[Jewelry making - Article 00720] - Re: [Orchid] Friendship Dilemma

[Lee Einer]

========[ Invite a Friend - http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm  ]========

>        He told me that is not the way this business works. Scorpion and
>     the mouse.  Trust no one in this business. 

That is unfortunate.

    One of the key points of the fable (Aesop's) is that the scorpion
    stung his host when they were only half-way across the water,
    insuring that both the mouse and the scorpion would die, one by
    poison, the other by drowning. The metaphor holds in the case of the
    supplier who betrayed your trust. You got stung, but if he treats
    everyone this way, he will soon be going under. 

    P.T Barnum held that there is a sucker born every minute, and it is
    the fantasy of some businessmen that they will find one every minute
    - but the truth is that they cannot succeed in the long run  in a
    market of limited size where the players are all known. Sure, I have
    been stung buying rough, and I would guess that most of us have, but
    here is the difference; the guy who hooraws me into buying bad rock
    or paying way too much for it, he is on my fecal roster, and I tell
    everyone (who cares) that the dealer is a goniff, a swindler, a con
    artist. 

    It pisses me off that such people ( and I see them at virtually
    every gem show) waste my precious oxygen, let alone actually make
    money. The only comfort is, they will not make anywhere near the
    money that they could. Not in the long run. They just don't last. 
    Sound and successful businesses are built not on the basis of deals
    that sound too good to be true, but on the basis of integrity, great
    service, and a willingness, even an eagerness, to make good when the
    inevitable  screw-up happens. 

    Gerry, if  I ever bought anything from you that was not as
    advertised, I know that you would make good, and with sincere
    apologies. I know also as well as I know anything that such an error
    would not be deliberate.  You are a better person and a better
    businessman than the person who sold you the Mexican slingshot ammo.
    The difference between him and you is that his customers will
    eventually wise up and shop elsewhere, while yours will remember
    that they can depend on you for a good value on a cut stone which
    has been represented with scrupulous honesty. 

    It is a mistake to do business on the sole basis of lowest price. If
    you are in business for the long run, it is better to select your
    suppliers on their willingness to establish a lasting relationship.
    They should understand that they get your loyalty in exchange for
    their loyalty. It is a relationship from which both parties benefit.
    Was this guy smart enough to understand that he was saying goodbuy
    to thousands of dollars of future business by ripping you off on
    this one lot of substandard rough? 

Lee Einer
Dos Manos Jewelry

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