.

Bend, itself, I'm convinced, is an illusion. We have enough retail to serve a town twice our size, in my opinion, while costs aren't much lower than bigger metro areas -- and in some cases, MORE expensive than much bigger metro areas.

So my advice to anyone wanting to open a store in Bend; be very careful in location, spend less on accoutrements and more on inventory, work the store yourself, make sure you have enough flexibility in your costs to last long enough to gauge demand for your product. Don't invest all your money upfront, but hold back and get a sense of the business, and do it in stages. (Grow the business.)

And in Bend, expect to make half the sales you expected, at least at first, and twice the expenses.

The Rise and Fall of Twitter.

No offense to local Twitter users (sorry Jesse), but today's article in the Bulletin about Twitter pretty much documents why I think Twitter is -- less than useful:

"...most of the top Central Oregon Twitter users are selling or promoting something...."

Let me ask you this: If you were asked to a party and you knew that everyone at that party was going to try to sell you something, would you go? If you walked into a room where you are pummeled from all sides by someone yelling at you about their product, how long would you stay?

Blogging has always been in danger of this, too, but somehow the odd or quirky or personal manages to squeak through, and somehow it's easier to weed out the relentless self-promoters from the titles. I'm usually able to categorize blogs into subject matter: Mommy blogs, travel blogs, promotional blogs, teenage angst blogs, etc.

By the time you read a tweet to find out if it's personal or promotional -- well, you've already read the tweet.

I suppose all social media becomes prey to the self-promoters, and the answer is to try to limit your exposure. Facebook, for instance, I've heard the trick is to accept as friends people who are truly friends. But I think what happens is that we all wander in newbie-like and get overwhelmed and then...we can't be bothered.

Even though I own a business(es), I've tried very hard not to turn either my blog or tweets into self-promotion. In fact, I've actively avoided it. I quit looking at the "hit" rate a couple of years ago, and haven't checked since.

I realized early on that the temptation to gussy up my blog to make it more attractive to the casual reader, to write about only "positive" things, to try to make me or my business to look better than it was, to constantly refer to my wonderful relationships, were all things that might, in the short run lead to higher readership. I've made no attempt to play the -- you sign me up, I'll sign you up -- game.

I have a feeling sometimes that people are simply yelling past each other, a circle of self-promoters who think they're accomplishing something but are simply making themselves known to other self-promoters.

I think it's a catch-22. In the end, I think it destroys the usefulness of a blog. At least to me. I'd rather keep 50 very interested readers, than garner 2000 readers who merely browse. Or never actually read the damn thing, or comment. It isn't a race to see who has the most followers before you die, folks.

First they come for your neighbor....

Are things starting to catch up with my neighborhood?

Williamson Park has always just had one or two houses for sale at a time. Now we've got 4 houses for sale, and I know that a couple of the houses that were for sale previously, are being rented.

Thing is, our neighborhood is really well maintained, with only a few weeds here and there, and no dead lawns, leaning fences, or overturned flowerbeds.

Still....it looks like it's catching up what I've always thought was a very stable neighborhood.

So, looking at the "For Sale" prices, I'd have to estimate our house is worth, maybe, 10% higher still than we paid for it (not counting improvements, which I doubt would count for much in asking price). We bought at 1983 prices (prices started jumping just a couple of months after we closed), but I wouldn't be surprised to see prices drop to or slightly below what we paid.(CORRECTION!: Holy Cow, where did that come from? I meant we bought our house at 2003 prices. Sheesh.)

We've paid down about 35k so far, so even then we probably have a small amount of equity.

Doesn't matter. We're staying, and we're rapidly paying off the house, so it's all pretty moot.

Book 'em, Danno!

You know, I wondered about that.

I got a ticket a couple of weeks ago. In the fine print, there is an option for a business owner to 'validate' the ticket.

I paid the ticket, in full. But I wondered...

Sure enough, it appears there is "rampant" fraud in the validation program. My first response, is that they should penalize the abuses to the maximum extent. But that would probably cost more money than it's worth. So, dropping the program seems to be in the wings.

Too bad, a bunch of business owners acting like irresponsible kids. Maybe that's why there is such a turnover downtown. Seriously. If you are that much of a pathetic ninnie that you can't park where you should -- for YOUR OWN GOOD! It creates space for CUSTOMERS! -- then you are probably a ninnie in other parts of your business as well.

