Sir Paul

 Hi fellas,

The only thing to write about this week really is the  Paul McCartney concert. I’m not going to give anything away aside from the incredible impact it had on me. To summarize, wow. You guys know that I’ve always been a sort of reluctant Beatles fan. You know, the little Gen Xer trying to find his own style against the immense talent of the Fab Four. But you also know that since you boys have had your own discovery of them I’ve been much more appreciative of them. I told Jacob a few revelations I had during the concert. 

1. Somehow, I knew every lyric of every song he played, it’s as if I absorbed them all those times Art and Patti listened to them.
2. Several times, I had an emotional response when he’d start a song. I’m surprised those songs are so internalized.
3. I cannot separate those songs from my brother and sister. I sent aunt Patti several videos and even FaceTimed her for one of the songs. (I really regret not buying a ticket for your aunt and bringing her with us. It’s like I need to experience that music with her. It may be like that for you boys when you’re older.)
4. Like The Rolling Stones, and probably much more so, Paul and the Beatles are the bedrock to our common culture. It’s like the Apollo missions or the fall of the Berlin Wall. 

Anyway, it was great. I saw Paul McCartney. I sang along with a Beatle that, as Ben says, I was in the same room as.

Otherwise, nothing too eventful about the trip. We had originally planned to fly, but Spirit Airlines decided to vacate the Salt Lake airport, so we just drove. For our one meal, we decided to try a Vegas buffet. It was fine, I learned how to eat crab legs. I should have had more. On the way home this morning we got Pink box donuts. I figured they’d be overhyped like all the fancy pastry places that we try, but they were really good. We’ll have to get some next time we’re together, there might be one in American Fork.

The other news for this week is that I officially decided not to buy the business. It never felt right even though there were several aspects that were very attractive to me, like the ability to have you guys work with me. I wrote this as a response to the company, it’s probably the best way to explain my reasoning,

Hey Steve,

Thanks for the follow-up. Over the past week, I’ve been on a bit of a discovery tour, speaking with people in my network who I’d likely be working with to develop business for this endeavor. I connected with some reps at the large offset printers I’ve used in past projects (often for packaging and signage), a few potential clients from my software marketing network, a couple of sign shop owners (one I’ve worked with before and one I know through my network), and even my contact in commercial real estate. Here’s what I found:

Competition: There’s a lot of competition in this space. I initially assumed the main players were higher-end shops like Fusion or Ferrari Color, or lower-end shops like Alphagraphics or Signarama. But there’s actually more mid-market competition than I expected.

Specialization: Many of these shops have carved out their niche. For example, one owner does a lot of work for CR England and has invested heavily in equipment like scissor lifts and bucket trucks. Another shop focuses almost entirely on commercial real estate signage. I’d need to determine what niche to pursue and what the capital investment would require.

Brand Recognition: This is where I had hoped SpeedPro would provide an advantage. But based on my conversations, there isn’t much brand equity or recognition for SpeedPro in this market. While I do think there’s potential to build it, one of the reasons I considered a franchise was to buy into existing brand equity. If I have to build it here, that feels like value I’d be creating, not leveraging.

Investment: In looking at both retirement funds and loan options, I’m not sure the value is there for me. While SpeedPro would provide a head start, it may not be comprehensive enough relative to the investment—especially given the sales, marketing, and brand-building efforts I’d still need to provide.

“Why?”: More than one person asked me this directly. Their feedback was: You’re a great creative/brand guy—why not put your efforts there? And truthfully, my consultancy has been growing steadily over the past several months.

I’m heading to Vegas this afternoon with Heidi and my son Jacob, and then on to Chicago Monday. I’m sure you’d like to talk through these concerns, and I’d be happy to listen. My experience with you and the team at your office was nothing but positive. From the above, you can probably see where my head is right now. Let’s plan to connect when I return—either next Friday or the first half of the following week.

Kindly,

George

Tomorrow Jake and I leave for Chicago, I’m looking forward to it. I’m feeling especially fortunate because Jacob invited me. I know it’s just by default because you guys are gone, but I’ll take it. I do have a little trepidation because I have a bit of freelance work that I don’t want to interrupt it. In fact, now that I’ve committed to it, I need to double down on building my freelance up. I need to get a few more clients.

Joe, I’m sending a picture of a car across the street for sale. I’m not sure what kind of condition it’s in, but it looks clean. It’s in the same vein of dorky cars that always stick you guys with. No promises here, but let me know if you want me to get more info on it.

With that. We can now say, “Joe will be home next week.” I like the sound of that.

Love you,

Pops