I heard about this on Rush Limbaugh's show. I laughed at first until it suddenly came to me that we have big problems in this country. This only typifies the lack of go-get-um-ness that helped to make this country great.
In reading the following story I could not believe a company would throw away $200,000+ in goods. What has happened in this world to kill salesmanship? Here is the story as told by WFTV.com of Florida.
----quote----
SANFORD, FL. -- The customer complaints were unrelenting: With every step, their shoes made the sound of someone passing gas.
"They were whoopee cushions for the feet," said Bryan Thomas, an officer with shoe maker Goosebumps Products Inc.
The Orlando-area company on Wednesday sued a supplier, accusing it of delivering the wrong chemical for an insole gel, giving the shoes an unwanted sound effect.
--- end quote ---
This company tossed 35,000 pairs of shoes because the glycerin was low grade and air bubbles formed in the inserts. As stated before it was the death of salesmanship in this country that prevented this company from making a fortune.
Think of the customer base with which they could have used pin point advertising and sold the shoes at 3 times their original asking price.
- Clowns - These would go great for clowns that do kid's birthday parties and mall appearances.
- Young Boys - Bathroom humor is a favorite with boys and they would love going up and down the school halls making fart sounds. Teachers might have to require they leave the shoes at the door to keep them from disrupting class time but this too could be used in the ads.
- Prank Gifts - A pair for the uncle that is always saying, "Pull on my finger."
- Halloween Gear - How can anyone dress as Clinton or Bush NOT have a pair of these shoes?
- Waitresses - With a pair of these shoes the customer will hear the waitress coming and be prepared to catch her as she passes (no pun intended).
The list is endless. - Hate your boss? These will drive him nuts. - Church is too stuffy and you want to liven it up some? - People consider you too serious all the time? - Want your girlfriend to break up with you? -
How could they throw them away? Where is the dumpster for this outfit??
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