Annah Blogs

Annah blogs from the heart on family, how to get what you want, how to enjoy life and live big. Please join her

Blog Entries:

12/12/11 07/10/11 25/08/11 03/06/11 25/03/11 01/02/11 13/12/10 01/11/10 01/10/10 01/09/10 12/08/10

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 12/12/2011

Change Agent

Why do we all hate change so much … why is it that only 68% of us bothered to turn up to the polls on voting day, and yet we still continue to grizzle about the status quo?

News flash … the buck does stop with you – you are responsible for the stuff that happens in your life, not your employer, your friends and family and definitely not the government! That said, to get you feeling inspired and empowered with ideas, discover what New Zealand’s business elite have to say in this issue of Her, and start thinking about the changes you’ll make to get the best out of 2012.

And on that note I have officially become a change agent. I look for ways to do things differently, in both business and in life. The stuff that can just seem exhausting now has become an opportunity that often leads me down another exciting pathway. To do ‘business as usual’ just isn’t the best way anymore, and there’s so much that is changing in our environment that we continually have to stop and reassess whether we are yielding the best outcomes by simply doing what we did before.

The key to affecting the business vision differently is to bring people with you, yet people traditionally don’t like change. Naturally there is so much comfort in what we know that we overlook the excitement that sits with the stuff that we don’t know. So how do you bring the team with you? Share the vision, show them the likely outcomes and let them get excited as well.

A great example of this was the new digital platform I have been investigating for Her Magazine. Initially I, as I am sure the team did as well, simply saw this as a lot of work in unchartered territory and an exercise in cost that may not yield the results we keenly sought!

Agreeing to investigate further, at least I had the foresight to do this, I was truly blown away when the digital mock arrived in my email, and utterly converted I immediately emailed a link to the team. A little later, all excited, I gathered the team who had had the sample for two or so days to review and discuss the pathway forward. I was hardly able to contain my excitement as I displayed my limited knowledge of its viewing-rich features. And it’s not just the graphic team that has been a victim of my show and tell; yep, anyone that crosses my path in a day gets a demo!

I am so enthused by this technology I have decided to make the first Digital Her issue, FREE.
Just go to www.hermagazine.co.nz and click on the FREE Her link, fill in your details, and download the Dec/Jan issue onto your PC, tablet, or phone.

It makes great summer reading and is my gift to the many women who have supported my ventures in 2011. So please look out for this and send me your feedback. I know you will love it just as much as I do, and even if you still think there is a lot to be said for a cold glass of wine on a hot afternoon when you head out to your deck chair to read the latest hard copy of your favorite mag, at least try the download on your PC or tablet, as it adds a whole new dimension to information. Imagine the surprise as I turned the first digital page, yep it makes page turning noises to boot – very cute – and ran the mouse across our own Annah Stretton adverts for the new Living Dolls collection and up popped the Live Dolls fashion show on video, courtesy of NZ fashion week … so exciting!
There are so many opportunities using this platform, the obvious one is advertising as advertisers are able to load their latest TV commercials behind what initially appears as a static advert.
The PC version allows you to electronically clip coupons of gorgeous items that you can share with friends or print off and ponder. A more paired-down version appears on tablets and mobile phones for the ultimate on-the-go mobility.

Technology has to be one of the biggest drivers of this change, as it has provided so many platforms to do business differently and to reach a large and varied audience, keeping costs to a minimum. Yet there still appears to be a reluctance to embrace ‘the new’ especially in some of the markets we work in.
So at last we are in a space that has the potential to change the way we do business in regards to the publishing side of my business and I for one am extremely excited!

Enjoy the print and free digital mag this month and as always I look forward to your feedback.
Merry Christmas and enjoy a well deserved break over what is shaping up to be a long and hot summer!

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 07/11/2011

Great Expectations

It is often suggested that I am a workaholic, unable to relax and take time out to smell the roses , so to show that I have a human side I have decided to share my latest holiday with you all!
I have just returned from two weeks in the United Kingdom, partially for work and partially as a break. I have always been curious about how beautiful the Cornwall coast of England really is, and as my partner, Tony has his only living relatives in Portland, a break in these parts seemed like a good thing to do.
Loving the fact that we had decided to wing the accommodation and meals each night, we both headed for the airport a little more excited than normal, as we knew this had to be better than the average work trip and we were escaping the world cup crowds and some of our wet and cold weather.

