5 Things I learnt from "Silk Board Seller"

A high Potential market place is what they had tapped into. If you were ever waiting for the lights to turn GREEN in Indian Metros you know what I mean.

1.   Know your Customer. Influencer (Kid), Decision maker (Mom) and CFO (Dad). He made the pitch to the kid, sealed the deal with mom and came to dad only to collect the money :-) You know what the product would have been.

2.   Moved from one failure to another failure with no loss of enthusiasm. Completely undeterred they knew in their hearts Success, Learning and Living is just about grinding it day in and day out. There is no other fancy formula to it.

3.   60-600 seconds is all that they have to make a pitch, convince the people, get the money and move on to the next and they make sure every second counts even in hot sun and heavy rains. They make quick decisions like "If they are willing to offer it at that price"

4.   Exactly knew when to sell what and to whom. Sometimes I really wonder at their product positioning strategies. Even Harvard cannot teach you that skill. The skills that they learn for survival and necessity are much more powerful than class room case studies.

5.   Am still trying to figure out their supply chain every time I see the Indian Flag or Christmas Cap. No technology, No fancy Process yet seamless is what it looks like. No Independence day has gone by without me seeing them sell flags.

Their Product line and range is so diverse. Balloons, Toys, Books, Guavas, Flowers, Peanuts, Umbrellas, Mobile covers and holders, Watches, Goggles, Car Sun shades, Buttermilk, Flags, Caps to name a few. Interestingly they are mostly making a pitch to office goers or families going out for shopping in upscale malls who typically have their car windows, minds and hearts closed. To me it always looked like an unlikely target market. So, every single sale that I get to see has a great potential for profound wisdom on human nature

So next time around when you see that shabby looking kid with books in their hands and dreams in their eyes, ultra-modern teenager with watches in their wrists and aspirations in their hearts, young lady with earbuds in the bag and hunger pangs in the stomach, pay a little more attention to the nuances in life. All we need for learning is a curious mind. It can happen anywhere and everywhere as I do firmly believe that it is ubiquitous.

Even if we don't buy from them I guess we all can be a little more considerate. After all they are not begging for your money but trying to make a living by giving you something that they think is worthwhile. Most of the time it did look like an honest attempt to me. Who knows? A little bit of respect for their Endeavour and Ingenuity might end up making their day. May be even their Life.