As you likely already know, the limited SF Exclusive Rose Quartz Points were released on Monday, and they sold out FAST. As in same-day-within-hours fast. Subsequently, many were disapPOINTed because they missed out (Sorry, couldn’t help myself ??). Some who were lucky to get their hands on them are reselling their exclusive points for higher prices, and that is adding to some customer’s frustrations. You can then always count on the capitalism debate that follows. It always does. Let me take a step back for a second though to switch over to a completely random, but somewhat relevant story... Here goes: I once studied an e-commerce startup out of California that found instant success and was funded for millions upon millions upon millions by investors. They had it all... the cult-like following, the celebrity spokespeople, and everyone’s attention. Their most rare and beloved products were reselling at outrages markups (which by the way is the best thing that can ever happen to a company and even it’s loyal customers - I’ll expand further on this in just a moment). This kind of attention can actually be sustainable for a company if it’s done right. Unfortunately for this particular startup I was studying, they made the detrimental mistake of purposely lowering quality standards to increase profitability right in the middle of their success. The kiss of death in business, basically. The quality plummeted so low that consumer trust was lost, and this caused their following to dwindle because their product was no longer desirable. Before they even knew what was happening, they were already bleeding from the inside out. Inner turmoil took over, and they ultimately collapsed. While this took a highly unfortunate turn and could have been prevented with some quick and proactive pivoting, the highlight here was the success that once was and the resale markups that had come along with it when their success was at an all time high.
I definitely do not think the masterminds behind Rothy’s would ever allow this same downfall plot line to follow for them. It’s just not Rothy’s. (continued in comments...)