Business in London finished, the mandatory savvy purchases made (a girl always needs new shoes and a new bag from London) we hit the road in our hire car, amazed at how seamless the whole car hiring process was. GPS loaded, we were off on our big adventure ... first stop Brighton.

What a disappointment. The weather didn't help, and the lack of accommodation made it worse. Thank God for the Lonely Planet Guide I had picked up in the airport as a last minute purchase; much to the disgust of Tony who felt we simply didn't need a reference like that. “Yep, they are all advertisers in there,” he said. Where’s he been all these years? The 2007 edition did eventually prove to be a problematic trap for the newbies to this publication – check the publishing date – but it did save us more times than it halted us.

Hotel chosen, streets navigated, weather braved and we were at last checking in – expensive but worth it – in fact, it was better than our London choice. After dialogue with the front desk team and the best places to eat and drink identified, we were on our way feeling very smug, especially as we had secured what was said to be impossible … an overnight park right outside the hotel. Our first taste of the south, as we walked the streets in inclement weather, was a small bar that yielded average beverages, as we later found out they all do. Then the meal became a problem as we walked from the recommended establishment and ensconced ourselves in what was our own choice ... big mistake! A below average meal, barely eaten and back to the hotel we went wondering why on earth we had chosen these parts to holiday in and vowing to do more of our own research on the internet.

Research completed, travel path sorted and accommodation forward-booked the face of the trip changed. It's amazing what a little planning will do. Trip Advisor, the internet site, became one of our best friends and never let us down. After a few wines I even became a contributor, although much to my disgust I was pass-worded out putting a halt to some of my very constructive feedback!

We found some absolute gems from a tiny town named Mousehole, and its restaurant at Two Forte St to Helston and the NZ chef with his restaurant, Kato. The ancient city of Bath lived up to all expectations, and as our last destination we afforded two days and found plenty to do even in the pouring rain – a Jamie Oliver restaurant included ... what a beautiful city!

The best places were where the tours buses were unable to go, and the worst places were where they could, such as St Ives and Padstow (Rick Stein’s home town). From the park and rides on the outskirts of the towns, reminiscent of the overcrowding at Cathedral Cove, Hahei in the summer, where day trippers must park at the entrance to the town and wait for a bus to transport them to the top of the cove walk for a small fee, to the tourists and the retail on offer. This is British holiday- making at its best and certainly something I would recommended you gave a wide berth.

The Cornwall coast has a lot that is similar, i.e. when you have seen one town you have seen them all – not to say the buildings are not beautiful, and the spaces they occupy enchanting, but ensure you work hard and pre-plan to meet your own needs, otherwise you will be sharing a domestic as we did over some very horrid fish and chips in a Padstow eatery overlooking the harbour.

Shopping is a non-event unless you are after fudge, fish and chips and English sweets – the domain of the British elderly. I can only assume these tourists are not enticed by the latest fashions as I was hard pressed to find any clothing retail. So my dreams of setting up a retail environment targeting the Cornwall British tourist very quickly dissipated as I experienced each of the seaside towns. Finding a tourist who was below 70 years was rare, retail was uninspiring and the ‘good enough is okay’ theory is not and will never be for me.

The break was just what we needed, because I have always been both an advocate of just enjoying time out together rather than the destination doing the work. Secondly, because sometimes you do have to leave town to appreciate how far New Zealand hospitality and retail has come.

Tony’s reconnect with his relatives was a special day, and as with all breaks we once again have some wonderful memories. I also know that I am proud to be a New Zealander with a smaller niche market to do business in and a wonderful country to embrace everyday.
Enjoy this magazine.

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 25/08/2011

Tough Talk for Tough Times

It is tough out there! Last month, I was invited to the British High Commissioner’s residence, Homewood, in Wellington, one of several visits I have had the pleasure of making there. The occasion was a celebration of the Queen’s birthday, with a varied lot of officials, dignitaries and other capable and prominent New Zealand people. As usual, I arrived by corporate cab – a girl has to look the part. I have always been able to bludge a ride home, the calibre of guest meaning a pretty safe trip is guaranteed.
Luck was with me again and my transport back to the city on this evening was with a gentleman who worked as a government relations consultant for the Retail Association.  It’s just as well he was keen to transport me as I hardly think British High Commissioner Vicki Treadwell would have been up for a sleepover.
He asked, as people invariably do these days, how we are trading in what is supposedly still a very tough environment. I admitted it’s hard out there and I don’t see things getting back to the way they used to be. So, how the hell do we all survive in an environment that continues to punish?

