I just wrote an e-mail. There was nothing wrong with it. It got me to closure on an issue. It clarified a relationship with another party. It raised and traced the roots of a technical issue. But I was angry writing it, angry for another unrelated reason, and there was actually another thing to be mad about behind that one so you could say the real reason for being mad was 2 levels of indirerection away. So I didn't send the mail. I'll send it tomorrow. Simple management skill: don't ever send emails in anger.

So of course what do I do but risk a weblog post instead: what could happen? Well at least it's not personal.

I could go on for pages about new ideas, and whether or not they make any difference. In my experience new ideas are like an excess of testosterone: only those without them think they're important, those with too much think they're a pain. I'll leave that for another day. But fortunately the scobester gives me cold stone creamery to complain about, perfectly safe topic.

Here's the thing. You have to really love ice cream that's way too sweet. You have to really love candy, be the kind of person who stops at the store for a candy bar and nothing else. You have to have (As Franzen says in the Corrections about the chair) a "monument" to ice cream. Personally, I thought it was insulting, obsequious, and embarassing to be there. (Who wouldn't be embarassed with folks singing for their tips right in front of you, in a drone like way with fake smiles on? I was.)

Okay enough sour grapes. Hey, that could be a flavor!

-------- begin quote from the scobelizer here [how to post to a specific link, I wonder]

I got this vision while eating ice cream with my son Patrick today. See, my first job, back when I was a freshman at Prospect High School, was serving ice cream. I still enjoy the industry's product (despite it being unhealthy for me).

Let's go back 10 years, OK? Remember Baskin Robbins? 10 years ago they owned a near monopoly on ice-cream outlets. At least they did in Silicon Valley. Yeah, they had a few competitors here and there, but they had the majority of the market. I bet if you had told Baskin Robbin's executives 10 years ago "there's gonna be a new chain that's gonna come along that's gonna obliterate your market and change the rules" that their execs would have laughed in your face.

I bet that Baskin Robbins had lots of Eric Kidds back then who said "I sure wish I could make a mint selling ice cream like Baskin Robbins, but these guys have the world all wrapped up."

Enter Cold Stone Creamery.

This upstart chain has completely changed the rules of what an ice cream store should be. In every Cold Stone, the employees are upbeat. Happy, even. Excited. Why? Freaking profits baby!

By all measure, Cold Stone should be a failure. It entered an already-mature market. Ice cream is ice cream, right? You think Software Developers have a tough time coming up with a "new big idea?" Try being an ice cream executive. Go ahead. Stare at the stuff. It's milk fat and sugar and a few other things. There's NO WAY TO INNOVATE, right? Hey, did you realize that Cold Stone charges each of its customers MORE than Baskin Robbins does? For the same frozen milk fat and stuff. And, it entered a market with a near monopoly position.

Oh, and everytime I eat at Cold Stone, I'm stuck sitting in line. Long lines. 13 minutes today. Yes, I count these things. Customers should be pissed. Guess what, they aren't! Instead, they LIKE waiting in line. Don't believe me? Ask some of their customers.

Cold Stone Creameries are popping up faster than Krispy Kreme dealerships. They are kicking Baskin Robbins' ass.

How did they do it? Eric Kidd, please pay attention. They came up with a new concept.

Instead of just serving ice cream, they mix stuff into it. And, they have employees who act like they are a member of a cult. They even sing you a song if you tip them (each store's crew usually knows at least a half dozen songs, by the way).

But, their ice cream is superior to Baskin Robbins and even if it isn't, the experience of getting ice cream there is sublime.

... [middle and possibly more relevant part deleted]

Think you have a "Cold Stone" concept? You know where to find me.

comment []6:18:04 PM