July 9, 2009 Edition

Wow it is July already! Summer is swiftly moving along. Have you made Expo 28 plans yet? In this issue we discuss the merger of After Six and Chaplin and hear from Mr. Sam Kim CEO of the new company. We also have another great article on employee motivation/customer service, and other industry news. Let us know what you think editor@formaltimes.com.

Merger Misunderstanding

Just a short week ago the news broke on the merger of After Six and CSS Chaplin. As many of us struggle to absorb the implications of a merger of two big players in our industry we look for answers about the future. Never can two large companies come together and keep both the old products and staff current. It remains yet to be seen what will become of this joining, but some fallout has already taken place. Two of Chaplin’s sales staff have been let go. Roger March an 11 year veteran of CSS Chaplin Canada was the first. Next, Ken Pendley the Midwest and Western sales rep with over 21 years with the company. Jerry Mashman’s territory was rearranged and his services retained. As of this writing Joe Sgro had not gotten confirmation one way or the other When you look at both companies, differences are huge. What will become of styles for both? What quality issues can be expected or changed? We all have many questions. I put a few of them to Sam Kim President of the new After Six LLC. Following are his exact answer to each. 1. Who bought who? Is it an equal merger or have you purchased the company? [Sam Kim] It was an equal merger under the name of After Six LLC 2. 2 Strong companies can not merge without fallout, who/what is out? [Sam Kim] There will be fallout, but I rather not mention who/what at this time. 3. Has this been in the works for a long time or did an opportunity present itself recently? [Sam Kim] No comment 4. You have developed strong well sold vest lines, so has After Six what can owners of both expect? [Sam Kim] Vest lines from both companies will be offered under one roof.  5. What about future construction of the garments, After Six's factory or yours? [Sam Kim] Nothing will change. We will continue to use the same factories in order to give consistency in our products. 6. What is the greatest thing that CSS brings to After Six? [Sam Kim] Two companies carried products that are very complimentary to each other. I believe the combination will bring a synergy that will be beneficial not only to After Six, but to our customers as well. 7. What about convention, will you display as one company now? and under what name? [Sam Kim] Two companies have merged under the name of “After Six LLC”, and all functions will be carried out as one. 8. What is the official list of executive titles? [Sam Kim] this is in process 9. Have sales territories changed? [Sam Kim] there may be minor changes. 10. What can we as your customers expect from this NEW company? [Sam Kim] Better service and cooperation in all aspects of business between the New company and customers.  11. Hypothetically, a year from now where are your hopes for the company? [Sam Kim] I hope to settled all the dusts from the merging process and providing services and products to our customers at a higher level than before. Just Released New Sales Territories  AFTER SIX NEW TERRITORIES Nick Cindea: WA, OR, CA, NV, UT, ID, AZ, MT, WY, CO, NM, HI, AK, and WESTERN CANADA Paul Alioto: OH, MI, IN, IL, WI, MO, ND, SD, NE, KS, IA and MN Ed Murphy: MS, KY, VA, TN, NC, SC, GA, AL, FL, TX, OK, LA and AR Jerry Mashman: ME, VT, NH, MA, RI, CT, NY, NJ, DE, DC, MD, PA, WV, Al's F/W, and Eastern Canada Pedro Bonilla/Jack Semanaz: Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands Lenny Bloom: International Accounts Stuart Feinberg: Manager of closeouts and Special Markets Bobby Lucarelli:  Key Account Sales Manager We thank Mr. Kim for taking the time to answer our questions and will have to wait and see how everything settles…. What do you think? Let us know editor@formaltimes.com.   Just a short week ago the news broke on the merger of After Six and CSS Chaplin. As many of us struggle to absorb the implications of a merger of two big players in our industry we look for answers about the future. Never can two large companies come together and keep both the old products and staff current. It remains yet to be seen what will become of this joining, but some fallout has already taken place. Two of Chaplin’s sales staff have been let go. Roger March an 11 year veteran of CSS Chaplin Canada was the first. Next, Ken Pendley the Midwest and Western sales rep with over 21 years with the company. Jerry Mashman’s territory was rearranged and his services retained. As of this writing Joe Sgro had not gotten confirmation one way or the other When you look at both companies, differences are huge. What will become of styles for both? What quality issues can be expected or changed? We all have many questions. I put a few of them to Sam Kim President of the new After Six LLC. Following are his exact answer to each. 1. Who bought who? Is it an equal merger or have you purchased the company? [Sam Kim] It was an equal merger under the name of After Six LLC 2. 2 Strong companies can not merge without fallout, who/what is out? [Sam Kim] There will be fallout, but I rather not mention who/what at this time. 3. Has this been in the works for a long time or did an opportunity present itself recently? [Sam Kim] No comment 4. You have developed strong well sold vest lines, so has After Six what can owners of both expect? [Sam Kim] Vest lines from both companies will be offered under one roof.  5. What about future construction of the garments, After Six's factory or yours? [Sam Kim] Nothing will change. We will continue to use the same factories in order to give consistency in our products. 6. What is the greatest thing that CSS brings to After Six? [Sam Kim] Two companies carried products that are very complimentary to each other. I believe the combination will bring a synergy that will be beneficial not only to After Six, but to our customers as well. 7. What about convention, will you display as one company now? and under what name? [Sam Kim] Two companies have merged under the name of “After Six LLC”, and all functions will be carried out as one. 8. What is the official list of executive titles? [Sam Kim] this is in process 9. Have sales territories changed? [Sam Kim] there may be minor changes. 10. What can we as your customers expect from this NEW company? [Sam Kim] Better service and cooperation in all aspects of business between the New company and customers.  11. Hypothetically, a year from now where are your hopes for the company? [Sam Kim] I hope to settled all the dusts from the merging process and providing services and products to our customers at a higher level than before. Just Released New Sales Territories  AFTER SIX NEW TERRITORIES Nick Cindea: WA, OR, CA, NV, UT, ID, AZ, MT, WY, CO, NM, HI, AK, and WESTERN CANADA Paul Alioto: OH, MI, IN, IL, WI, MO, ND, SD, NE, KS, IA and MN Ed Murphy: MS, KY, VA, TN, NC, SC, GA, AL, FL, TX, OK, LA and AR Jerry Mashman: ME, VT, NH, MA, RI, CT, NY, NJ, DE, DC, MD, PA, WV, Al's F/W, and Eastern Canada Pedro Bonilla/Jack Semanaz: Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands Lenny Bloom: International Accounts Stuart Feinberg: Manager of closeouts and Special Markets Bobby Lucarelli:  Key Account Sales Manager We thank Mr. Kim for taking the time to answer our questions and will have to wait and see how everything settles…. What do you think? Let us know editor@formaltimes.com.

