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From Small Business To Big Business: Sears, Roebuck and Co.
Entrepreneurs need inspiration. Because building a business is about having a vision and the will to succeed. The businesses in this series of articles have all started small and have since become icons of the business world. In this article we feature Sears, Roebuck and Co.
Often a person is led onto the path of a becoming a successful businessman by a series of fortunate events that transpire. It could be said that Richard Warren Sears stumbled upon just such a path. But once he was on that path he did everything he could to not fall off. In the end he left not just a company but a legacy. So how exactly did it all begin? Amazingly enough it started with a failed scam.
You see apparently in 1886 there had developed a fairly common scam of wholesalers shipping items to retailers in other parts of the country. But the retailer that it was shipped to would never have actually ordered the merchandise. So of course the retailer would refuse the item. Well the wholesaler who had already hiked the price above normal would then offer the items on consignment at a reduced price. He’d justify this by telling the retailer that the cost of shipping these items back would be even worse for the wholesaler. The retailer suddenly thinking he was getting a deal would then agree to the new price and accept the merchandise.
This is how Richard Sears got lucky indeed. A Chicago jeweler was trying to pull just such a scam on a retailer by the name of Edward Stegerson. But Mr. Stegerson was aware of the scam and wasn’t about to get taken. So he flatly refused to accept the order. Richard Sears though had learned of the watches and he jumped at the chance since he was able to get them on consignment. After agreeing to pay a price of $12 per watch he then turned around and began to sell them at $14 per watch. By the time he was out of watches he’d made a profit of about $5,000. And with that the R.W. Sears Watch Company was born.
By 1887 Richard Sears found it necessary to move his watch company to Chicago, Illinois. That same year he decided to hire his first employee.
Next>
Entrepreneurs need inspiration. Because building a business is about having a vision and the will to succeed. The businesses in this series of articles have all started small and have since become icons of the business world. In this article we feature Sears, Roebuck and Co.
Often a person is led onto the path of a becoming a successful businessman by a series of fortunate events that transpire. It could be said that Richard Warren Sears stumbled upon just such a path. But once he was on that path he did everything he could to not fall off. In the end he left not just a company but a legacy. So how exactly did it all begin? Amazingly enough it started with a failed scam.
You see apparently in 1886 there had developed a fairly common scam of wholesalers shipping items to retailers in other parts of the country. But the retailer that it was shipped to would never have actually ordered the merchandise. So of course the retailer would refuse the item. Well the wholesaler who had already hiked the price above normal would then offer the items on consignment at a reduced price. He’d justify this by telling the retailer that the cost of shipping these items back would be even worse for the wholesaler. The retailer suddenly thinking he was getting a deal would then agree to the new price and accept the merchandise.
This is how Richard Sears got lucky indeed. A Chicago jeweler was trying to pull just such a scam on a retailer by the name of Edward Stegerson. But Mr. Stegerson was aware of the scam and wasn’t about to get taken. So he flatly refused to accept the order. Richard Sears though had learned of the watches and he jumped at the chance since he was able to get them on consignment. After agreeing to pay a price of $12 per watch he then turned around and began to sell them at $14 per watch. By the time he was out of watches he’d made a profit of about $5,000. And with that the R.W. Sears Watch Company was born.
By 1887 Richard Sears found it necessary to move his watch company to Chicago, Illinois. That same year he decided to hire his first employee.
Next>
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SCORE
Small Business Administration
Internal Revenue Service
Prosper.com Person to Person Lending
Better Business Bureau Online
USA Today Franchise Solutions
USA BizMart Business Broker Directory
Dunn and Bradstreet
Federal Trade Commission
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SmallBusinessDelivered.com Special Feature
From Small Business To Big Business:
Entrepreneurs need inspiration. Because building a business is about having a vision and the will to succeed. The businesses in this series of articles have all started small and have since become icons of the business world. Have you ever thought that your business could one day become an icon too? Pick one to find out more about them.
From Small Business To Big Business:
Entrepreneurs need inspiration. Because building a business is about having a vision and the will to succeed. The businesses in this series of articles have all started small and have since become icons of the business world. Have you ever thought that your business could one day become an icon too? Pick one to find out more about them.
7-11 Inc.
Ben and Jerry's Homemade Ice Cream
Boston Beer Co. Samuel Adams
Chik-Fil-A
Costco Wholesale
Doctor's Associates Inc. Subway
Eddie Bauer Holdings Inc.
Gap Inc.
Starbucks Corporation
The Walt Disney Company
Ben and Jerry's Homemade Ice Cream
Boston Beer Co. Samuel Adams
Chik-Fil-A
Costco Wholesale
Doctor's Associates Inc. Subway
Eddie Bauer Holdings Inc.
Gap Inc.
Starbucks Corporation
The Walt Disney Company
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