Nearly Impossible

Some text yeah?

[nearlyim]

>When you are in the leadership position, the tough times can be much more difficult, because your job is really to shield your team through that, to keep them from taking shortcuts.

[nearlyim]

[nearlyim]

> “In July we were in 5,000 stores,” Zucker said. “In September, we were in no stores, only online.” (via [The Loop](http://www.loopinsight.com/2012/11/04/ceo-craig-zucker-on-the-demise-of-buckyballs/))

[nearlyim]

In an interesting move, GameStop announces 80 holiday [GameStop Kids](http://www.gamestop.com/mrkt/landing/gskids-event-locator/) popup shops. From the announcement: >GameStop Kids features an assortment of this holiday's most desired video games and accessories, game licensed products, popular toy brands and collectibles. That's a lot of stores to test this new direction.

[nearlyim]

Carhartt, a workwear brand based out of Michigan, employs over 2,000 US workers to make it's [Made in the USA](http://www.carhartt.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/MadeInUSAView?storeId=10051&catalogId=10101&icid=MadeInUSALaunch) clothing line. (via [Dooby Brain](http://www.doobybrain.com/2012/10/10/carhartt-made-in-the-usa/))

[nearlyim]

Herriott Grace is a father and daughter team out of Canada producing a beautiful rang of hand-carved wooden items. They also have a lovely story on how the pair started to sell their products to others: >One day it dawned on her that others might appreciate her father’s talent as she did, so Nikole asked if he would ever want to share his work. Lance took a few days to think about it. And, after some convincing, he agreed to her plan, but only with people that understood and cared about the time and effort spent on each piece. (via [Lauren O'Neill](http://laurenoneilldesign.com))

[nearlyim]

(via [Swissmiss](http://www.swiss-miss.com/2011/10/duncan-shotton.html))

[nearlyim]

>It’s a painful story, but we can only hope hearing all that [CW&T](http://shop.cwandt.com) has gone through from the manufacturing issues to this new level of complication they’ve run into while still trying to fulfill their immense pen orders a year later can help educate other designers going into similar processes!

[nearlyim]

There are some really great gems in this write-up based on a visit to [Baggu's](http://baggubag.com) Brooklyn studio. The photos are quite nice as well! Ellen Van Der Laan (Creative Director) on color selection: >In the beginning, we just went through the Pantone book and picked every color that we thought we might like to see in a bag and narrowed it down to eight. Emily Sugihara (Founder) on the comission of the company's logo: >...when we first started, I traded her this jacket that I had for her to design the Baggu logo.

[nearlyim]

Brian Faherty, founder and owner of [School House Electric](http://www.schoolhouseelectric.com/), talks about how they produced a modern replica of the iconic 1960's IBM wall clock. The clock is manufactured and assembled in [the company's factory in Portland](http://www.schoolhouseelectric.com/wp/post/index/p/839/).

[nearlyim]

Great little interview with Dan Provost of StudioNeat:

I think people are naturally curious and want to know where the products they buy are coming from. It is satisfying and fulfilling to have that relationship between the creator and the customer. That's hard to achieve with a box sitting on a store shelf. Furthermore, people like to know how products are made. Those were always the best parts of Reading Rainbow or Mr. Rogers, when they would take you to the book binding facility or the crayon factory. Seeing how the sausage gets made is actually fascinating to a lot of people.

[nearlyim]

Poppin has been around for a while in private beta but has finally opened its doors to the public. 

Their most powerful selling point is the cohesiveness in design and function that comes from the company's unique position as the designer of every product they offer. Little details such as ensuring the staplers and tape dispensers are the same length, so as to make them sit nicely together side by side, show the subtle potential of such control. Although they are clearly focussed on creating stunning products, Poppin's website offers absolutely no hints as to how or where their products are manufactured. The New York Times' Claire Cain Miller offers a bit of insight into their process and competitive advantage:

Poppin designs the products, works with factories to produce them and sells them directly to shoppers, without physical stores. Poppin executives say this gives them margins of 70 percent, more than twice as high as those at big box stores, and they don’t have to compete on price the way other companies do because they sell products that aren’t sold elsewhere. 

Businesses already stocking their supply closets with Poppin include LinkedIn, Fab.com, Thrillist, Sweet 'N Low, Pandora, and more.