I still say, throw the book at them. Or at the least post their names, so I'll know who NOT to shop with.....

Comic retailers shoot themselves in foot....

....after bouncing around -- ouch! ouch! ouch! -- on one foot, comic retailers pick up gun...and shoot other foot.

After being given a range of options from terrible to O.K. to horrible to meh...comic retailers reliably, dependably, predictably pick.....the absolute worst option.

I'm so proud of us.



The way the system works now: We get our comics on Wednesday and scramble to put them out as quickly as possible.

The rest of the world gets their stuff on Tuesdays; music, movies, books, etc. etc.

Our distributor, Diamond Comics, ran a poll asking retailers whether they would like comics delivered a day early, for sale; or delivered a day early but usual Wednesday put out.

To my utter amazement, a hefty percentage of comic retailers want to stick to Wednesday release date; so it's looking, as of now, like we'll get our comics on Tuesday but won't be able to put them out until Wednesday.

Not only do we miss the extra day, but we run into a problem with the national release date that everyone else has.

As it is now, we get most of our graphic novels on Wednesday, but the mass market doesn't get theirs until the following Tuesday. What this new system will do is allow the mass market to get the shipment on the same day as us, but they will put their comics out A DAY EARLIER!

To me, this is the worst case scenario. I really, really want to put my comics out on Tuesday, even if it means putting them out on the same day as they arrive. The benefits of taking shipment a day earlier is a small one, as far as I'm concerned, especially since I don't really want to stay a couple hours after work to put away comics, and will probably put comics away on the day they're for sale anyway.

We'll see, I guess. But right now, it looks like the retailers have managed to paint themselves into a corner.

Why? As far as I can tell, it's because it's simply change -- from Wednesday to Tuesday -- and that apparently has freaked out a majority of comic retailers.

Ninnies.

Research and Development.

It's always a bit of a mind trip to read about Comic-con.

Most of the year, I sell these little things that almost no one wants. They're called comics. (What!? They still make comics? What do you do, collect them? Surely, no one reads them. Hey, I bet my kids would be interested in this store? Or the weird cousin, Johnny -- he's into this stuff.)

And then, in July, it's the biggest thing in the world. There's Angelina Jolie at a comic-con table! It's weird, I tell you.

But, of course, it's not about the comics. Anymore than the Batman or Superman movies are. Or even the Scott Pilgrim movie. It's about movies and games and mass entertainment.

Somehow, unworthy comics become cool games, toys, books, and movies. How does that happen? Those adapters must be geniuses! Because, well, it couldn't be the actual story and art of the comics. That's a ridiculous notion!

Comics have become the Research and Development arm of the entertainment world. Inspiration and creativity abound. And Hollywood and Silicon Valley have taken notice. I'm sure they assign underlings to read those pesky comics and mine them ideas.

We're like geek scientists who are shuffled off to a lab out of sight out of mind and given a small budget to explore and create, and then the office types scoop up those ideas and hand them to those CEO types who hand them over to the promotional types and WOW! Look at this great idea this company had! Where did that come from????

But will the public ever explore this world at the source? Will they ever say to themselves -- hey, it's just story and art, and anything is possible.....?

I doubt it. In fact, I'm positive they never well. Apparently, everyone is able to hold two -- what to me are -- contradictory ideas. That comics are stupid kid stuff, but many of the movies, T.V. shows, games, and books made from them are great entertainment.

ARgggh.

That's more like it.

If nothing else, going from reactive to proactive has improved my mood mightily. That's no small thing at this point in my career. I can always use more money -- who couldn't ?-- but in some ways it's much more important that I keep up my interest in the store, and I've done that over the years by constantly re-inventing it.

It was kind of dispiriting to just sit here and wait for people to come in the store and spend money -- or not spend money.

It's much more fun to figure out what I can get that will interest people. The process is fun, as well. I've always enjoyed the searching and finding and ordering of new product. I've always enjoyed taking shipment and finding a place for the new product.

Plus, I've always thought people can instinctively pick up when you're doing things and when -- you're not doing things. They pick up on the 'dispirited' part, even if it doesn't really point to the relative strength or weakness of the business. They pick up on it, because -- well, in most cases, probably because it does point to weakness.

