Lathe Block

How A Small Business Thrived In A Recession

Nobody who has been running a small business enjoys having competition in the form of an imitator pop up unexpectedly in a nearby location. It may be annoying or even infuriating, but there’s nothing they can do about it, since nothing illegal has been done. All the business owner can do is try to find a way to deal with the new competition.

Let’s take an hypothetical example and see what happens. Joe is a woodworker. For many years he enjoyed reasonable success working from his home workshop. Most of his clients were architects and interior decorators who needed custom made furniture. Joe also had a small showroom in his living room, but he rarely got any commissions from it.

For over five years, Joe didn’t have to worry about work. He wasn’t getting rich, but he always got by. Then things changed. First came the economic slowdown. It hit his two main clients first and then, as their work dried up, so did his.

Joe’s bad luck didn’t end there. A short time later, a new shopping mall opened up just across the street. There was a furniture showroom in the mall that sold contemporary bar stools and other contemporary furniture.

That hurt Joe even more, because he often got commissions for modern bar stools. He made a good profit from them, too, because he had set up his lathe to turn them out quickly. He sold a half dozen or more to people for their home breakfast bars and even to the occasion bar owner.

Having been hit from both sides, Joe’s comfortable lifestyle was threatened. Having never even had to think about bankruptcy before, Joe simply wasn’t prepared for the blow.

Joe belonged to a local woodworkers club. Every month, the club got together and shared ideas. At the next meeting, Joe got up in front of the group and opened a discussion about his plight. As it turned out, everyone in the club was experiencing the same problem.

Although the answer had eluded him before, it was Joe who found the solution to their common problem. Trying to compete with the larger companies who could buy kitchen bar stools and other products in bulk from overseas suppliers was just not feasible. They needed to provide unique products and Joe’s home showroom was the perfect place to display them.

They all threw themselves into the project and turned Joe’s home into a showroom. Instead of calling it a furniture store, they promoted it as a gallery and only displayed their best creations in it. Word spread and soon people started crossing the street from the shopping center just to admire the works inside the gallery. Today, Joe and his buddies are enjoying more success than ever before, thanks to his great idea and their cooperative efforts.

Machining a ceramic block on a lathe

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