Finding value in good products and service

The first quarter of 2009, I found my family having to invest in a few big purchases.
Only a week after picking up our 1996 GM Blazer from the shop for some maintenance, we were driving home when the S.U.V started making some very loud and, no doubt, expensive noises. We decided not to spend more money on a aging car and decided to look at new cars. Our needs are different then they were in 1996 and we were able to look at more compact cars. After doing some internet research, we decided to take a look at a Toyota Yaris. The next day my family went to look at cars at Boulder Toyota. We made a quick decision and bought a 2009 Yaris. They were happy to have our business and we were excited to have a more fuel efficient new car. The service was great and the incentives were nice. The Yaris is small yet it has five seats. My husband is 6’1 and it has head room for him. It is really well designed and the best part is it gets 35 miles per gallon of gas. As I drive it, I feel the people who engineered it truly thought of the end result ( making the customer happy.) What a bonus for having to replace your old S.U.V!
The next purchase we made for our oldest daughter who is starting C.U in the fall. For her 18th birthday we bought her first computer. She wanted a Apple Macbook, so I found myself at the Apple Store at the Twentyninth Street Mall. I was surprised at how excited I became when the apple employee started showing us all the MacBook could do. I knew about half way through the presentation I would have to have one. I’ve never had my own computer, until now. As of this weekend we now have two MacBooks in the house ( it was the morning after our March blizzard and the Apple store was humming with activity). It is changing my relationship with computers. I feel if you are a creative person or in a creative business Apple computers are the way to go. I decided to go ahead and get one after my co-worker Laura (who also just purchased a Macbook) was telling me for a extra $100 you can attend a class once a week, for a year at the Apple Store. The classes made me confident I could learn all my investment had to offer.
It’s much easier to make big purchases when you feel you are getting your moneys worth.
Chicago Hair Salon is always looking to emulate other great business models. We are focused on providing great value and service so our clients don’t have be concerned if their hair is going to look great during a meeting or a vacation. Our focus in March has been team building. We have found we really share the same vision for our clients and ourselves. It has brought us closer together as a group. It went so well, we will be incorporating a team building class into our class schedule every four months. It will allow us to keep up with any changing realities and address them promptly. The workshop was based on a book called Fierce Conversations by Susan Scott, I highly recommend it for help in maintaining real open communication in personal and professional relationships.