The Talbot Lifestyle

I have been absent from the Promotional Products Industry and Talbot Marketing for 2 years. As I reconnect with old friends and make new ones the first question I am asked consistently is “What made you come back?”.

The answer is simple….“The Talbot Lifestyle”. But first a little background:

Making the move originally from our family owned distributorship was terrifying. We had 30 years of history, prestigious accounts, a well appointed downtown office with showrooms full of samples and a warehousing and fulfillment centre. We also had a lot of overhead expenses, Accounts Payable to juggle, Accounts Receivables to chase, Employees to manage, and Creditors to answer to.

I didn’t believe that my clients would continue to work with me if I didn’t have the trappings of a big business to back me up. As it turns out, my clients would continue to work with me because of “Me”. It wasn’t about the fancy showroom full of products or having someone bring them a Latte’. It was about strong relationships, and the value I brought to the relationship was creative applications of promotional products.

At Talbot I was able to focus on what I love “Selling”, and my sales increased by 30% and my Gross Profit increased by 6%. Nothing revolutionary here, people who are happy at work tend to be successful at work.

So to bring this full circle: When we had our own distributorship I would be off to the office before my family was up, and on a good day I would be home early enough to see my kids to tuck them in(but not usually). After a late reheated dinner, most evenings were spent reviewing invoices, A/R, A/P all the stuff I didn’t have time for during the day. When I was done my work, I was too tired to spend any quality time with my wife and would usually just go to bed.

The Talbot Lifestyle afforded me the luxury of getting to know my family again….We ate breakfast and dinner together and talked about our days, I started to exercise during the day and lost 45 pounds(something I always promised I would do but never did). And most importantly, I struck the elusive work/life balance and began to really enjoy both.

Talbot has been in business for 126 years because it is a great company to work for and with. Our core values haven’t changed and I believe the “Human Factor” is the real key to our success.

I couldn’t be happier to be back in a new role with Talbot and I am pleased to be able to share my experience with existing and potential Talbot Family. I encourage others to share their stories/questions in the comments section, Tweet them here #TalbotLifestyle, or message me directly danny@talbotpromo.com or @dannybraunstein.