Convention Is Fast Aproaching

Convention is fast approaching and all reports look good. We have a great list of vendors and we hope to see you there! Follow the link below to make reservations now. What are you looking for? Come and see what Expo 28 has to offer. The convention will be held August 27 & 28th in Las Vegas at the Hilton. Room rates have been reduced to only $69 for an upgraded premium room! Reservations 800-635-7711 Ask for the International Formalwear Association room rate of $69 Hurry!!! Rate is only guaranteed through July 17! You will receive an upgraded premium room and you can extend your stay to include MAGIC at the same rate if you would like. Members have open access to all convention events as part of their membership, but please take the time to send in your reservation on who will be attending expo which is necessary for badge information. We need an accounting to insure proper space. If for some reason you did not receive your convention packet, you can download the attendee registration form at www.formalwear.org and fax it back. Convention is fast approaching and all reports look good. We have a great list of vendors and we hope to see you there! Follow the link below to make reservations now. What are you looking for? Come and see what Expo 28 has to offer. The convention will be held August 27 & 28th in Las Vegas at the Hilton. Room rates have been reduced to only $69 for an upgraded premium room! Reservations 800-635-7711 Ask for the International Formalwear Association room rate of $69 Hurry!!! Rate is only guaranteed through July 17! You will receive an upgraded premium room and you can extend your stay to include MAGIC at the same rate if you would like. Members have open access to all convention events as part of their membership, but please take the time to send in your reservation on who will be attending expo which is necessary for badge information. We need an accounting to insure proper space. If for some reason you did not receive your convention packet, you can download the attendee registration form at www.formalwear.org and fax it back.