Simple ... we rise above mediocrity.  So many of us accept a very ordinary trading experience, so businesses continue to deliver it because it is what they have always done.   However, it is time to change. 

Look at the very simple concept of success or failure. Opposites, right? Wrong.  Success and failure go hand in hand.  Ask any successful sportsperson.  The opposite of these two is actually mediocrity.  No sportsperson would ever want that label, which is why there are so many failures as they strive for the top position. Business needs to be the same. Failure is the absolute stepping stone to success – get out there and trip.

So how do we do this? People rely on our team to deliver a remarkable experience. We need great people to deliver great results. How the hell do we find them? We focus on creating a great culture. How we treat our team is how they will treat our customers and the other members of the team.  We have to recruit people who are the perfect fit for our brand, organisation and culture. This is a no compromise exercise.

I was asked the other day by our incoming Human Resources team member, “Annah, what are the five things that make for a perfect retail recruitment for you?”
They took a while and a lot of robust discussion to clarify:
• They must love the brand, not just the clothing but also the total focus of where this company is heading.
• They must have an excitable personality and a great look.
• They must seek advancement and opportunity, as this is the only way they will be rewarded.
• They must be independent.
• They must love retail and selling frocks!
Get one of these things wrong and the handbrake will go on and affect what they can achieve.  I will never embrace mediocrity. I will never accept that, because it is hard out there, it is OK not to succeed.
With this is mind, I had a lightbulb moment this week, partially brought on by a comment made by Villa Maria’s George Fistonich at a lunch three months ago. He was considering setting up an alumni association of past team members. All I could think of was all the people I had pissed off in a past life, but his thoughts were about all those who had left for the right reasons, and he believed it would be worth starting dialogue with them with a possibility of luring some of them back. Not me, I thought. Never go back, as the words of Tim Glasson rang in my ears. So, why the change?  It is tough out there, but it doesn’t appear that way for the great girls I have in many of our stores. For them, a bad day is part of the selling equation, not a trend that has set in for the abhorrent months of winter trade.

I started to reflect on all those great girls I used to employ and the wonderful sales they were able to produce. I reflected on George’s idea and, bingo, a facebook group was born: Annah Stretton Alumni, a site that enables me to contact my previous superstars, catch up with their lives and, maybe, entice them back into the retail fold. After all, even if their departure had been a little scratchy, there had been a lot of water under the bridge, and we have started to get involved in some very exciting projects that I am sure would appeal to them.

It has worked. So far, I have managed to secure two girls back into the team ... with the prospect of talking to another two. I couldn’t have hoped for a better outcome.

But what about all the niggles that caused the departure in the first instance?  We are simply better employers these days. We have learnt a lot and people’s lives change. Often, the barriers to their initial success with us have now been removed, and they have become the girls in the fourth point of my checklist.

We have now started to deliver our new season, set up a hiring option as part of the core business and are about to open our first Birds of a Feather store in Hamilton. We have invited five retailers, all with great synergies to our product, to retail under the one roof ... so, as a company, we are looking at ways to drive that point of difference in our market and, with that, come some amazing recruitment opportunities.  Exciting times! I only see a great future for retail in New Zealand. 

Enjoy the mag ... as always it is a wonderful tool to empower you in your life and business but, as with anything, it is about simply giving yourself the time to absorb the many takeaways in the articles and then go out there and give them a go.