The only reason I was sitting back was because I felt the store was full. Almost too full. So ordering yet more product seemed a little silly. Plus, well as I've said before, I'd really like to see if this store can turn a major profit someday.

But now that I've reversed course, I'm finding solutions to the space problem. (It usually involves taking 'dead' product and either consolidating it, or moving it.)

I've winnowed my manga and anime down enough, that I can probably use my green bookshelves for books instead of manga. (I can pile the unsold manga on an endcap and sell it for half price...)

That would give me a spot for paperbacks, and a row along the top for hardcovers and tradepaperbacks.

For:

1.) S.F. and fantasy.

2.) Mysteries.

3.) Paranormal romance.

4.) Horror.

This was something I intended to do close to Christmas, or even at the beginning of next summer, but I'm thinking I'll do it over the next ten days or so, instead. Why not? It accomplishes what I wanted to do, and stimulates the store at the same time, and I will still have about 5 or 6 weeks to take advantage of summer business.

This will also open space on the white bookshelves for the other kinds of books.

So I'm engaged in improving the store, and that is much more like it.

My own little stimulus package.

I made some rather Large orders of books and games yesterday. I was scheduled to make these orders anyway, as part of my regular August spending, but I decided to go Bigger than I'd originally intended.

I've been thinking how, in an odd way, my decision parallels the national debate of austerity versus stimulus.

First of all, I waited for the full three months of falling sales before I declared it a trend. This is a fail-safe mechanism for me, because I can overreact to short term gains or losses. But there is now little doubt that -- at least for me -- I'm going through a double dip downturn. (I've got some independent information that it isn't just happening to me, too.)

Secondly, up to now my focus this summer has been on profits, not growth. As a result, I've been able to 'balance the budget', if you will. But sales have been dropping, and there is the danger of continued decline, or 'deflation', if you will.

Personally, I think the falling sales are more dangerous. So I've reversed course, and decided to prop the sales up again. (This has been my goal for most of my career, as long as I was taking enough home to pay the bills. What I'd been hoping to change was the ability to bring home 'extra' profits -- extra in the 'putting it in the bank' sense.)

Just throwing money at the problem isn't very useful. Fortunately, I have two categories in my store that are showing signs of strength -- even growth. Books and games. I have a long list of product that I can order that I either 1.) have sold in the past, or 2.) am pretty sure I can sell in the future.

I have the luxury of growing the categories with salable product. (There is also the side bonus that being proactive is much more fun and interesting, and my engagement in the process often, in and of itself, encourages sales.)

On the other hand, I don't get the sense that buying more Magic will help. Or toys. Comics and graphic novels are pretty well stocked -- these are mature product lines that are already selling about as well as they are likely to sell and I'm already keeping my inventory up and buying more might boost sales a bit, but wouldn't be terribly cost efficient. I don't want to just "buy" myself into sales growth.

By buying more games and books, I've probably insured that I'll increase sales through August and hopefully through the end of the year, but I've also probably given up my chance to make the 'extra' profits. That goal will have to wait for another day. Now is not the time for foregoing growth in viable product lines.

I suppose the big difference between me and the federal government is that I'm not in debt. I have no loans out, my budget is currently balanced, and turning a profit. There is a chance that if this new product doesn't sell in a timely manner that I might have a budget deficit, but I'd be surprised if it happens. It wouldn't hurt us much if it did.

Also ironic -- and typical for me and Pegasus -- is that I'm buying heavily into a product -- BOOKS -- that many other people seem to be having doubts about. I've been selling more books than ever, and I still see a path to selling even more, (trends that are evident, authors who sell who I can buy more of) so that's where I'm headed. Contrarian, as usual.



One of these days I'd really like to prove the store can be Very profitable, not just modestly profitable.

Maybe now isn't the time to try to prove it.

As everyone keeps saying, "Breaking Even is the New Black."

Kindling a bonfire.

Damn, I'm going to have to reverse track.

When sales first started dropping this month, my response was to cut back on spending even further. Despite a rather steep decline, I'm still in profitable territory -- which is quite an achievement, actually.

