Boozy Take-A-Ways from the GOAT
Brian Rosen
Tiger 21/ YPO Gold - 2x Exited Beverage Founder - Chairman of InvestBev, - Over $1.8B in Alcohol Sold LTD - Investor in over 50 Beverage Brands *Personal page expressing personal views
I grew up in the 90's in Chicago. We had season tickets. I went to 100+ games during that run. It turned into some of the best memories of my youth. Chicago was in a constant state of championship and it was blast. Thank you Bulls, thank you MJ and of course thank you Jerry Krause, the mastermind, for making it all happen.
Their are lessons all over the documentary in leadership, sales and politics that need to or should be headed. My family was running Sam's in Chicago and many of the players (and opposing team players) would shop our stores. Jordan, Rodman and Pipp were all customers and we got to "know" them all. The ESPN doc does not show the "real" personalities, but be that as it may- they were the greatest and this series has helped us all with the quarantine fatigue.
A Few Lessons Learned
1) Leaders unapologetically lead. Winners want to win. On or off the bus, and if you want on the bus in the beverage game, you will need to fight / claw/ scratch for every sale.
2) There was a comment that Pat Riley (then Lakers coach) made, when the Bulls were going through their first championship run. He said, "we will defend what is ours", when referring to the Bulls going after the Lakers. This is no different. You want a shelf position that someone currently has. You want it, and they will defend it.
3) Team matters to all. Not everyone is hitting the game winning shot but someone needs to pass the ball. Someone needs to play defense and someone needs to pick you up when you get knocked down. Team is team. Period. Distributors are your teammates, importers the same.
4) Coaching matters! Maybe it is Phil Jackson, maybe it is a mentor. Maybe it is a warehouse boss. I remember, many years ago, I met a CEO that rode the trucks at MillerCoors every month. He did this to see and hear first hand what was happening in the market. That is a good coach, that is a good mentor. Be Phil Jackson, not Tim Floyd.
5) In the end of the day, MJ made billions but the rest of the team made millions. What I mean is that not every brand is Tito's or Casa Amigos. You can have a good career and a strong brand by being 3rd place/ 5th place/ 10th place. Wendy's is the third biggest burger chain and they are all very wealthy.
I suppose the net of the documentary is to show the new world how killer MJ was and how that team was. They were such a pleasure to have in our city. Winning is not everything but it sure beats losing. If you choose to be in the beverage game, it will come at you like the late 80's Pistons but if you are good, you can have your own Dream Team and that sounds pretty fun to me.
Play hard, win hard, lose fast, forget fast and play hard again
Brian Rosen
BevStrat
President at Media Nexus
4 年" why would I think about missing a shot I havent taken? "
Luxury Real Estate Security Officer at Anderson Security Agency
4 年Excellent article, Brian! I remember a couple of those games from the 1989-1990 season at the Chicago Stadium. Good stuff. In addition, I like your last sentence in number four. Quite funny, indeed. All the best!
Beer Brand Broker/Brand Builder
4 年Thanks for the encouraging/inspiring words. Beer business more saturated, more competitive than ever in all my years doing this. No question, you have to give it your all or get out of the business. Competing against the big distributors?and their brands a humbling experience indeed but it can be done ! You win some?and ?you lose some. Work with the retailers?who will work with you I go back to former NY Giants coach's Tom Coughlin's quote " Be humble enough to prepare and confident enough to perform" You have to bring your "A" game everyday. Thanks again/Dave
Passionate Retail Turnaround Executive Specializing in Extreme-Value Merchandising Transformations and Next-Level Team Building
4 年Excellent assessment, except the same guy that built it tore it apart. Huge lesson in ego management. “The Jerry’s egos definitely got in the way of the customer(fans). Krause and Reinsdorf breached the most fundamental law of athletic competition, known as “Winners Stick”. Winners have earned and deserve the right to defend their title (as Riley said). The only people I’ve ever seen breach this are looooooosers. Hard to comprehend how the Jerry’s didn’t allow these legends to defend their title.
Owner/ Partner, Hindsight Wines , Napa Valley
4 年Well stated. Met you and your Dad years ago during the Seagram years. Be well