A constant theme throughout my life has been a love affair with business and music. I feel fortunate to have built a highly successful career around my two passions. For over 40 years I have been growing my own businesses and helping others grow theirs. I have learned that doing some basic things right can make a huge difference in the success of any business.
I would like to share my experiences through my own personal story. I hope you enjoy it.
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In my early teens, my dad wisely encouraged me to find a job to occupy my free time. I started working at a record store in Kansas City at the age of 13. I spent my middle and high school years learning the ins and outs of running a record store. I developed a passion around selling music.
After high school, I went to Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio with no real profession in mind. I finally settled on elementary education. Between studies, I worked again at a record store. After graduation, I moved to Woodland, California where I soon found out there were no teaching jobs. So after a few odd jobs and no real career opportunities on the horizon, I decided to open my first record store. It was 1974. The country was in the middle of a recession. I had very little money.
Convincing the bank to loan me $10,000 and relying on my previous record store knowledge, I was finally in business doing something I absolutely loved.
One of my first customers was an older gentleman with muddy boots who asked if I carried any Buck Owens on 8-track tape. Not only did I not have any 8-track tapes, I had never heard of Buck Owens. My new customer explained to me that if I expected to do well selling records in Woodland, I better get some tapes and I better get some country music, including Buck Owens. I ordered every Buck Owens title in my distributor’s catalog – in 8-track – and called my new friend when they arrived. He was so impressed that he took all the titles, plus more, handed me $1,000 in hundred dollar bills, and asked me to buy him five tapes each week until the money was gone.
About 15 years later, I met Buck Owens at a record industry event and told him the story.
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I thanked him for teaching me so much about business, especially always putting the customer’s needs and wants first. Owens laughed and said it was one of the funniest things he had ever heard. He asked his manager to send me one of his trademark red, white, and blue guitars.
I was always experimenting and trying new things in my business, especially when faced with a problem. During a period of slow sales and tight cash, I decided to try selling used records. I had accumulated thousands of titles that I didn’t have time to listen to since I spent most of my time at the store. Even though the records were used, I guaranteed them, which no one was doing at the time. I started to purchase my customer’s used LPs for store credit which turned out to be a huge success and significantly increased my sales. Not only did I expand my product offerings, I dramatically increased cash flow and gained a whole new audience.
Read more at Barney's Seattle business consulting website
I would like to share my experiences through my own personal story. I hope you enjoy it.
Find Barney Cohen on Facebook
In my early teens, my dad wisely encouraged me to find a job to occupy my free time. I started working at a record store in Kansas City at the age of 13. I spent my middle and high school years learning the ins and outs of running a record store. I developed a passion around selling music.
After high school, I went to Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio with no real profession in mind. I finally settled on elementary education. Between studies, I worked again at a record store. After graduation, I moved to Woodland, California where I soon found out there were no teaching jobs. So after a few odd jobs and no real career opportunities on the horizon, I decided to open my first record store. It was 1974. The country was in the middle of a recession. I had very little money.
Convincing the bank to loan me $10,000 and relying on my previous record store knowledge, I was finally in business doing something I absolutely loved.
One of my first customers was an older gentleman with muddy boots who asked if I carried any Buck Owens on 8-track tape. Not only did I not have any 8-track tapes, I had never heard of Buck Owens. My new customer explained to me that if I expected to do well selling records in Woodland, I better get some tapes and I better get some country music, including Buck Owens. I ordered every Buck Owens title in my distributor’s catalog – in 8-track – and called my new friend when they arrived. He was so impressed that he took all the titles, plus more, handed me $1,000 in hundred dollar bills, and asked me to buy him five tapes each week until the money was gone.
About 15 years later, I met Buck Owens at a record industry event and told him the story.
Follow Barney on Twitter
I thanked him for teaching me so much about business, especially always putting the customer’s needs and wants first. Owens laughed and said it was one of the funniest things he had ever heard. He asked his manager to send me one of his trademark red, white, and blue guitars.
I was always experimenting and trying new things in my business, especially when faced with a problem. During a period of slow sales and tight cash, I decided to try selling used records. I had accumulated thousands of titles that I didn’t have time to listen to since I spent most of my time at the store. Even though the records were used, I guaranteed them, which no one was doing at the time. I started to purchase my customer’s used LPs for store credit which turned out to be a huge success and significantly increased my sales. Not only did I expand my product offerings, I dramatically increased cash flow and gained a whole new audience.
Read more at Barney's Seattle business consulting website