But my instincts are now telling me to make strong orders of books and games and graphic novels, which have become the strong base of my business. Magic sales have all but collapsed, toy sales are down, and so are sports card sales. Not sure what's going on with Magic, but it certainly isn't due to not having product. Toys sales and sports card sales are impulse buys these days.

My sort of off the cuff estimate is -- I'm getting lots of folks in the door, but not a whole lot of impulse buys.

Games are strong -- even though I'd expected much more of the 'new' customers, instead of sales to regulars. Book sales are even stronger -- despite the news about Kindle outselling hardcovers on Amazon. I don't really carry many HDC's. Mostly tradepaperbacks (the larger P.B.'s) . The price point on T.P.'s has always been better for us -- not so outrageously high as H.D.'s -- which I'm not surprised readers are foregoing.

Anyway, I'm going to make strong game and book orders for the month of August -- which means starting today.

Build on what's working.

de facto, or life in the real world.

I've taken to making note of building permits.

June starts were 20. ........ For all three counties........... In June.


Meanwhile, Paul Krugman among others is calling this a "de facto" double dip recession, which I do believe is the same exact terminology I used. Heh.

Anyway, for me three months is enough to call it a trend, and this month is without a doubt going to be one of worst months I've seen in a long time. I'm taking satisfaction in more or less breaking even, (probably a small profit) rather than turning a big profit like I'd planned.

Thing is, if the official definition of a recession is two quarters of down, well then, 5 months of down and one of up doesn't count.

Except to those of us who actually experience it, I guess.

The Pacific

I'd taped the ten hours of The Pacific, intending to watch them when I had a chance.

Saturdays are my day off with Linda working, and if I want to watch a show or movie that I know Linda doesn't want to watch, I'll sometimes pop one in. But I really save up watching the boob tube until evenings, usually, so I try not to get carried away.

I'd planned to redo that Black Book of the store yesterday, after intending to do it the weekend before, but first...I thought....I'll pop in the first hour of The Pacific.

Big mistake.

9 hours later, I'd watched all 10 episodes, fast-forwarding the credits and re-caps.

Now here's where I could comment on the show: It was Great.

But instead, I'm going to comment on my addictive personality. This was the equivalent of staying up until 4:00 A.M. reading a good book. I try not to do that anymore. In fact, I try to stay away from most addictive substances -- alcohol, drugs, video games, anything that's too much fun, heh.

When I watch these more realistic war shows, I'm thankful I missed my generation's war by getting a high draft number -- and sobered by the sacrifice of those who didn't.

"...truly a model of how a comics shop should be run.""

The above quote wasn't meant to be ironic, but it should have been. I mean unless the idea of a 'model' store is one that goes out of business....

There is a famous comic shop in Brooklyn, N.Y. which has been open for five years, that apparently has just had it's doors locked. I'm not going to say the name of the store aloud, because I really don't want to get into an argument with the national fanbase; but no one pays much attention to my little old blog, and those of you who read BMWJAMAGEH probably don't care. I can take anything Buster can throw at me, but comic fans scare me.

(google " brooklyn, comic shops, " further hint -- 'what blasts off?')

Anyway, the owners blame "real estate" problems.

They say further:

"...my partner and I are suddenly making some large life decisions about what comes next. We love the shop, and as fun as it is, we have to figure out what makes sense for us on a practical level."

First of all, I have to say that's a real shame, because it sounded like a great shop. And yet,....and yet..... as another comic retailer was so imprudent to ask: "But was it profitable?"

From the above information, I'd have to guess no.

I've mentioned before, and I'll say it again; no one will EVER SAY they went out of business because of not making money. Usually there is a good excuse. It's only human. It's almost always a problem with the lease, or insurance, or the partner, or....or....just about any other reason.

Saying you have a "real estate problem" is like saying a guy who has a stake hammered into his heart died of a heart attack.

The biggest two reasons stores go under. 1.) Not making enough money. 2.) Not having enough fun(burnout).

Or both of the above.

To handle the latter reason first, I'm guessing, again based on the owners comments, that it wasn't quite as fun as they expected:

"Comic retail was never something either of us wanted to do forever, and if it happens that we close, we had a great five year run, and look forward to what comes next."

