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We Are Not Mind Readers
As much as I wish I was a mind reader, I totally am not. In work and in my daily family life, mind reading would be an amazing quality to possess and would make every day so much easier. Not only would it be a great quality for me, but it would be a great quality for all of my employees too. The bad news is unfortunately reality: NONE OF US ARE MIND READERS. So you may be asking, “Why would we think Scott is a mind reader?” This may or may not apply to you so it makes sense that you are wondering about this. The truth is that…
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FreeSpirit To Sell Through Direct Reps & International Distributors Only
Last week we announced that Checker Distributors will only be selling the FreeSpirit lines through April 2019. They will not be offering any of the new collections after the most recent January release which they are currently offering. This was a decision that we thought long and hard about and one which was especially difficult due to our strong relationship with the owners. In the end though, we feel this is the best decision for the FreeSpirit brand, the designers, the sales reps, the international distributors, our domestic fabric resellers and our international resellers. This isn’t against Checker Distributors whatsoever, but rather was a critical business decision that had to…
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A Fitting Blog Topic For Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Last December when I was on my Jaftex Christmas party tour down South and in New York City, I posted lots of photos on Facebook and on my blog of our various employees enjoying the holiday festivities. I didn’t think much of the photos except for the fact that I know that all the Jaftex fans like to see and know the inside scoop about everything that is Jaftex: whether if it is the team, the warehouse, the quilt market booth, the licensed designers or the fabric. However, after posting these pictures something happened that totally surprised me in a really great way. Unbeknownst to me, there was one thing…
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Jaftex Retailer Facebook Group Is Going Live Tomorrow January 15, 2019
A Jaftex Facebook Group for RETAILERS has been created for us to engage in an ongoing dialogue with customers. Business works best within a relationship and here in the new Facebook Group, we can have a relationship about our businesses. WHO: Me and all the Jaftex Companies (A.E. Nathan, The Blank Quilting Corp., FreeSpirit Fabrics, Henry Glass Co., Inc., Studioe Fabrics and 3 Wishes). The page will be moderated by me and several of my co-workers. Big issues will be elevated to my attention as needed. WHAT: We are launching a Retailer only Facebook Group for US shop owners only to help them however we can to be the best Jaftex retailer that they can be. Before my international shop owner followers get all mad…
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You Got Issues? Go Right To The Top Or Another Appropriate Place
Hi my name is Scott Fortunoff and my companies include: A.E. Nathan Co., Inc., The Blank Quilting Corp., Fabric Editions, FreeSpirit Fabrics, Henry Glass & Co., Inc., Jaftex Corp. and Studioe Fabrics. I am the President of A.E. Nathan, Blank Quilting, Jaftex Corp. and Studioe. I am the Co-President of FreeSpirit with my brother, Greg. I am the Vice-President of Henry Glass & Fabric Editions. I am sure you know this all already, but there is a very good reason why I am telling you again. Why you might ask? The reason why I am doing this is because I have noticed that people with issues, questions or concerns are…
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New Year’s Resolutions
On this very last day of 2018, I wanted to share some of my New Year’s resolutions as well as some general concepts I would like to follow in 2019. Maybe they are better off being called goals. Hopefully, you too will reflect on the past year and see what improvements you want to make and what underlying themes you want to abide by for your own sake in the new year. Here we go: Create another Tales Of A Fourth Generation Textile Executive blog book. Use the proceeds to support Scott’s free sewing machine giveaway. Continue to give away free sewing machines and build upon the over 125…
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Reflecting On Mistakes I Made In 2018
I believe everything happens for a reason. This past year I made some mistakes that I regret and hope to improve upon in the future. It happens. No one is perfect….besides my wife, my mom and, oh yeah, my dad, my brother and of course YOU! It takes a man to admit his mistakes and I am all good with that because well….I am a man the last time I checked. So here are a few of the mistakes I made in 2018. I am sure you can think of lots more, but these are the ones that stick out in my mind and made me sweat a little. Shortly…
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The Jaftex Southern Christmas Party Tour
From December 11-13, I went down south with my dad and brother for the Jaftex North Carolina and South Carolina Christmas parties…..all 3 of them. I flew in around lunch time on the 11th and headed right over to the FreeSpirit Fabric office in Charlotte. When I got there, we worked on inventory issues, new lines, ordering, social media and the new website. When 5:30 pm rolled around, it was time to head out to The Napa Restaurant for the party. We had a lovely private room for about 15 of us. We stood around talking, eating and drinking for the first part of the evening. Then we sat…
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Fear & Fabric Sales Don’t Mix
From 1995-1998, I attended Benjamin N. Cardozo Law School in Manhattan, New York. I must say that I wasn’t a big fan of law school, but I finished and passed the bar exam. That was the extent of my law career in a nutshell. There is one thing about law school that I will never forget….in a bad way, that is. One horrible day in my life, I was barraged by two law professors during a moot court pseudo-trial event. I totally froze, forgot the material and endured an especially not so fun moment in time. You know, the kind you can never forget! I can still remember how badly…
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Tales Of A Fourth Generation Textile Executive: The People That Matter The Most
As I get older, I continue to learn tons of new things that help me to hone in my business skills so that I can be a better businessman and, of course, sell more fabric. For example, as I have mentioned many times before, I went to a social media conference last year and learned the importance of video. Discovering this concept has made all the difference: “80 percent of what we consume on social media in 2020 will be video.” As such, I refocused my energy and attention on doing more videos…. a lot more. It is having a bigger impact than I ever imagined and in fact it…
