Ever heard that before? Well, AskIndyTed just got the business end of a stick stuck up my "you know what". Yesterday, Eastman Kodak Company terminated the company my father started in 1950 as a reseller of their products. Kodak also terminated twenty-three other closely-held small dealerships like us across the USA. They have decided to market their goodies through "Big Box" companies. The decision to whack us was made by upper management. Hey, it's "just business".
Well, the Meek's small business was started with $5,000 borrowed from a man who baked pies for a living. He was grateful for the nursing care my mother gave to his wife who was dying from cancer during World War II. He loaned the money to my father with a handshake. He trusted my Dad would pay him back. That's "personal".
My father built the business into a successful enterprise with Kodak as his flagship product line. The partnership was a win-win for both companies. Kodak was a wonderful company because they developed "personal" relationships with all of their resellers. We pointed with pride to our Kodak partnership as "bleeding yellow".
That success made it affordable for my father to send all six of his children to college. It was something he was denied due to the war and the Great Depression. He was a proud papa when we all graduated. It made it possible for me to do the same for my three sons and my wife as well, through her 3 degrees.
But, the last decade has been a mess. Kodak has been unraveling as they have tried to convert from a film-based company to a digital-imaging company. Translated, that means moving from a very profitable business model to a huge money-sucking vacuum. Meanwhile, the management team at Kodak has been completely replaced with people whose history at the company probably spans less than five years and they have very skillfully driven the stock price down to $2 per share. Bleeding yellow is a forgotten culture. Can you believe this...our customers found out and called us before Kodak did..how's that for class?
What could be the problem? Evidently, someone in Rochester thinks small independently-owned companies must be the problem. So they sent out the order to shoot 'em all!
Now, I take that "personal".
Monday, March 9, 2009
It's not Personal. It's Just Business.
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2 comments:
Ted, Leah called me tonight and read your blog to me. I am so sorry. I know I haven't bled Mo-Pho over the years but I love you and you Have! It sickens me that this is what is has come to. You need to remember that you did the job well and this is not your fault! This is such a tough time for you and Julie- I hate it but the sun will shine again- I promise! We need to talk- let's do lunch or breakfast when you have some time. Love, Nanc
Eastman Kodak Co. has been included on a credit rating agency's list of 283 U.S. companies considered the likeliest to default on their debts.
Moody's Investors Service issued a new Bottom Rung list this week, and it contains almost twice as many companies as the 157 listed last year.
Kodak, a newcomer to the Bottom Rung, immediately disputed its inclusion.
"Any speculation, however informed, suggesting that Kodak is less than financially sound is irresponsible," said David Lanzillo, a spokesman for one of Rochester's largest employers. "Kodak is financially solid, and we are taking the right actions to ensure that we remain a strong and enduring competitor."
Lanzillo said Kodak ended 2008 with more than $2.1 billion in cash, a debt balance of $1.3 billion and no significant debt payments likely until late 2010.
In early February, the company told investors it expected to end 2009 with more than $1.7 billion in cash.
"We also told investors that in 2009 we will be a smaller, more profitable company, we will continue to maintain or grow market share in our most profitable digital businesses, and we will enter 2010 as a much stronger competitor," Lanzillo said.
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