They leave open the possibility that they'll be back, but it sounds a bit wistful. It's a strange statement in some ways -- when you start a store, you need to be very committed. It puzzles me that someone would invest the time and energy it takes to get started, just to have a five year window.

Anyway, I'm going to go out on a limb here and make a guess that the very elements that made the store famous contributed to it's demise. Listen to the description of the store in the article and comments:

"With a lineup of art shows, parties and signings including release parties for the last edition of Scott Pilgrim, Achewood, Brian Wood, Top Shelf and many other notable books, (insert comic shop) has been the center of a social scene in its gentrified Brooklyn neighborhood, as a gathering place for comics readers and creators."

and

"On a more personal level, we’ve spent many a sociable evening at (insert comic shop) hobnobbing with colleagues and friends. It’s the kind of place you want to hang out in and a model for the way comics shops should be run."

This description, along with the killer hours: 11:00 A.M. to 10:00 P.M.; Seven Days a Week:
are enough to make me shudder.

Sounds great, if you want to work 77 hours a week -- and I'm guessing from the social aspects of the above descriptions, that it often went well beyond 10:00 P.M. -- or you're making enough money to pay for others to work the extra hours, (and a basic problem here is that for 'special events' you really need the owners there.....) Or if you want to eat, drink, and sleep comics....

Me, I'd like to go home in the evenings and kick up my heels.

So am I arguing against excellence? By no means, but I am saying you have to be realistic about how much you can keep doing....and doing....and doing.

See -- while your customers can pick and choose when to "hang out" (and I suspect hanging out is almost always bad for business -- I wonder really if Norm and Frasier and Cliff were really good for Cheers, or just nursed the same drink all evening long....), you are committed to a major time suck -- and perhaps not getting paid enough for the pleasure.

Here's where Dave will pop up and tell me how well 'special events' do for the bookstore in Sunriver, and I believe you, Dave, I really do. But I'm still going to try to make the case that you have to be careful just how many 'special events' you do; and you have to be conscious of how much money you're making, and how much hassle it might be, and whether it detracts from what you do on a regular basis, and whether people are rewarding you with their cash, or just lavishing their attention and praise on you. (Lavish attention and praise and .50 cents won't buy you a cup of coffee these days.)

Because you're in the business to sell books -- or comics -- or booze, or whatever, and everything you do needs to be in service to that goal -- and NOT the other way around. Sometimes when I hear bookstores explaining their problems, it seems as though they are more concerned about all the accouterments than they are about actually selling books.

The current bookstore model seems to be -- provide meeting space, and drinks, and soft couches, and tables, and let people look through books to their hearts content, and stay open late and have signings and club meetings and so on. Well, except for the 'drinks' part, libraries are already doing most of those things, and they are supported by non-profit and governmental monies. Huge stores like Barnes and Nobles apparently have a model that works on the above premise, but small stores are a different species.

But what about selling books?

Well, that ain't very glamorous.

So those are my answers to the second part of the equation: Not Having Fun Anymore.



What about the first part of the equation: Not Making Money?

Well, here too, I think the description of the store is very telling.

"It was also in the forefront of the graphic novel store revolution, as comics shops evolved from stores that relied entirely on the weekly periodical market to ones that operated more like bookstores with wide ranging material for all ages stocked in-depth."

That plus the pictures of the store, which show it to be gorgeous; and "...clean, well-lit, well-stocked and open to anyone of any age or gender." I can't argue with that last part, except....well, how much did it cost?

I'll tell you a little secret. I have enough money and credit and experience, that I could go out right now and spend money on a fresh new large space in an expensive area of town and buy brand new fixtures and lights and carpets, and display my wonderful product face out and carry all the best graphic novels and have space to sit and talk and having meetings and so on and so on.

So why don't I do it?

Because 1.) I'd go out of business within a couple of years, and leave a beautiful corpse; and 2.) it would be absolutely exhausting, stressful, and terrifying.

But, hey. People would love the store as long as it lasted! And they would be shocked, shocked! that their favorite store is going out of business.

There's sort of a reason that most comic shops still carry those pesky "weekly periodical" comics, and don't look like a fashion boutique,and have cheaper rent, and even go so far as to -- gasp! carry those dusty old back issues, and action figures, and decorate their stores with posters of spandex heroes, and have reasonable hours and the owner works most of them, and so on.

