I just had to comment on the incredibly cool birthday present that my wife Sheri gave me a few weeks ago. We are both voracious readers and I had been wondering about the new technology of the electronic books. Far different than audio books (which I love when driving long distances or on my Iphone for treadmill time) E books are downloadable from the internet and then read off of a new device like the “Kindle” or Sony “Ereader” which have the new “E Ink” technology. Well, the Sony Ereader was very cool in style and after I figured out how to charge the battery and download a book off their website, I was reading. The best thing about the sony product was also its downfall. There are little LED lights in the screen that you can turn on so you can read in the dark without a separate light; really cool but, drains the battery four times faster than without light. Really a bummer ’cause I read at night, alot. Last week the Ereader froze and locked up so, I returned it after doing a ton of research on other available products. I have since ordered, received and powered-up my 1st generation Kindle (there are already 2 more generations out, but this one has the items I value most for the best dollar) and have been reading away like crazy. All of that aside, this baby is a game changer! After having it in my hands and reading on it for the past week I am making some  bold assertions here: 1. This will dramatically alter the entire publishing industry (similar to what happened in photography with the advent of digital) with possibly the ultimate demise of large brick & mortar bookstores as we know them now. 2. Every child in school will have one of these with all their books for the year on it and tons of other material, as well as possibly taking all their tests and doing most of their assignments on it (which can all be immediately wired to their teacher when complete) 3. Newspapers and magazines will ultimately be subscribed and read this way (or on new laptop/Ereader hybrids) saving gazillions of trees… 4. I believe we will eventually be carrying one tablet device with us as an Ereader, minicomputer, phone (with bluetooth headset),  biomedical interface and credit card. This tablet could be wired into our doctors, banks, credit card companies and anything else we require. I can see the day when we walk into our doctors office and wireless transfer our medical records when we sign our name and carry all those records with us even for emergencies. I saw all this as I was holding this little plastic tablet in my hands and experiencing the technology for the first time! If you read anything for any legth of time you have to check this out! I decided on the simple 1st Kindle until the technology really improves with nightlights, low battery drain and better, all color screens for a reasonable price. Maybe I’ve just been reading too much science fiction lately…but I love this thing!

I’m referring to the today’s News-Press column “Tell Mel” that was on the front page of the local section. I won’t go over the content (check it out on the web) except to applaud Mel for helping the woman in the article receive satisfaction. I really am not clear why the jewelry store in the article was giving the customer the run-a-round. I’m sure some employee or manager made bad decisions and was hoping the customer would remain ignorant. Big mistake!  Why didn’t they call the customer and ask her what she would prefer? The customer should be informed at the start about what they can expect and what exactly will be done. How much the repair will cost and by when. Will it stay at the store to be worked on and if there is any damage, who will be responsible. Ithink it was in kindergarten where I learned to treat others as you would want to be treated…not mislead, misinformed or treated with indifference. Every client who walks through our door has something in their hands that matters tremendously to them (or wants us to design something tremendous for them!) and they expect us to treat it and them with the same reverence. Each client and piece is important! Service is the lifeblood of any retail business and everyone’s eye HAS to be on that ball…The woman in the article even paid EXTRA to make sure she would have the best service…why not GIVE the best service anyway? Don’t we all deserve it?

Hopefully someone will read this who might see an ad about another jewelry store “liquidating” or “going-out-of-business” for the 3rd time and is thinking of stopping by there for some “Bargains!”. Yes, it may be cheap but there are a few reasons and distinctions I would hope to share with you. When a jewelry store is going out of business or in chapter 11 or trying desperately to raise cash, they sometimes turn to liquidators who come in and try to appeal to your sense of economy by sort-of, discounting the inventory. Mostly what they do is quickly sell-off the nicer stock then pack the store with their own “stock”, mark it up 300 to 400 percent and then “liquidate”  it to you for 1/2 off or whatever this weeks new “all time low” price is.  Most times the jewelry is very poor quality, made in China or India and the kind of jewelry that QVC turns down. But hey, you’re there so might as well pick up a few “cheap” bargains. We know this is going on because our clients trust us and bring these “bargains” to us to see how they did. Most of the time it’s too late and non-refundable because hey, they’re LIQUIDATING! All regular, nice rules need not apply…so not only was it a piece of cr p…but it was a CHEAP piece of CR P…!  The Tanzanites are scratched and/or set poorly, the diamonds can fall out the first time you clean them or the clasps on the chains fail to close properly and the necklace falls off the third time you wear it. The opal inlays are synthetic but, oops, they forgot to mention that because the “new” staff work for the liquidator. So if you are thinking of stopping by one of these “unfortunate retailers” to gleam a cheap bargain while the doors are still open, be armed with the above knowledge of the game being played.