a big swing,” Curtis says. “As habits normalized, we decided the standalone model wasn’t the future. But it wasn’t a failure. We took what worked—processes, tooling, consumer expectations—and pulled it back into the stores.” That “test, learn, integrate” loop runs constantly. Curtis spends his weeks at conferences and on demos with vendors. So does Mr. Michael. “Half the time, he’s sending me new companies before I hear about them,” Curtis laughs. “Our job is to figure out what actually improves the customer’s experience— and our team’s.” WHERE THE INDUSTRY’S HEADED (AND WHERE CAPITAL ALREADY IS) If there’s a single bet, it’s this: omni-channel. Not in the marketing cliché sense, but in the operational one. “We can’t decide for our customers how they want to do business,” Curtis says.“Some want to start online and finish in-store. Some want to do everything in person, but text with us for updates. Some want a fully digital path—until the last five minutes. Our job is to meet people where they are—seamlessly.” 34 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 12, ISSUE 11
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