Retail Street Fight

Following is the 3rd part in a series of great articles from Arnie Capitanelli, who is one of the presenters of our educational seminars at Expo 28. He brings an aggressive straight forward approach to employee/customer relations. Read on and let us know what you think editor@formaltimes.com.  Part 3 – Enter The CAP Zone By: Arnie Capitanelli, III In retail there are different ways of attempting behavioral consistency. One method uses high levels of accountability and making everything a policy under threat of progressive discipline and consequences. Another hopes consistency will occur by treating people nicely and trying to impress upon them the importance of the behavior but without any real threat of disciplinary action. And the final would be a blending of both systems where behavioral change occurs by creating a belief system, employing a disciplined approach to superior customer experiences, monitoring performance to identify gaps in behavior and finally driving the message home with consistent and unrelenting messaging about serving customers. One of the most common examples of trying to influence behavior on the retail sales floor is the ever popular attempt to get salespeople to stop saying “Can I help you?” when customers come in the store because the vast majority of shoppers will respond, “No thanks, I’m just looking.” At that point the salesperson will drift away and may even blurt a perfunctory response of supplying their name and offering assistance should any be required. In this situation a retailer might attempt to implement a policy, non-negotiable standard, or best practice that customers can’t be greeted with such a line under penalty of progressive discipline. Other retailers may attempt to strongly recommend that it not be done, but won’t enforce it. So what’s the solution? Ditch the policy and drive the desired behavior with an unrelenting message regarding how customers are to be greeted. Then hold the salesperson accountable for what they were hired to do, make sales. The truth is this; policies are for operational components of the store. That’s it, period! Performance expectations are for the selling and service side of the business. So if a salesperson is violating policies like chronic tardiness, paperwork issues, inventory process and such, then write ‘em up. A retail street fighter can’t be caught up in such petty issues. The fight will be an embarrassment if the street fighter is chasing small operational policy issues. Conversely, if a salesperson is underperforming relative to baseline productivity metrics, then this is a clear sign they are not serving a customer. That’s reality. I promise you, I can get a team of salespeople to greet the customer in a way that aligns with my vision for the customer experience without having the threat of severe consequence every time they open their mouth or banging my head against the wall with constant reminding. Instead of having policy regarding how to behave with a customer, the answer lies in knowing that a superior customer experience has a defined set of disciplines for how to satisfy the belief that customer deserve an experience that is consistent and superior to those of other retailers. If you had a shared belief that all customer experiences should be consistent and superior, then in order to satisfy that belief, salespeople would have to be aware of how they were going to engage a customer.   The disciplines would suggest: Customers should be greeted in a way that engages them and invokes positive conversation. Greetings should be welcoming and sincere. Salespeople should practice awareness of how a customer is responding to the engagement. Although these may seem a bit ambiguous, they are not meant to be specific behavior that is set in stone as policy. They are meant to be disciplines that when delivered consistently, satisfy the belief. And if the salesperson is not consistent with these disciplines, it will show up in their performance. I would never impute a consequence on a salesperson for asking, “Can I help you?” Seriously, is that the kind of pressure you want to put on a 10-year veteran who also happens to be a million dollar writer, and has a great way of engaging the customer with the phrase, “Can I help you?” Trust me, I’ve tried this; in the long run it doesn’t work. If it did, that opening line would be gone by now. Again, if the salesperson is not good at engaging customers it’ll show up in their performance. There are 3 zones that categorize the different management methods being described so far. The Camaraderie Zone: The Camaraderie Zone retailer attempts to get the staff to buy in using motivation and Kumbaya moments. Everyone is treated like family and the operator believes that if the staff likes or respects him, they will do what is expected. I often hear these retailers say, “Can you give me advice on how to write up my mother-in-law?” Some common phrases of The Camaraderie Zone Retailer: If I treat them well, they’ll do it. Can we all just get along? I know he can’t sell, but he’s such a loyal employee. She’s been here forever; she’s like family. A store that uses a camaraderie model at the extreme end is hoping the staff will behave properly out of respect and a sense of obligation. Unfortunately as this retailer grows, their ability to get behavioral consistency diminishes as their ability to be omnipresent wanes. The spirit of the family becomes diluted and they often become frustrated as they begin to experience a lack of behavioral consistency. Oftentimes the desperate retailer responds by swinging the pendulum the other direction into the Compliance Zone. The Compliance Zone: At the other end of the spectrum are retailers who attempt conformity via non-negotiable rules and standards and time restrictive performance accountability. This model leaves little room for deviation from the plan and requires a human resource department that is in high gear every time an employee is accused of burping in the wrong direction. Turnover is a fact of life. Some common phrases of The Compliance Zone Retailer: This is not negotiable. When I want your opinion, I’ll give it to you. If this happens