The whole MBA degree is built on a set of fictions. ----- Original Message ----- From: <totototo@telus.net> To: "Pacific Bulb Society" <pbs@lists.ibiblio.org> Sent: Wednesday, August 18, 2010 1:14 PM Subject: Re: [pbs] Garden News - OT > On 17 Aug 2010, at 23:16, James Waddick wrote: > >> Just read that Park Seed and Jackson & Perkins are up for >> sale to the highest bidder. These used to be the 'Gold Standard' for >> perennials, roses and more, but now have debts well above their face >> value... >> >> Another sign of the economy. >> >> Support your local growers. > > I'd say it's another sign that the people who run large corporations > simply > don't know what they are doing. There have been endless reports of such > and > such well known specialty firm being bought by Giant Humongous Ltd. Pty > and > being promptly, and irretrievably, run into the ground. > > Another example from the nursery business: Dan Hinkley's Heronswood > Nursery, > bought by Burpees, who then proceeded to dumb down the offerings to > accommodate > buyers in the NE states who simply couldn't grow a lot of Heronswood > offerings. > > Other, non-horticultural examples: > > 1. The Bon Marche, a PacNW department store, bought by Macy's. Macy's > evidently > does all their decision making in New York, so they no longer carry the > everyday plaid flannel shirts commonly worn in the PacNW. And men's > handkerchiefs are now a seasonal item sold only during the run up to > Christmas. > > 2. Brier's ice cream, formerly the one ice cream widely available that is > (was) > made from real ingredients (notably sugar), bought by Nestle. The formulas > were > immediately reworked to use cheaper ingredients, notably the pervasive > high > fructose corn syrup, in (I suppose) the belief that no one would notice. I > notice the price of Brier's hasn't gone down, but I don't buy their ice > cream > anymore. > > The list is endless. > > Corporations seem to take a one-size-fits-all approach, so any kind of > business > they get involved in that demands real attention to, and care for, their > customers goes to the dogs overnight. Behind this I detect whiffs of the > lie > taught to MBA students, that any MBA can manage any business. > > Sayonara, Parks. Sayonara, Jackson & Perkins. > > > > -- > Rodger Whitlock > Victoria, British Columbia, Canada > Maritime Zone 8, a cool Mediterranean climate > on beautiful Vancouver Island > > http://maps.google.ca/maps/… > > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.ibiblio.org > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/