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03/06/2011

Growing Concerns

It’s difficult to believe that we are already at the time of year when we produce our issue of Who’s Who. What a huge pleasure this has been to produce, given the theme of following in their footsteps; the parent child relationship as it evolves in a business. There are great stories from both sides that make fascinating reading and are obviously relevant to me because I have two children about to embark on their careers.
I have always said that children are not your succession plan. It is important to make a succession plan when you conceive your business. It makes for a healthier business model all round.
I have a daughter who has a passion for fashion, and wonder what role she will play in my ever-growing business. It’s poised to grow even more now that we have an independent board to drives us towards the huge vision we have set. This is destined not to be a medium-sized company anymore and we will soon be recruiting a new tier of management: the CEO, HR and marketing. The change that we are experiencing is fast paced and exciting as the newbies bring their wealth of knowledge, skill and abilities to the table.
Our push into Australia has started and the Paddington store in Brisbane opened on 6 May. Noosa followed on 10 May and it has been a huge learning curve dealing with the Australian market. Yes, there are many similarities but the population of 24 million also means many differences and you hit red tape at every corner. This is something we have well overcome in the New Zealand market.
I have started to speak to business and corporate women’s groups across the ditch and love the new challenge and audiences. This is obviously an effective way to drive my relatively unknown brand in this market. If any of you have any contacts to assist with this, please email me.
This new vision of the clothing company will mean a big opportunity for the kids to take on roles in the company without having the position of CEO thrust at them. Given my son, Edward, is in his second year of a bachelor of commerce degree, majoring in finance, he may also end up working with us. Although, that last tarot-card reading his girlfriend had done on his behalf showed that he was to have a very successful career in shoes. I can cope with this; I love shoes!
I love calling Edward these days. We have great conversations around his virtual stock exchange accounts and his virtual trading on the currency markets. His successes are such that I have even offered him real money to play with. At this stage, he has declined as he likes to have the freedom, and displays a huge appetite for the risk that a virtual environment allows him!
Many of the women that we have written about in Who’s Who this issue have no expectation that their children will follow them in their successful ventures. That their children are happy in whatever they do is the priority, even for female entrepreneurs. Regardless, it must be a wonderful feeling to have your nearest and dearest working alongside you, affecting your vision, adding value and taking it to even greater heights. After all, they have inadvertently lived and breathed the operation since the day they were born.
It is Mother’s Day as I type this and my son has promised to ring, my daughter has said she will be here by midday to take me to lunch. I have just received a text to say that I have one more hour to work today before she gets here then I must stop! Yep, she is right. I have been at it since 6 o’clock this morning. It’s the outcome that is generated by a busy life but one that I still love with a passion.
Enjoy this month’s mag.

P.S. We have really focused on our digital strategy over the last two months and would love some feedback. Join me on Twitter and Facebook!

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25/03/2011

Shockwaves

When the quake shook the beloved city of Christchurch, I was safely tucked up in bed in the UK, having just shown off site at London Fashion Week. My mobile phone rang and I took one look, saw it was our head office and thought, ‘Someone hasn’t noted that I am away and in another time zone’ and went back to sleep!

Not to be defeated, the hotel phone rang and all was relayed. Our team was shaken but fine; the store was worse for the shake but lockable. Given we now know that we sit right in the middle of the damage, perilously close to the CTV building, it is no wonder that we still face a no-go cordon and have been unable to get the stock out, let alone assess the damage to our store.

Travelling with me in the UK was the manager of the Christchurch store. A firefighter in her spare time, she is well versed in earthquake procedure and, thankfully, our store team had been well briefed on the course of action to take when and if the big one struck. She was, however, a long way from her two children. We could only watch everything unfold on UK television, albeit belated and limited coverage compared to that at home. Luckily, we were close to heading back.

For us, the loss of our flagship store has been huge; our key team members have all been redeployed in other stores, and we remain uncertain on a course of action. Relocation in Christchurch will be expensive and may prove futile, yet I don’t simply want to give up on the wonderful city that housed our golden egg for so long.

We are still in limbo and I suggest we will be for a long time. It is up to us to take back control and start making some decisions that work for the business. I will forever empathise with so many who have lost so much and as the stories of individual loss unfold, it is hard not to feel the emotion and wonder what else we can do to help. The scale of this is bigger than anything I ever want to experience again.

One of the wonderful things that emerges with an event such as this are the personality traits that show the very best that man can be. A quake like this changes everything. I wonder how we can hold on to this after the immediate impact has worn off.

We flew home on Air New Zealand’s new plane and with us were a team of firefighters from the UK. They were being sent to assist with the search and rescue effort. What a wonderful feeling as they announced the heartfelt thanks from all New Zealanders over the PA system in the Koru Lounge. I had goose bumps as everyone burst into applause. The same announcement was made on the plane as we pulled out of LAX and the applause erupted again. The help and support that came from all over the world has been surreal. We are definitely not alone as we deal with this tragedy.