I think -- I have to believe -- that the kind of excellent store mentioned above is possible. Not only that, they exist. I try to be that store, myself. Each owner's level of energy and commitment will be different and that doesn't preclude special events or large investments in overhead -- but you have to be careful you don't reach too far too fast; because whatever you make part of your business plan you have to keep doing...and doing....and doing....

I subscribe to the theory that if you want to stay in business -- if you want to enjoy your business for more than a few years -- you need to keep it simple and basic and within budget and keep reasonable hours and focus on selling product. Plan to keep doing it for years and years and ask yourself; what is a reasonable level of expense and effort? Keep it to the basic and simple plan of profit and loss.

Because that's hard enough. You can grow into excellence, but I can almost guarantee it will take more than 5 years unless you're just throwing money and your very blood into the pit.

So...what happens if -- at the end of five years, and you're exhausted and your landlord is raising the rent and you haven't made much money and your significant other is grumbling and the industry looks like it's going to go through some major changes and you have a signing that night but you haven't really had the time to read the graphic novel and the author is a bit demanding and the last event you held a patron threw up all over the Sandman statue and you didn't get home until after midnight and your employee just called and says he can't open for you and the shipment of graphic novels the author was going to sign haven't arrived and you have to run down to UPS to pick it up and your anniversary dinner with your significant other will just have to be canceled and your roof has sprung a leak and the landlord says it isn't his fault and those shiny new carpets and fixtures are starting to look older and the neon Superman sign you paid 600.00 for just went out and you had horrible day in sales and will have to pull money out of your meager savings to cover the shortfall and it was money your significant other had hoped to use for vacation....and the landlord calls and starts playing hardball again.....

Alternately:

Having a store that operates on reasonable hours (that you can work yourself, if necessary)

and who's goal is to sell product with or without fanfare

and which makes a small profit because you're careful about overhead,

but which you are proud of the inventory and you go home at night

and stop thinking about the store because you know the bills are paid....

well, that looks pretty attractive at that point. Doesnt' it?

You may not make it as the standard-bearer in the national media, the example that is used that "all" stores should follow, but...well, you'll live to work another day. You'll get up in the morning and want to go to work, and sell books and comics, and have nice little chats with the customers and --you may dream of the 'perfect' store, but you know the perfect store isn't possible.

Finally, I'll leave you with another -- apparently non-ironic comment -- about the 'model' store: "Thanks....for proving the concept."

Well, no. Actually, it didn't.

Vole--taire

Linda and I were eating breakfast the other day, when our fat cat came in and plopped a dead vole at our feet.

"Oh, my gosh! Look at that? Where did she find it?"

"I think she found it under the vole-canic rock out back."

"Really."

"Yeah, she vole-enteers to hunt the little varmints for us."

"She's really excited. She hasn't looked this pleased with herself in years."

"Well, you know. She just got charged up by some major vole-tage."

Anyway, we've had vole-umous puns over the last few days...

Spinning wheels keep on turnin'...

Interesting.

Apparently, the City Club in Bend had a "debate" about whether Bend was hosting too many athletic events.

Though, from reading the KTVZ report, ("Bend's Big Events, Is Enough, Enough?") there wasn't much debating. Sounded like most of them already had their mind up that the "More Is Better" stance is the right one and were circling the wagons in support of that view.

Strangely, most of those who were quoted, also owe their jobs to finding and promoting such events, but never mind....

Anyway, the fact that the subject even came up probably means that there was some grumbling going on by some members somewhere -- probably not willing to go on the record. I mean, as Bruce so aptly put it, that would be like taking away away their lollipops! Not a popular view -- to the promoters, the organizers, the officials, the merchants who do profit, the event attendees, the media, or the public. Pretty strong lobby to argue against.

Still, I think maybe a few citizenss are starting to realize that blocked or clogged streets, and outside vendors, trash and litter, and insensitive placements have some downsides. I've heard pretty much the same thing downtown -- that even merchants who are in overall favor of the 'events' were not completely happy about the way they were handled. But no one wants to go on the record.

There have been a couple of minor rebellions over the years. I know the Drake Park neighborhood was pretty unhappy for awhile; I can't remember if they got any events canceled or moved. And the Skyliner Rd. folk were grousing recently.

