where you learn how not to have sucky marketing by looking at the sucky marketing of others

3.01.2006

A Bear of a Divorce

In the Seven Keys to Marketing Genius I caution about partnering with others. Not that strategic partnerships are a bad idea, but they should not be entered into lightly. A partnership is like a marriage. Take the case of the Brown Bear Car Wash. They were making big money by partnering with gas station chains, but saw their family name and business deteriote. Money isn't everything. According to the article: Taking back the company has been a huge endeavor for the Odermats and their employees. You have to wonder how many people would take back a company that had such internal problems when they could just sit back and collect money from a profitable lease agreement. "Some people wondered why we would want to take the company back given the terms of the lease, which were lucrative for us," Lance says. "We told them money's not everything, but Brown Bear is everything to us." Partners beware.

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