The zero tolerance of any crime in the wake of this event is wonderful but why isn’t this the case normally? Why do we watch another man take a beating in the street and do nothing to help for fear of our own safety, yet persecute the perpetrators of the petty thefts that are occurring as a result of the quake? Shouldn’t we always band together at this level?
Already, the stories of blame and accountability are unfolding; still, that ugly side of human nature remains. Surely this would be the time to make a tangible change forever, just as a cancer victim in remission resolves to make huge changes to the way they live in the hope that they might buy some more time.

Let us look at how we can support each other, enhance each other’s lives, communicate with the ones we love and prioritise the things that are important. Don’t let this event be in vain. Let’s endeavour to do something different with the way we live our lives. I have always said that I learn so much more from my failures than my successes, and there has never been a better time to put this in practice.
Enjoy the magazine this month.

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01/02/2011

Risk reduction

Happy New Year and, although belated, it is still very relevant as we are now in a new decade and I for one intend to make the most of it. What a hormonal weather start we have had! Weather is unavoidable; it can take lives, destroy homes and ruin events and all with limited warning or repercussion. Too much of a bad thing and we can no longer insure against it. Who didn't watch those terrible flood scenes in Brisbane play out on television in absolute horror? So much devastation and destruction, so many lives changed and so much loss for young and old alike. Many of these people lived in flood-prone areas that were uninsurable.
So let this be a reminder in this new decade to look at the risks that surround our businesses and how we mitigate these. Risk for me has traditionally been around the team that I employ and still is but, with recent events, theft by an employee possibly pales in comparison when I consider the effect of our head office being engulfed in fire. It makes me incredibly nervous even to type these words.
Sure, I have all the relevant insurances and have thought about how we get ourselves operational (sort of), but perhaps not in the worst case. What if a team member’s life were lost in the fire? What would be the impact? Let alone the time spent getting the organisation back on its feet, especially as 30 retail sites depend on us operating daily. It is challenging enough when head office shuts down at Christmas for two weeks.
Trading in today's environment subjects you to all sorts of risks. Large companies will continually assess and mange these, but small to medium companies will generally give them very little thought, as they are much more reactionary, dealing with issues as they arise. I definitely sit in this category. Something happens, I fix it if I can, then look at how it happened, endeavouring to put a process in place to ensure we don't revisit that.
I believe I could do this a lot better by allotting time in my working week/month to consider the risks, and how we mitigate them. For small business, it is no different from the homeowner buying in a flood-prone area. Knowing the history of a location especially if it is uninsurable and you are of limited income means a total restart should you lose everything. I bet there are many Brisbane homeowners thinking they would have made a different home purchase decision with the benefit of hindsight.
Therefore, in small business, why not aim to avoid the heartache of error, whether minor or major, and plan for risk. When we recently installed a PAD system, which digitises all the patterns and prints our markers to enable us to cut our styles for sale, we did not think through the risk elements. The first cut that was digitised was incorrectly graded and I now have a frock in one size instead of the four sizes in which it should have been. Systems and processes are in place now but some assessment beforehand would have avoided the error and subsequent cost attached. It's the little things, which happen every day, that take so much time and inevitably end up enabling change in the organisation. We need to plan for these.
Let us not allow our businesses to suffer due to inadequate risk assessment. Time invested in this now is money and time saved later, and I have no doubt you will thank yourself for it as each of the small challenges unfold in your operations in 2011.
Enjoy this decade. I certainly intend to. Regardless of the fact that time seems to race on, there is so much to embrace in living a great life and only you can ensure that you do ... live the big life every day.
Enjoy

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13/12/10

You are the cause of your effect!

