General > General info Somewhat hot tub related
Career Advice
stuart:
I have often though about selling my store, getting out from under the constant drive to compete, get rid of employee problems, move to the mountains in a small town that has no other spa companies, have my wife and I and maybe one other employee and live on much less.
That would be very nice but as competative as I am I would probably turn it into what I have now again!
East_TX_Spa:
I, too, have struggled as of late regarding my career.
When I first started in the spa business, the entire emphasis was directed towards getting "drunk and laid in the hot tub, baby!" We wore these wonderful gold chains with (some might say) gaudy medallions with mystical symbols on them which no one really knew what they stood for, but you could make others feel so unhip if they ventured to ask what they meant. Women didn't have tats on their cracks or baubles in their bellybuttons, and few guys wore earbobs, though some did, but only in one ear and they were likened to pirates if they wore it in their left ear and it was a hoop. Those years were considered to be the Golden Age of the Spa Industry (the Salad Days, if you prefer) when anything went, people didn't care about filtration or Consumer's Digest or ozone or insulation....few even had ever heard of Titanium, although it was known to be "space-aged" by those of us in the biz.
It was common to refer to spas as a "one man, five woman model" and everyone would giggle and some even guffawed and said "damn straight! This puppy'll be seein' PLENTY of wild parties, dude!". Five thousand dollars would get you the cat's meow of love tubs with one jet per thousand dollars spent and the more foam, the better, because it's sexy and fun! People would pile in on top of one another and try to get that jet to hit just the right spot. They were all Jacuzzis even if they weren't.
The women were hot and skanky, the men were fat and hairy and wore pinky rings and sometimes boots in the hot tub. Beer would flow in and out of their bodies and no one cared.
Nowadays, it's just old people coming in wanting something to "relax" in or "for therapeutic purposes" because their bodies are ravaged with arthritis or fibromyalgia. They don't want a "party tub", they want to sit in there by themselves and get away from the day to day stresses of their lives. They micromanage their water instead of just throwing a cup of Clorox in to kill cooties, and so I have to sell them all this crap like MPS and Water Clarifier. Hell, they don't even want foam in their spa anymore!
So I sit here, day after day, thinking about what a sorry state the industry is in. Yeah, I sell my 13 spas a month on average and I smile about it and I tell them how easy it is to own and how much relief it will give them. And I keep waiting for some cool cat to pull up front with his big pimpin' hat with feathers on it to come through the door and say "What's up my man? Sell me somethin' I can get DOWN in with some fly honies.....I mean some serious hippo sex!"
Only one dude in the last 8 years answered that call....Mr. Wynne.
Here's to you Mr. Wynne, last of the hardcore hottubbers!
Term
Bonibelle:
and your advice for Bosco is.......start selling hot tubs to old folks? :-?
East_TX_Spa:
--- Quote ---and your advice for Bosco is.......start selling hot tubs to old folks? :-?
--- End quote ---
My advice would be to leave the city and get the excitement and adrenalin rush from time spent with family. Nothing else is more important.
I just realized today that my daughter is halfway grown. I've been very fortunate to have a job where I get to spend a lot of time with her. I realize that Bosco's young and probably still excitable and not a broken down ol' goomer like me, but excitement and fulfillment is what you make of it. I get excited talking to ya'll, lighting a cigar with this cool blowtorch flamethrower, walking down by the river, selling spas, going fishing, etc. It's all a state of mind.
Good luck with whatever you decide! :)
Term
Spiderman:
Do what's best for you and your family. I'll have 10 years next July (and vested) and plan on leaving police work for good. We know what a tough and stressful job it is. I've have enough. I just hope I don't go over the deep end by then. Good luck!!
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