I'm sure we objectors come across as selfish -- but in most cases, what we're really asking are adjustments and some consideration. For instance, I told Chuck Arnold I saw no real reason they couldn't hold the Cascade Bike Race on a Sunday instead of a Saturday, except that it was inconvenient for them to reschedule. This is an entrenched event now, so I doubt anything will change. Ditto Sunday for the Car thingy....

I know my yearly disquiet with these interruptions to the flow of my business isn't really making any headway with changing anything. But the next person who comes along who discovers the same circumstances won't be starting completely from scratch. Maybe, just maybe, someone a little more politically savvy and willing to fight the good fight, will be able to change things.

To borrow or not to borrow?

Interesting conundrum.

Bernanke has been lecturing banks about the need to start loaning to small businesses. But my question would be -- should small businesses be borrowing money?

There is a recent article about how some of the smaller, regional banks are having trouble paying back the Tarp money. Who'd have thunk? Borrowing money and having to pay it back only added to the amount of payments they have to make every month?

I realize that there are seasonal type businesses (though even those should probably strive to save up enough cash to pay for the seasonal swings themselves) but the main reason that I ever borrowed money from a bank was to grow my businesses.

O.K. I can understand how the government might want 'growth'. But borrowing for growth is another word for RISK, in my opinion. Living within the current parameters of your business would seem a wiser choice right now.

If you have to borrow money just to pay the bills, you're already in trouble and borrowing will only compound your problem.

I'm not an absolutist about this. I can come up with plenty of scenarios where loaning to small business would be a good thing -- both for the business and for the economy. I can even see loaning small business money just to tide them over until things improve. It would probably be much more efficient for everyone to keep already operating businesses alive than to have to start all over from scratch.

But as a small business, I'm trying to avoid adding any more payments to my monthly overhead, especially payments that involve compound interest.

Of course, if everyone thinks this way, we're probably looking at deflation for a long time to come.

So -- I'll be prudent.

You other guys borrow the money.

Vapor product.

I guess today I find out if Magic is dead to me, or merely comatose. The 2011 brand is coming in.

In the past, faced with this conundrum, I would try to entice customers with discounts, but I'm wondering -- what's the use? I can keep the brand in stock at regular price, and my budgeted money on books and boardgames.



Meanwhile, it's also the season for "late" blockbusters.

Did you know I sell unicorns online? Not in my store, mind you. If I sold real unicorns in my store, I'd actually have to produce them. But selling unicorns online? No problem, just send me the money.

I try this tact all the time, but most people just act mystified. So let me lay it out. The internet lies. Yes, lies. It tells you what you want to hear. Just because someone posts a date and someone is 'selling' it online doesn't mean it's actually out.

And, why do you believe an anonymous online site over a living breathing storekeepers who after all would like nothing better than to sell you the damn product?

So...this week's villains; and probably next week and the week after if history is any judge, are Scott Pilgrim #6, which is supposed to arrive next week; and most especially Walking Dead #12.

Here's a hint. Walking Dead Vol. 12 was offered in December of 2009.

It was then offered again in April of 2010.

Which means the original offer would be, oh, I don't know..... six months late. The second solicitation would be -- if it showed up next week on time which it apparently will not -- would be at least two months late. But that "Arrival Date" you find online won't change.

Actually, you know what? I'm just hiding it in the back room because I don't really want to make any money by selling it to you....


I'm not actually that annoyed. I just wanted to express a little faux outrage. One things for sure --this phenomenon of the web trumping reality isn't going to change anytime soon.

Downtown Openings and Closings.

I guess EarthSense has been around for awhile. The Galleria is really just about the only building downtown where there are 'Inside' retail. Franklin Crossing has the capability, but I think all their retail stores are on street level so far. So there may be one or two businesses in the Galleria that I've missed. Anyone know? In the last year?

Meanwhile, the new art gallery will be a nice corner to Oregon Ave.