For the last three months, I have travelled the length and breadth of the country promoting my book Wise Heart. I have spoken to a huge variety of women’s groups from the provinces to the major cities and, interestingly, the audience, the delivery and the outcomes have been varied.
Much to my surprise, I have decided, after years of indecision that I love to speak, though that doesn’t mean that I will always be great at it. After a great delivery one night, I can turn up to speak the next night and throw an average one. What is that about?
Sometimes, an audience that I think will buy the books simply don’t, and then there have been many audiences that I have underestimated. One pattern has been consistent though – where are the boys? They have been decidedly absent from the presentations. I can only put it down to the fact that I make frocks and not mufflers, although I do believe that the messages I speak are very relevant to them as well. Many of the women who buy the books ask me to inscribe them for their absent men.
The speaking events have left me with many strong reminders of how we need simply to change the way we live our lives and how we deal with the challenges thrown at us. From the 74-year-old woman about to embark on her first business venture to the woman who spoke lovingly of her terminally ill 30-year-old daughter’s quest to study and improve her knowledge right up to the day she died, so many of us disregard the need to continue learning throughout our entire lives. Why do so many women at any age think it is too late?
I have met women who had been forbidden to come and hear me speak but have ventured out anyway. These women are trapped in relationships because of their self doubt. Doubt is such a huge factor in so many women’s lives. So many of us doubt our ability to ever live the life we aspire; the kind of life that would enable us to affect our dreams. So many women still do not believe that they cannot bring up a family and live their own life as well. They believe it has to be one or the other. I am certainly on a crusade to change this way of thinking.
We all need to learn to love and value ourselves again and we need to get our confidence back. So many of us focus on our appearance and yet our body shape or visual appearances are all so irrelevant to our true happiness. For goodness sake! You all know whether you look great as you step out of that changing room in a new frock – why are we asking others for permission. You do not need reinforcements and second opinions – trust yourself! We need to start trusting our gut instinct. Women have excellent gut instinct, so start using it!
And please stop saying SORRY at the start of every sentence when we simply don’t need to use it at all! “Sorry Annah, can you just sign this book for me?”
There is too much self-inflicted stress and too many women that are suffering ill health. We are the cause of our effect; we can change the way we live our lives and the way we embrace opportunities.
All we need are three simple ingredients: passion (you can never be great at something you don’t love), discipline (manage your time well, it alleviates the stress) and integrity. We don’t need to worry about what others think if we act with integrity.
Believe me, others will always have an opinion, no matter what you do or say so don’t try to please all of the people all of the time. You never can. Act with integrity and trust that you will make great decisions. Never be worried about what others will think.
Stop sweating the small stuff. Deal with the source and the issue at hand rather than all around it. Challenges are simply opportunities. Get through the bad stuff and see what’s at the other end.
I met a woman planning her funeral the other day. She had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Remarkably, her thinking was all front foot stuff. She was embracing every day and the opportunity to say goodbye properly to those that mattered. She was determined to plan the most excellent of send offs. A woman like this truly makes a mockery of all of us that are stressing about the inappropriate actions of a work colleague or business partner.
Yes, it has been an interesting few months. I have covered a lot of ground and have met many women that I hope I may have influenced in a positive way. It will take time and great persistence as I’m sure they will all come up against many road blocks but I hope they can affect change in at least some small way. I sincerely believe that it just takes belief in oneself.
Yes, our thinking equals our mind plus our environment. This is a formula that has been advocated by my father for many years. To change the way our minds work, we need to create the right environment. It’s as simple as this. Yes, we can live the big life each and every day. Learn to love the skin you’re in and trust your gut. You are the cause of your effect!
Merry Christmas! Gift to self: you can have it all!

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01/11/10

Matters of Opinion

With all the recent drama surrounding the Paul Henry comments; drama that does not deserve the air time and column space that it has been afforded, the question has to be asked, how much of an opinion is anyone entitled to have when they have a public forum and how far is too far when expressing this publicly?

I never limit myself based on what people may think of me. To live my life and moderate my actions and opinions based on what others may think or do think is not a way forward that I will ever choose.

Given my public profile, I am constantly approached by people keen to share an opinion they have heard in regards to me. At moments like this, I am not interested in reacting or defending myself. Key to my actions is to ensure that I include a huge dollop of integrity in my daily functions, opinions and decisions.

A few weeks back I fell into the trap of sharing too much information with the media – a gossip columnist to boot. You would think I would know a lot better but even someone like me can be lured in to a false sense of security. At an event and over a lunch, the informal and casual conversation shifted to Carmen Thomas and I chose to share that I had once employed her. When quizzed further as to her personality, I was unable to elaborate a lot more as her time with us was so short, except to say that she appeared to be a victim of circumstance.

Imagine my surprise to read in the Sunday paper the following week under the heading the ‘Designer and the Hooker’, an account of my conversation that was so vastly different from the actual one that had taken place. My ‘quoted’ opinion prompted a significant amount of internet traffic, much of which commented on my lack of respect for Carmen's five-year-old son, Jack.

