What's in Store

The demise of the BlackBerry® brand is worth studying for any company and there are many lessons to be learned. As the company is struggling to remain relevant in the market, we thought it would be a good time to look into some of the mishaps and misfortunes that have led the company not only to the edge of the cliff, but as many investors already see over the edge and in free fall. Here are 4 lessons that we see as being a big part of their demise.  1. Don't be too confident: Not too many years ago, BlackBerry was synonymous with Smartphones. Corporations around the world relied on its secure network for their mobile email systems and consumers were addicted to their “Crackberries”. Then suddenly Apple® stepped into the game with the introduction of the iPhone®. Suddenly there was the idea of an all touch screen that can adapt to anything that is on the display. It seems so easy now to say that it was a natural evolution of the Smartphone user interface just as...

I recently received an interesting mailer for a restaurant close to my home. Measuring 6" x 11" there didn't appear anything too out of the ordinary with this printed piece, but opening it revealed that there was more to it than meets the eye. After removing the 3 circular stickers that kept it shut (as if 4 would've been overkill), you're invited to open a gatefold held shut with the same rubbery adhesive used to adhere credit cards to paper. Once opened, you are greeted by two pup-up images — one a Margarita, and the other an appetizer platter. Flanking these gems are a couple card stock gift cards for free food, and also a QR code that needs to be scanned in order to activate the gift cards before coming in. But wait — there's more! What was covering the pop-up graphics once opened? That's right, a GIANT 11" x 14" letter with lengthy explanation about the restaurant and why after 2 years of business they decided to extend...