My friend James is from Alabama. Yesterday, in a span of four hours he taught my new iPhone how to say “y’all!”
I wish that I had more time to tell you about James. He smokes cigars and knows that the best football is played on Saturdays. So James is ah-ite with me!
Y’all would like James.
But James is not a podcast, and so I’ve got no time to talk about James.
It seems that all I’m doing these days is making and editing podcasts. People looking for me have stopped going to my office and started going to the podcast booth. I’ve made about a dozen in the last couple of weeks. Guy thinks I listen to my own voice far more than is healthy. She's not be wrong!
But it’s just one of those podcasts we are talking about today.
Y’all may recall a blog and podcast from 6 weeks ago about the paint company C2? C2 is a paint manufacturer started by and (mostly) owned by independent retailers. They're a great group with a lot of pride in the way they fill their niche in the market. They have a different perspective than most retailers and are proud of their differences.
And they wanted you to know that!
Those who are new to my blog (and thank you btw, I’m getting a LOT of new follows and I really appreciate you making those connections) may be thinking right now “I thought Mark worked for Benjamin Moore?”
I do!
While not an employee, I am a consultant working for Benjamin Moore and I am armpit deep in a few projects that I’m really excited for y’all to see. Despite the challenges of having a boss for the first time in my life, it’s been a great experience and I’m really excited to show you work that reflects my desire to see Benjamin Moore dealers and Benjamin Moore excel!
I am excited to show you what four months of my work looks like and I really I hope you like it! We are just in the first inning! I can see progress in each piece of content and podcast I make and I know in a few months, this work will be even better!
ALL done with the intention of advancing the knowledge and skills of independent retailers and their staffs.
I have applauded Benjamin Moore here many times, for their efforts in this regard. This work is borne from their desire to help support their dealers.
But just like I still need to drive to my former stores once a week to pick up my mail, connections to my life before Benjamin Moore did not disappear easily. I had made a commitment to C2, I like and respect the group of dealers I was working with on the project and wanted to fulfill my obligations.
Of course, I recognize the unusual timing of this. But since everyone who made this decision is OK with this outcome, you should be too! While a bit awkward now because of the timing proximity (which I’ll admit got a bit closer than expected) all my work always has the same goal: make the independent channel stronger (or embarrass my family-depending on my mood).
Neither "side" ever shared with me WHY they were OK with moving forward with this plan and I never asked. I didn’t feel I needed to; I felt I knew.
I never felt that Benjamin Moore and C2 really competed with each other. Rather they just exist in the same space! Sort of like the elephant and the oxpecker! More symbiotic than competing: the elephant needs the oxpecker for the grooming and the oxpecker needs the elephant for the meal (Google it)!
So, give the C2 guys a listen by clicking here, on the podcasts tab above or going to Apple Podcasts or SoundCloud and searching “Mark, My Words!” They are in a great niche and have a really interesting story to tell.
And after you listen, stick around! Because in two-weeks y’all are gunna hear and see some ah-ite work.
At least that’s what James tells me!
