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We recently saw a cartoon that made us laugh out loud — and then think of the Strata:G Calculators.
The cartoon shows a puppy at birth, then at 8 weeks, then at 20 weeks, and finally — in the “projected” panel — a long-legged, pointy-nosed, skinny-tailed creature labeled “Projected growth based on trend.”
Of course, that’s the problem with straight-line projections, isn’t it? Arithmetic will happily keep extending a trend forever. Reality? Not so much.
That’s where the Strata:G® Calculators stand apart.
Sure, anyone can make a spreadsheet do math. “Raise sales 5% a month.” Blink. Done. The numbers march neatly down the page, perfectly consistent — and perfectly meaningless.
What the Strata:G Calculators do is different. They’re built with room for your business savvy baked in.
Here at The ROI, we know that:
Not every line moves on trend.
Some expenses scale with sales, others don’t.
And most importantly, some numbers need the Owner’s judgment, not the accountant’s formulas.
In short, Strata-G Calculators know what matters — and what can safely be rounded off to the nearest thousand.
Our goal has never been to make accountants into forecasters or owners into bookkeepers. It’s to give decision-makers a clear, Big Picture view — the kind that sparks conversations, sharpens instincts, and leads to better decisions.
And now, AI is generating more possibilities and more "maybe we should..." ideas than ever. But which ones are truly worth pursuing?
With the Strata:G Calculators, you can hold every AI-generated idea accountable – instantly.
They’re fast, practical, and built for the realities of independent businesses. Perfect for busy owners in the AI Era. See more at The ROI’s What If…? Planning Center where your good judgment is very much respected.
It's that time of year when all the talk is about all that's new and different for retailers. As the trade show season gets into full swing, there is no shortage of reminders of all the elements you need for your business to "keep up."
We get it. Keeping pace with the relentless changes in retailing is not easy. Retailers know it demands constant adjustments.
But you’re the owner. How well is your business keeping pace with your personal goals and ambitions?
Remember, the point of owning your own business is to make the business work for you! How are you doing so far?
Let's assume your stores have been closed for weeks now.
We recognize how conscientious you are. So, after paying what you can to your employees (and yourself), the next most-worrisome dilemma is your rent.
As you likely have discovered, a common choice for many landlords is to offer to defer your payments. But that means taking on more debt, as those payments are only being postponed to a later point in time. You need a better solution than that.
This is, after all, The Retail OWNERS Institute. We long have specialized in alerting, coaxing, and applauding retail owners worldwide. Today's message is a major heads-up. Keeping pace with the relentless changes in retailing has never been easy. Retailers know that constant adjustments are demanded. Then, the three pandemics of 2020 happened: COVID; the economic meltdown; the social unrest. And life changed modestly or enormously for almost everyone, including owners of retail businesses.
Perhaps you saw that recent article* in The Wall Street Journal. As Ruth Simon reported, "The cost pressures squeezing small businesses – and their need to pass along those higher charges – help explain why inflation has been so stubborn."
As your stores are able to re-open after the coronavirus shutdowns, how they look tells a powerful story. And for you, a great opportunity. This is no time to try to go back to normal, back to business-as-usual. Nor to simply have all kinds of protective shields in your store. While necessary, how welcoming is that? Instead, this actually IS a second chance to make a good first impression! Take full advantage!
There's a very important annual job for you, the owner, and all of your senior staff. It's vital, and it involves your presence. The pressures are mounting on your stores, and in particular, your front line staff.
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