As I See It... |
"Chains of Habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken." - Warren Buffett
This was the quote at the top of an e-newsletter I got this week and thought it was very timely after looking at the agenda for the upcoming annual conference.
Some of this year's conference topics include:
Don't forget your change!
Is your house in order?
Are you promoting or just spending advertising dollars?
...and many other industry topics.
Many of these topics can help provide you with new thoughts and processes so the chain doesn't get too heavy to break.
As managers we, and our staff, often get stuck a rut and go to "because that's how we've always done it" mindset because it's easy, not always the best, but the easiest.
I've been trying really hard not to automatically go to that mindset...believe me it is hard.
Changing habits and the changing the way we approach things is difficult, but can be full of great rewards.
If you aren't signed up for the conference April 16-19 in Alexandria, it's not too late.
Click Here
I encourage everyone to come to the conference this year with an open mind and be ready to learn about ways to made positive change in your stores, your communities and in your personal life. Bridgitte Konrad City of North Branch |
Nancy Drumsta is a Super Hero!!
| Earlier this week, Delano Wine and Spirits manager Nancy Drumsta (pictured on the left) donated a kidney to her friend Julie (pictured on the right) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
According to Nancy, "Julie was put on the kidney transplant list about a year ago; as she has a kidney disease and knew that one day she would need a kidney donation.
I started testing in November and was accepted in March.
Julie and I have been friends since childhood.
We grew up next door to each other in the small town of Munising Michigan and have remained close friends throughout adulthood."
The surgery went well and she texted, "Just walked a lap around my floor and did a few stairs. All going well."
If her recovery continues to go well, she plans to be at the conference.
Nancy, you are a Super Hero!!!
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AutoFRY For Sale | The following is from 50 Lakes Bar & Bottle Shop manager Toni Buchite: We have an auto fry for sale. Our food sales have more than doubled in the last five years and we have purchased a double auto fry. Too early to run numbers, but if we can put out the food we did with a small auto fry and 2 pizza ovens we are going to do great with the ability to more than double our frying ability. Click Here to Contact Toni |
Vergas Position Opening
| The City of Vergas is currently accepting applications for the position ofOff- Sale Liquor Store Manager. This individual oversees and administers the day-to-day operations of the off-sale municipal liquor store. Duties to include, but not limited to: Supervising staff, purchasing and inventory control, pricing, budgeting, marketing, promotions and customer relations. Starting date on or about May 1, 2016. Minimum qualifications: 3 to 5 years management experience with Municipal Liquor Store or similar operations including retail sales experience; valid MN driver's license; proficiency with office equipment and computerized cashiering system. Must be able to work days, weekends and holidays. Salary DOQ.
Application forms available at
Vergas City Office 111 Main Street Vergas, Minnesota 56587 (218) 342-2091
www.cityofvergas.com Resume, cover letter and completed application due Thursday, April 14, 2016, 4:00 PM Central. Submit to: City of Vergas PO Box 32 Vergas, MN 56572-0032 Fax: 218-342-2068 Equal Opportunity Employer
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Bars Branch Out with Hands-On Plant Nite Events | The latest issue of The Municipal Liquor Store magazine shows the success of the Traveling Art Pub promotion. Click Here to See Magazine Here is a StarTribune article about a new interactive promotion finding success in bars:After a day spent caring for animals, you'd think that the last thing that co-workers from the Banfield Pet Hospital in St. Louis Park would want to do is tend to little live things.
But a small group of veterinarians and vet techs found that activity to be a great stress buster - doing it over cocktails and shared plates of nachos.
On a recent Tuesday, they attended Plant Nite at a downtown Minneapolis bar, working side by side to build their own terrariums to take home.
"I'm not artistic - I'm a scientist, but it's good for me to use the right side of my brain," said veterinarian Angela Edenloff, 38, who sipped a Moscow mule as she placed a precise pattern of colored pebbles into a snifter-shaped bowl.
You've probably heard about - or perhaps attended - an evening of dabbing at canvases in a bar's backroom, creating a painted landscape or still life by following an on-site artist's coaching.
Several local companies haul brushes and easels into restaurants for the popular activity, which typically costs between $35 and $50 - drinks and appetizers not included.
Plant Nite, an offshoot of the Boston-based Paint Nite, has pivoted from pigments on palettes to dirt in planters.
The first Plant Nites began in January, with evenings devoted to terrarium-building scheduled at several local bistros.
Co-workers Kari Miklya and Amy Strohacker created terrariums at a micro gardening class held at Mason's restaurant in downtown Minneapolis.
"There's a large group of people who don't want to paint; it makes them feel nervous, a little vulnerable," said Ashley Erickson, the Plant Nite licensee in the Twin Cities. "Everyone can do this project. People are behind their desks or their screens, communicating by e-mail. At the end of the day, they want to get their hands on a physical object."Click Here for the Rest of the Article |
Solving an Old Guy's Problems | After being married for 50 years, I took a careful look at my wife one day and said, "Fifty years ago we had a cheap house, a junk car, slept on a sofa bed and watched a 10-inch black and white TV, but I got to sleep with a hot 23-year-old girl every night.
Now, I have a $500,000 home, a $45,000 car, a nice big bed and a large screen TV, but I'm sleeping with a 69-year-old woman.
It seems to me that you're not holding up your side of things."
My wife is a very reasonable woman.
She told me to go out and find a hot 23-year-old girl and she would make sure that I would once again be living in a cheap house, driving a junk car, sleeping on a sofa bed and watching a 10-inch black and white TV.
Aren't older women great?
They really know how to solve an old guy's problems. |
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Beverage Alcohol Training | |
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Remember to Say Thank You
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Don't expect anything original from an echo
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