Some well-intentioned person decided to forward these opinions to me and I received them 10 minutes before I was due to speak to a large group of women in Blenheim. Taking my own advice, I deleted the email with no response. A fire without fuel very soon goes out. Then, in a complete u-turn, I decided to retrieve the email and posted a comment about how completely incorrect the article had been, relaying my true concern for Carmen and Jack.

This done, I went through to deliver my presentation.

Moment over – a moment that I will never revisit as I believe my true position has been placed out there and there is no more I can do. I had, however, learnt a huge lesson about how much information I impart and the environment and company in which I deliver it.

I have always been a huge advocate of having an opinion at work. Business is business, it is never personal. Therefore, to communicate clearly an opinion that is intended to drive a business-based outcome is a right of every business operator. The $24 million question then, is why do so many in business run from voicing an opinion about how their business is run. Do they see this process as confrontational?

The process of voicing your opinion, if effected well, will ensure that your business goals are being met and your team clearly understands the way forward. Why is it that too many of us in business remain sensitive to an expected reaction and fear repercussions? I certainly do not!

If a store isn't trading well, I need to act. If a customer gives unfavourable feedback on a team member, I have a right to change the reported behaviour.

If I receive a level of service below my expectations, or purchase a product not up to the mark, I will react. I find it unbelievable that so many people simply do nothing. To do nothing is to disadvantage the undeserving business owner and prevent an employee from changing their behaviour or finding a role that is better suited to their skill set or their passion.

For me, the key to having an opinion is to ensure it has a solid foundation of INTEGRITY. Ensuring you act with positive intent and with fair and achievable outcomes clearly outlined when dealing with the issues, gives you full permission to speak up and speak loud!

Please enjoy our November issue – and the opinions herein – and as Christmas draws closer and another birthday looms, I look forward to the return of the kids from university and a long hot summer at the beach.

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01/10/10

Disaster stations

We were awoken by a text at 5am from our ever-frantic Christchurch store manager, who was in full flight and in a high state of excitement riding on the fire truck – yep she’s a volunteer firewoman in her other life and has certainly had her training tested to the limit, with an event as catastrophic as the 7.1 earthquake in our beloved city of Christchurch. Her text suggested that we check our retail store in the city as we were unlikely to be able to trade today.

Rubbish, I thought, it would take a hell of a lot to close our highly successful flagship, especially on a Saturday. Turning on the television, I saw the destruction start to unfold. It became more and more obvious that we would not be trading, not that day and not for a while. It was a consolation that no one was hurt … and then a call came in from my daughter. Don’t panic, Mum, but Edward’s had a skiing accident. He’s okay, but they are looking at flying him off the mountain. He’s skied into a picnic table.

A quick call to one of Edward’s friends, more detail gained and a course of action charted. It was simply a waiting game from here. Day rolls on, I become a random watcher of the ongoing broadcasts on the earthquake, and another horror story starts to unfold. Nine people die on a skydiving expedition. Their plane crashes into Fox Glacier! Is there an end to this day?

Yes, there absolutely is, as much as there has been huge damage to the Garden City, there will also have been some huge learning and changes. A country that was ambivalent about the chance of a civil defence emergency at this level now knows that it is a very real possibility. How many of us now have that very necessary radio with batteries, bottled water and tinned food waiting at the ready? As I type this Saturday morning, seven days from the event, I am also in text conversation with a manager who is hell bent on trying to get our store open.

My son, who had ripped his knee from its socket, creating huge damage to his ligaments, is now strapped into a moon boot, awaiting the result of his first orthopaedic appointment on Monday. The benefits? Lots. The drinking has been put on hold and the study takes priority. This year, at least, I believe I will be getting value for my fees investment.

The plane crash, however, is a different story. So much loss and hurt that will never really go away for the loved ones of the victims, and an operator who will forever view his business through different eyes.

The unknown uncontrollable facets of life are a very real reality for us all, and make the message of live the big life, that I heard at the global women’s conference this week all the more relevant. It truly is about not sweating the small stuff that so many of us hear, and know, but forget to practise. Love what you do every damn day or get out, life is sooooo short.