NEW BUSINESS'S DOWNTOWN

Red Chair Art Gallery, Oregon Ave. 7/13/10.
Earth Sense Herbs, Penny's Galleria, 7/12/10.
Mad Happy Lounge, Brooks St., 6/2910
Common Table, Oregon Ave. , 6/29/10.
Looney Bean Coffee, Brooks St. , 6/29/10.
Bourbon Street, Minnesota St., 6/22/10
Feather's Edge, Minnesota St., 6/22/10
The BLVD., Wall St. , 6/13/10.
Volt, Minnesota St. 6/1/10.
Tart, Minnesota Av. , 5/13/10
Olivia Hunter, Wall St. 4/5/10.
Tres Chic, Bond St. 4/5/10
Blue Star Salon, Wall St. 4/1/10.
Lululemon, Bond St. 3/31/10.
Diana's Jewel Box, Minnesota St., 3/25/10.
Amalia's, Wall St. (Ciao Mambo space), 3/12/10
River Bend Fine Art, Bond St. (Kebanu space) 2/23/10
Federal Express, Oregon Ave. 2/1/10
***10 Below, Minnesota St. 1/10/10
Tew Boots Gallery, Bond St. 1/8/10.
Top Leaf Mate, 12/10/09
Laughing Girls Studio, Minnesota St. 12/7/09
Lemon Drop, 5 Minnesota, 11/12/09
The Curiosity Shoppe 11/5/09 25 N.W. Minnesota, Suite #7.
Wabi Sabi 11/4/09
Frugal Boutique 11/4/09
5 Spice 10/22/09
Cowgirls Cash 10/17/09
***Haven Home 10/17/09
Dog Patch 10/17/09
The Good Drop 10/12/09
Lola's 9/23/09
**Volcano Wines 9/15/09
Singing Sparrow Flowers 8/16/09
Northwest Home Interiors 8/5/09
High Desert Frameworks 7/23/09 (*Moved to Oregon Ave. 4/5/10.)
Wall Street Gifts 7/--/09
Ina Louise 7/14/09
Bend Home Hardware (Homestyle Hardware?) 7/1/09
Altera Real Estate 6/9/09
Honey 6/7/09
Azura Studio 6/7/09
Mary Jane's 6/1/09
c.c.McKenzie 6/1/09
Velvet 5/28/09
Bella Moda 3/25/09
High Desert Gallery (Bend) 3/25/09
Joolz
Zydeco
900 Wall
Great Outdoor Store
Luxe Home Interiors
Powell's Candy
Dudley's Used Books and Coffee
Goldsmith
Game Domain
Subway Sandwiches
Bend Burger Company
Showcase Hats
Pita Pit
Happy Nails

BUSINESS'S LEAVING

Old Bend Distillery, Brooks St., 6/19/10.
Staccato, Minnesota Ave. 6/18/10.
Showcase Hats, 6/1/10
Cork, Oregon Av., 5/27/10.
Wall Street Gifts, 5/26/10
Microsphere, Wall St. , 5/17/10.
Singing Sparrow, Franklin and Bond, 5/15/10
28 5/13/10.
Glass Symphony, 3/25/10
Bend Home Hardware, Minn. Ave, 2/25/10
Ciao Mambo, Wall St. 2/4/10
***Angel Kisses 1/25/10 (Have moved to 'Honey.')
Ivy Rose Manor 8/20/09
***Downtowner 8/18/09 (moving into the Summit location)
Chocolate e Gateaux 8/16/09
Finders Keepers 8/15/09
Colourstone 7/25/09
Periwinkle 6/--/09
***Tangerine 7/21/09 (Got word, they are moving across the street.)
Micheal Cassidy Gallery 6/15/09
St. Claire Coffee 6/15/09
Luxe Home Interiors 6/4/09
Treefort 5/8/09
Blue 5/2/09
***Volcano Tasting Room 4/28/09** Moved to Minnesota Ave.
Habit 4/16/09
Mountain Comfort 4/14/09
Tetherow Property 4/11/09
Blue Moon Marketplace 3/25/09
Plenty 3/25/09
Downtown Doggie 3/25/09
***King of Sole (became Mary Janes)**
Santee Alley
Bistro Corlise
Made in Hawaii
EnVogue
Stewart Weinmann (leather)
Kebanu Gallery
Pella Doors and Windows
Olive company
Pink Frog
Little Italy
Deep
Merenda's
Volo
***Pomegranate (downtown branch)**
Norwalk
Pronghorn Real Estate office.
Speedshop Deli
Paper Place
Bluefish Bistro