Adding Value at Osco

Adding Value at Osco, originally uploaded by joeelylean.

Adding Value

Saw this sign at our neighborhood Osco Drug store yesterday and it really grabbed me. I'll just list the reasons.

1. It links "value added" to "top-line revenue". All too often in Lean circles we are enchanted by process excellence and forget that we must translate that into business/financial progress. Here, the store manager says clearly "my staff will add value if you want it. Here's what their efforts are worth." And, in so doing, he can add revenue to the store. He puts a price on that value and then boldly asks for added price.

2. It lets the customer determine value. Note that it is the customer, not the store, who determines the price of the product!! How wonderful!!! If the customer has a surly teenager in the SUV who needs to work out some aggression, she just pays the 99c and lets Kevin hoist the bags. If the customer is dressed up but headed home to do some yardwork, he'll pay the extra 26c per bag to save a second trip.

3. It's utter simplicity is beautiful! I just love the handpainted sign, hooked on a pallet!! You can't get any simpler than this. No fluff, no legalese about risk of back strain or privacy of mulch purchasers. In a very complex world, this is such a breath of fresh air.

4. The written offer is almost impossible to negotiate against. How do you counter this offer??? It is there, it makes sense, the only response is to take it or leave it. Written offers have great power, whether on the side of a pallet or in a formal proposal.

Is this analyitical overkill on a simple sign for bags of mulch and topsoil? Perhaps...yet it is in the curiosity about basic things that we learn so much.

I hope this is a little bit helpful.