The future for many graduates that colleges never tell you about.

Mind_Virus · 3 days

You don't understand compounded interest, do you?

damontoo · 3 days

Actually one of my best assets were my employees. Of course there were duds, people who didn't care. However, I explicitly paid over minimum wage - and that allowed me to be a lot more selective. Once an employee came on board, we had a 6 week training program that was just about 1/2 time in addition to working on the sales floor, where they learned all about toys, customer service, setting and managing customer expectations, merchandising, etc, etc.

Investing in employees was the best thing I did, and something I would do MORE of if I could afford it. At peak, I had 75 employees working for me in both the warehouse and the storefront. Obviously, the warehouse employees didn't need the same hand holding and training, but at the very least every one of them would be able to answer the telephone competently.

We also paid our manager on salary, and made sure she was a good one. She was. Cutting her was the hardest part at the end, since she was so loyal and such a wonderful friend. We're going to her wedding this July.

damontoo · 3 days

Dirty little secret of the mass toy industry - the 'hot' toys are already designed and marketed to the media and the big box merchants in October. No, not the October before Christmas - October 14 months PRIOR. Most of it is artificially created demand. It is very rare that a real 'surprise' comes along, and that's when you see the actual shortages in the supply chain. Also, many of the 'awards' you see on some mass-market toys are actually purchased endorsements. It's really hard for a 'traditional' toy store to survive in that climate.

More details about us closing here:

http://www.annarbor.com/business-review/tree-town-toys-to-close-ann-arbor-store-go-online-only/

EDIT: Here's info on the invitation-only mass-market show. Note that the media isn't invited, and it's by invitation only, so small retailers have no shot at getting in on the 'hot' toy of the next years holiday season. http://www.toyassociation.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Fall_Toy_Preview

camandable · 3 days

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/03/nyregion/ladies-nights-with-cheaper-drinks-for-women-called-illegal.html

Older, but relevant.

camandable · 3 days

...for $12.50

hmasing · 3 days

The route: http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/fullscreen/80917225/

I'm a red rider - meaning that I have diabetes. This makes long distance riding really interesting since carb management becomes critical to making it through the ride. I typically end a ride with low blood glucose, and can't just chug a bottle of gatoraide to make things right.

I've been riding seriously since March 5th, dropped 35 pounds. I'm in better shape than I have been in a decade, and pulled old T-shirts and jeans out of the storage boxes. I'm on my way to the weight I was in college. \O/

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/532998_10101633143359433_2244717_69844327_1478323256_n.jpg

That was before a 40 mile ride a couple weekends ago. I did 50 last weekend (!!!), and will (try) 60 this weekend. I should be in good shape to make the metric (62 miles) my bitch. :-)

hmasing · 3 days

The route: http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/fullscreen/80917225/

I've been riding more and more, dropped 35 pounds, and am getting off my glyburide due to taking my T2 seriously and adding exercise to my diet regimen. I'm in better shape than I have been in a decade, and pulled old T-shirts and jeans out of the storage boxes. I'm on my way to the weight I was in college. \O/

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/532998_10101633143359433_2244717_69844327_1478323256_n.jpg

That was before a 40 mile ride a couple weekends ago. I did 50 last weekend, and will (try) 60 this weekend. I should be in good shape to make the metric (62 miles) my bitch. :-)

partard · 3 days

Wait.... You can DO that?!

romanpppp · 3 days

So.... no no homo?

romanpppp · 3 days

NNNNOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooo............

Alternatively:

N^{O^{O^{O^{O^{O^{O^{O^{O^{O^{O^{o^{o^{o^{o.^.}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

damontoo · 3 days

I actually started online out of my house before opening the bricks/mortar store. We ran about 200 boxes a day out of our basement for online orders (this was before Amazon got serious about toys), and used that momentum to open the bricks/mortar store. We were very successful in our first three years, and opened up a second location. Then 2009 hit and the economy went to the shitter.

I get asked the 'big sellers' question all the time, but it's not really something I can answer. It really depends, and it's not consistent. "Big sellers" are a mass market/mass media concept. One year I managed to get a palette of 250 LEGO police stations from Europe that had been mis-shipped to the US, and sold them for $$$$$$ on amazon. I think that US collectors were picking them up for $250 each. One year I sold close to 750 slinkies in four weeks. One year it as 1200 rolls of easel paper. When Webkinz were popular and I could get inventory, I was selling close to 600 units a day in-store and online. My goal as a small business was to react nimbly to the market, not to try to predict the big sellers.

damontoo · 4 days

I went to the New York show every year for about 8 years, Atlanta a couple of times, Chicago when they had it. Never did Dallas. Also, there is the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association annual show that moves around the country. I presented at most of them as a speaker, and sat on the board of directors for 3 years.

My kids learned that they got the broken toys as gifts. :-) They grew up in a toy store, so I don't think they have any room to really complain. I have one hell of a board game collection to get us through the rest of their childhood, too.

damontoo · 4 days

It was an independent. http://treetowntoys.com

We were open for 8 years as a bricks/mortar. I did it because my kids were young, and I'm pretty fearless. You might remember this reddit event: http://www.reddit.com/r/reddit.com/comments/doni3/reddit_i_own_a_toy_store_near_the_7year_old_being/

That was my store. It's still a top lifetime moment for me.

We closed because the economy in Michigan got pretty terrible. The adjusted unemployment/underemployment rate was close to 20%, and we just couldn't stay open...

damontoo · 4 days

Sure, of course.

damontoo · 4 days

I used to do $250,000 in LEGO a year in my toy store. It was a loss leader just because of the basic margins.

damontoo · 4 days

As a former toy retailer, the margins on them suck, too. That $20 set? I probably paid $17 for it after shipping to my shop. That's not enough margin to keep a store open.

Ask me how I know... I used to do $250,000 in LEGO a year...

vajav · 4 days

I didn't realize that shitting my pants could be considered as an extra dimension.

Wouldn't that make it 5-D?

The more you know...

tunabomber · 4 days

I have totally lived this experience. MASSIVE dry chunk with a diameter greater than that possibly with my bung acting as a log jam for a few liters of liquid, molten firehose.

hmasing · 4 days

I get the sentiment on not having speedometers. Right now I'm using all the data I can collect as a way to hack my riding. I now know what an 85bpm cadence feels like, I know my heart rate approximately by feel, and I use my speedometer primarily as a motivator for distance travelled and average pace so that I know how much longer in terms of time that I can ride and still walk after.

I'm using them less and less now that I have a few hundred miles on the bike and am getting in to the groove.

hmasing · 4 days

Yesterday (monday) after the ride I had zero pain. Mondays are my rest day, and while I had a little neck soreness, overall I felt awesome. I've got the bike tuned up so that the sizing is perfect, and have eliminated any of the IT band issues I had early on.

hmasing · 5 days

I'm trying to manage burnout, since I can see that creeping in. I'm pushing myself when I do ride, but at the same time am OK skipping a day during the week if the weather isn't right or I have other obligations.

I'm just thrilled that I can do 50 miles. I never though I could do that at any point.

gwstd · 6 days

Reality is often gross.

ktizzle91 · 6 days

This looks a lot like Central PA, where I used to mountain bike nearly constantly in the early 90's.

hmasing · 6 days

Thanks! I'm nervous, but excited.

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