None of us is as good as all of us. Individual empowerment comes from great teamwork, and I certainly know that each and every day, it is the superstar women whom I employ who enable me to secure the heights and achieve at the levels that I do … and they simply get better and better.

Enjoy the mag this month. It is a huge month for me and the team, with NZ Fashion Week and all the opportunity that this brings. The launch of my second book, Wise Heart, from Random House, will see me touring the country to promote it with many speaking engagements – the stuff I love to do – and a great chance to catch up with my retail team.

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01/09/10

Tough talking

So how tough is it out there, from a business perspective? Very! We are supposed to be out of the recessionary woods, but I am not so sure. Many businesses are still struggling and some are unlikely to hold on until the end of the year.

In the rag trade, summer holds out hope – it’s longer and our consumers seem more interested in buying – but it is still one of the most difficult industries in which
to operate.

I make frocks, and so do hundreds of others. So how do I set myself apart? The answer is the key to my success: to innovate, creating products and services that are in line with my core business – such as Stitch ‘n’ Bitch and Chameleon – but also looking at our shops, which are the key source of our income.

They needed to put more money in the till. And so body shaping was born and worked terrifically well during the difficult trading time last year. While others crashed and burned, we flourished, because we provided a sales tool for the team and enabled them to select appropriate garments for our customers.

A recession should, in fact, be healthy for any business. It’s like a great frost that wipes out dying plants, leaving the pathway clear for new growth.

I am sick of average operators out there in the market; going out for a meal and not enjoying the moment or shopping for shoes with a disinterested sales assistant.

I recently posted a note on Facebook, asking customers to give me feedback on the good and bad experiences they have had with my retail sales team. One described a sale in one of our Auckland stores, during which the assistant remained on the phone to a girlfriend throughout the sale and managed to leave the security tag on the garment, which was discovered at the meeting our customer was at the next day. She must have felt like a thief, as her male colleagues continually pointed out the offending tag during the day. I am surprised she bothered to continue with the sale, given the assistant’s reluctance to get off the phone.

There is no way I would have completed the purchase.

Our retail assistant needed to look for another vocation and I would have loved to assist her with this. Fortunately, she had departed of her own accord before I received the feedback.
We need to report both good and bad service. Surely if it was your livelihood, you would want to know. It’s hard enough out there without one of your employees sabotaging your business.

Ladies, help each other. You need to tell me. If you don’t, I can’t make the change, I can’t improve and it may be that I may not even survive in this location. You have a right to great service, and every employer has a right to know that their team is representing their brand well. So help us create businesses that have longevity in our markets and please, give us the feedback.

Enjoy our September issue of the magazine. It will be an exciting month for me with the release of my second book Wise Heart, and the staging of our eighth fashion show at NZ Fashion week; to be enjoyed with the spring blossoms that are finally starting to appear on the trees. I love this time of the year.

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12/08/10

Feedback please!

I gave a presentation the other night to a group of businesswomen in the Central Plateau. At the end, a woman came up to me to talk about our Chameleon frock collection. She had learnt about the dress that can be worn 10 different ways in Her Magazine and decided to go into one of our stores to try it on. I asked her about the level of service she’d had in-store but she was reluctant to give feedback. When I asked her why, she said she didn’t want to get the girl concerned into trouble. It was the verbal equivalent of a slap in the face. I am continually affronted by women who, for whatever reason, fail to supply information to their business peers that could enable them to make changes that impact the bottom line.
Business is damn hard. Don’t I deserve to know where I am being thwarted? I pay my retail team to sell clothes. If they don’t deliver a basic level of service to our customers, don’t I have the right to correct the behaviour? I don’t understand why another businesswoman wouldn’t see this. To me, it’s blatantly obvious. I will never understand the logic behind her decision to withhold the information – it’s not like she was a friend of the girl behind my counter!
All of us who operate businesses deserve to know if our teams are not up to scratch. People are the lifeblood of my business. If I get it wrong when hiring, it can cripple a retail store. I had a case where a store manager took a store down by $10,000 a week simply because she was unable to provide the level of service and connection we need. It was the same store with the same product – the only change had been the girl running it.
As business owners, let’s unite to stamp out ambivalent and – worse still – poor service. Whenever you experience it, feed it back to the relevant people. You’re not ratting on anyone, you’re simply providing a business with important feedback that may mean the difference between it winning or losing in these very difficult trading times.

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