I finally have a moment to give a brief update on a big project I've been working on over the past 8 months. In a nutshell, the objective was to build a store and create an experience that was more appealing and engaging to female consumers without alienating BBY's core customer, males. Data (and my gut) tell us that there are many females out there who seek and enjoy the benefits that consumer electronics can bring, but we know that BBY is not necessarily this consumer's favorite go-to store. With this store, we made changes to the physical environment, how we operate within the store and our labor model to better serve these customers. The store is located just outside of Denver, CO. Our approach was the first of its kind in retail in that we engaged female customers from the Denver community in a partnership to design and create this store. We did not do surveys or focus groups, these customers truly became a part of the Best Buy team and were with us all along the way. In fact, they helped pick out furniture for our room vignettes, they helped train our employees on how better to serve customers...they were our inspiration for what a great retailer is and what it means to be a part of the community in which we operate. I could go on and on about the process, the people I met, the experience I had, but it would take hours. The following article by the Associated Press says it all. And, the appeal? Let's just say this...my team and I were interviewed by Catherine Tsai at the AP the afternoon of Oct 2 and 24 hours later we had 68 media hits, i.e. media outlets that picked up the story - locally and nationally via TV, radio, print, on-line, etc. It was a phenomenal response. I am so proud of this work!
Monday, October 20, 2008
A Day with Habitat for Humanity
I'm so blessed to work for a company that not only allows us to get paid while volunteering, but is also contributing $8k to Habitat on our behalf BECAUSE we are volunteering our time. That's what I did today. I spent the whole day iat a Habitat build. It felt wonderful to be outside and working with my hands rather than sitting behind a desk and in meetings all day long. By the time 4pm rolled around, however, I was ready to call quits. My feet, back and hands were all aching. In fact, I think I'll need to get a massage soon. Guess what? I used a circular saw to actually cut wood - holy crap! If any of you know how accident prone I am, giving me a power tool was probably not the best idea of the day. But, I did a great job if I do say so myself. I also wielded a hammer pretty well and didn't hit my thumb (or any other finger) at all. I had a fantastic time getting to know people I haven't had the opportunity to chat with before, learned some new skills and walked away knowing I helped many families with their soon-to-be, new homes. All in all, it was a very fulfilling day! And, I'll get to let loose and have some fun tomorrow because it's the NKOTB concert...whoo hoo!!!
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Keira in September
I'm really behind in what's been going on and will eventually catch up, but I wanted to make sure to share some photos of Keira during the month of September. Here are just a few of her milestones:
- She turned 16 months old.
- She finally said, "Mama," and has been saying it over and over since.
- She dances and twirls around to music, even to my off-key singing!
- A whole bunch of teeth have popped up, so she's got a mouthful of them.
- Mimicking has become a favorite game...I'm really worried about the day she can ask me to play "shadow" - I shudder thinking about it.
- She's eating much better now - maybe she'll have gained some weight by her 18-month appt! We can hope!
