Decision Making Today

I am excited to present a new website devoted to improved decision-making. Research shows that 50% of all decisions fail. Could it be that our approach to decision-making, which looks at everything as a problem to be solved, could be the problem? Is it possible that there is another approach that might provide better results?

Take a look for your self at www.decision-makingtoday.com.

Home Depot Strikes Again

The Wall Street Journal reported that Home Depot is Acquiring Hughes Supply. This is particularly interesting when you look at their history of acquisitions. In 2004 they acquired White Cap moving then into the Contractor Supply business. This was followed by Lakeside Contractors Supply, Williams Brothers Lumber, National Waterworks and now Hughes Supply. It seems obvious to me that this is an effort to capitalize on and further enhance their incredible purchasing power. Manufacturers Beware! This is not a good thing for you and will result in even greater price pressure.
On the other hand, if we look back at the early battles between Depot and Lowes, we remember that Lowes profitability was not as strong as that of Home Depot primarily because of the higher percentage of business done with Contractors.
Could this be history repeating itself? Home Depot growth has slowed so the company decides to diversify into the Contractor Supply Business. Might this mean a little less focus on the core business and could it eventually provide an opportunity for an entrepreneur with a more concentrated focus emerge as the next big thing in Hardware Marketing?

Hope for the New Year

The fear of Chinese competition is highly overated. I will grant you that there is a tremendous influx of hardware / hardlines products coming into the U.S. from China. As I have written before, there is nothing new or different here than what happened to us in the 1970s with Japan.

It is especially encouraging to start the new year reflecting on the demise of Olympia hand tools in the U.S. market. Even with offices in the U.S. and a veteran U.S. hardware executive on the team, Olympia could not succeed in the U.S. market. Don't get me wrong, the importation of Chinese products is not going to fade into history. Rather, it is time to appreciate our competitive advantages. First, we have the advantage of proximity to the market. This means we have shorter supply lines and consequently we have an advantage time to market. It should also mean that we have a better understanding of our customers and are able to react much quicker to changes in the market.

Our secret competitive advantage however, is our freedom. Our freedom sets us apart from most of the rest of the world. Our freedom is our unique advantage that fosters creativity and in turn rewards that creativity fostering even greater creativity. Many foreign companies have set up U.S. manufacturing or assembly operations in an effort to shorten their supply lines. Some have even setup engineering operations to tap into our creativity while too many domestic manufacturers have become too far removed from the end user.

Survival and success will belong to those domestic organizations who understand the end user, the market and how to reward creativity. This is a combination that can't be duplicated off shore in countries that limit the freedom of individuals to flourish.