Gary Katz - Festool Road Show comments

[ForumMFG]

Now only if you had a CMS

 

[joraft]

Now only if you had a CMS

How true!

 

[Jerry Work]

Hi Gary,

Sorry to miss you while you were in Oregon.  We are only a short distance from the Umpqua so hope on your next visit you can come by.

Jerry

Jerry Work
The Dovetail Joint
Fine furniture designed and hand crafted in the 1907 Masonic Temple building in historic Kerby, OR
Visitors always welcome!
glwork@mac.com
http://jerrywork.com
541-592-5360
Cell 541-499-1027

Founder of the Southern Oregon Guild
    www.southernoregonguild.org
Member of the Siskiyou Guild
    www.siskiyouguild.org

Well....I've been driving since Wednesday, July 15, when I left Los Angeles, and I've finally made it to Boise, ID, where I'll pick up a plane and fly to Denver, meet Tom, then drive up to Fort Collins. So two hours doesn't sound like too far...but then, along the way, I went fishing and camped in Oregon for over a week (caught a nice steelhead on the Umpqua!) So two weeks doesn't sound like too long on the road either!

I really look forward to seeing you guys at the show in Fort Collins, or whatever show you're going to. You can't imagine the fun I have teaching and meeting other carpenters (and woodworkers). I pinch myself several times a day. But all of us are lucky to be 'making' things either for an occupation or a vocation ("occupation"?, what a word...yes, carpentry 'occupies' me). 

As for marketing/sales, no, I'm not much experienced at that. Sometimes I forget to even mention my own DVD's at the shows. But the Roadshow isn't about sales, it's about education. Still, I do try to support my sponsors in return for their support: I try to get the host locations on board as much as possible, to carry the materials and tools we use. After all, the products WE have decided to use at our presentations are some of the best materials and tools in the industry. Most carpenters would agree. Most carpenters would love to use Stabila, Festool, and Kreg tools, to own Clam Clamps and Collins Clamps and etc, to use WindsorOne Moldings, etc. So making the decision to stock the things we demonstrate should be easy, right? But it's not. You can't imagine how many lumberyards balk at the decision. Often they don't understand until 'after' the show.  Sometimes it takes customers asking for the products to convince the dealers to bring them in. Believe it or not, that is so common that marketing folks have a word  for it: pullthrough.  Some say that pullthrough is the best kind of marketing because it's honest and sincere demand. Which is all good. But the point is to help people enjoy the craft more, and for professionals, that means improving productivity and making more money, too.

Gary