In 1963 Edward Pola and George Wyle wrote the song “It’s the most wonderful time of the year” made hugely popular by the great vocalist Andy Williams. It was also released on October 14th just 12 days after my birth that year, so I have that going for me. I love the song as many of you do but when I hear it, it makes me think of my time in retail. I think of all the holidays I almost missed or had to celebrate them at hyper speed because in retail the seasons move so fast and you always have something to “get ready for”.
First, and pretty much all year long, the retail workers have to get ready for inventory that comes to them in preparation for Christmas gift giving. That Christmas stuff starts rolling in the back doors around July, just in time for customers to say “Geez- they are setting up Christmas already, it isn’t even Halloween yet!” You see, if they aren’t ready for all the Christmas gift giving inventory, it just begins to pile up on the back dock and things inside and outside the store begin to look like a giant episode of “I love Lucy” where she can’t keep up with the chocolates coming down the conveyer except they can’t hide or eat a flat screen TV.
They have to get ready for BLACK FRIDAY. Now that was the granddaddy of them all back in the day but thankfully retailers are figuring out how to get away from the free-for-all atmosphere that Black Friday created. However, unless you’ve experienced it firsthand, there is nothing more exhilarating than a good ole fist fight on aisle 9 over the last 6-dollar microwave oven. That kind of stuff just warms my heart and brings out the holiday cheer in me every single time.
This may surprise you, but they have to get ready for the valentine merchandise that comes in while they are getting ready to move the Christmas merchandise out of storage and into the building before the Christmas gift giving season is over. Customers will need a giant heart shape boxed filled with chocolates to make up to their loved ones for various reasons, especially the guy that failed to get the last 6-dollar microwave oven.
They have to get ready for all the clearance markdowns that start happening before Christmas is even over because they have to get ready for the New year merchandise like; bikini bathing suits and beach towels that arrive while the Christmas Merchandise is still here. The powers that be in retail usually know what Christmas gift giving merchandise is not going to sell out by sometime in October but they hope you don’t, so they wait, wait, wait, wait and at the last possible minute, send a flurry of price reductions to the stores.
As you see, there is a lot of “getting ready”. I’m not complaining much, I made a good living while “getting ready” and I am happy I did it. It’s what goes on while you are “getting ready” that causes some angst and distracts everyone in retail from “getting ready”. You have to be experienced and well trained in order to orchestrate this virtuoso of “inventory in D”.
OH! I almost forgot about December 26th…while all the “happy” customers are enjoying the spirit of all that Christmas gift giving and looking to score that 92-inch flat screen TV with dual remote controls for just 13 bucks this Christmas, the folks in the stores have to get ready for the after Christmas returns. You know, the stuff that doesn’t work or fit, it doesn’t look good or it doesn’t do what it claimed to do on TV. I speak from the heart here when I say, if you have a gift to return, why don’t you wait and do it later, the lines will be considerably less. I understand that there are certain gifts that must be returned immediately but unless your gift is going to spoil, give it a few days, weeks, months or perhaps hang on to it and re-gift it next year.
So…tomorrow is Christmas and I must tell you that I miss my days in that giant blue retailing company the most this time of the year and yes, I miss getting ready for stuff. I’m not nearly as good at getting ready as I used to be. I don’t miss the hustle of retail because of the company I worked for, but because of the people that work in it, especially the people in the stores. These are some of the best people ever born and I hope that I can do them justice with this blog. These folks work their ass off, eat their turkey on Thanksgiving Day, take a nap, and usually go back into the store on Thanksgiving night to set up the BLACK FRIDAY stuff while the rest of us are still passing gas from leftovers. They show up in the stores on Christmas night after saying good bye to their families and work all night to completely eradicate the stores from any hint of Christmas. No signs, no packages, no ribbons boxes or bows (The Grinch would be proud of the way they wipe the store clean of Christmas) because they want you to shop in a store on December 26th that makes you forget that Christmas even happened. Yes sir, I love those people, so when you see them today, Christmas eve, say thank you and maybe offer them a tip, they won’t take it because they can’t but it sure feels good to be appreciated for what you do. You won’t be able to see their weary smiles under those awful masks but just know they are there. Thank you to everyone in retail, especially my folks at WM. I will see you later this afternoon, I forgot some stuff… Merry Christmas everyone.