again, I’ll have to write you up. It’s my way or the highway. An operation that employs a strict accountability model, operating with extremely detailed standards for performance and behavioral compliance, is banking on the idea that employees will comply if the consequences are severe enough. Operating in either one of these zones is fine provided the retail street fighter is aware that there is a kryptonite factor for both zones; a character trait in most people that will prevent these retailers from reaching higher levels of behavioral consistency. The kryptonite of both the Compliance and Camaraderie Zones is called “self-intendedness”. Self-intendedness is a condition that exists in every human. It basically means that every person is ultimately behaving in a way to satisfy their personal wants, needs and desires. Self-intendedness means, “I do what I believe is right for me.” The CAP Zone: In order to reach higher levels of behavioral consistency, a retailer must work with the associate’s self-intendedness. , The retailer must enter “The CAP Zone”. CAP stands for Customer Advocate Program. CAP has an objective of getting the associate to tap into their belief system; which is driving their thoughts and behavior, as opposed to attempting behavioral consistency in spite of it. Some core attributes of The CAP Zone Uses customer feedback to define the customer experience. Relies heavily on addressing the belief system, not attacking behavior as a method for achieving higher levels of behavioral consistency. Willingness to do the right thing is the ticket to the dance. Varying degrees of apathy towards serving customers is unacceptable. Behavioral compliance is reserved for operational policy violations. Performance trends are used to identify gaps in the customer experience and become the basis for skill development or corrective action. Managers enlist coaching skills designed to cause associates to self-discover the behaviors required to improve performance. Consistent performance “below the line” becomes the true objective method for disciplinary measures. Once higher levels of service becomes a core belief, is apparent culturally in the business model and chasing operational compliance is not tolerated, then supervisors are freed up to tap into the innate desire and pre-existing skills the associates have to serve others. When this method for managing performance is employed, self-intendedness becomes an ally of the retailer as opposed to a force working against the retailer. For more information about CAP seminars and consulting contact Arnie Capitanelli at 770-845-7059 or visit www.arniecap3.com. Following is the 3rd part in a series of great articles from Arnie Capitanelli, who is one of the presenters of our educational seminars at Expo 28. He brings an aggressive straight forward approach to employee/customer relations. Read on and let us know what you think editor@formaltimes.com.  Part 3 – Enter The CAP Zone By: Arnie Capitanelli, III In retail there are different ways of attempting behavioral consistency. One method uses high levels of accountability and making everything a policy under threat of progressive discipline and consequences. Another hopes consistency will occur by treating people nicely and trying to impress upon them the importance of the behavior but without any real threat of disciplinary action. And the final would be a blending of both systems where behavioral change occurs by creating a belief system, employing a disciplined approach to superior customer experiences, monitoring performance to identify gaps in behavior and finally driving the message home with consistent and unrelenting messaging about serving customers. One of the most common examples of trying to influence behavior on the retail sales floor is the ever popular attempt to get salespeople to stop saying “Can I help you?” when customers come in the store because the vast majority of shoppers will respond, “No thanks, I’m just looking.” At that point the salesperson will drift away and may even blurt a perfunctory response of supplying their name and offering assistance should any be required. In this situation a retailer might attempt to implement a policy, non-negotiable standard, or best practice that customers can’t be greeted with such a line under penalty of progressive discipline. Other retailers may attempt to strongly recommend that it not be done, but won’t enforce it. So what’s the solution? Ditch the policy and drive the desired behavior with an unrelenting message regarding how customers are to be greeted. Then hold the salesperson accountable for what they were hired to do, make sales. The truth is this; policies are for operational components of the store. That’s it, period! Performance expectations are for the selling and service side of the business. So if a salesperson is violating policies like chronic tardiness, paperwork issues, inventory process and such, then write ‘em up. A retail street fighter can’t be caught up in such petty issues. The fight will be an embarrassment if the street fighter is chasing small operational policy issues. Conversely, if a salesperson is underperforming relative to baseline productivity metrics, then this is a clear sign they are not serving a customer. That’s reality. I promise you, I can get a team of salespeople to greet the customer in a way that aligns with my vision for the customer experience without having the threat of severe consequence every time they open their mouth or banging my head against the wall with constant reminding. Instead of having policy regarding how to behave with a customer, the answer lies in knowing that a superior customer experience has a defined set of disciplines for how to satisfy the belief that customer deserve an experience that is consistent and superior to those of other retailers. If you had a shared belief that all customer experiences should be consistent and superior, then in order to satisfy that belief, salespeople would have to be aware of how they were going to engage a customer.   The disciplines would suggest: Customers should be greeted in a way that engages them and invokes positive conversation. Greetings should be welcoming and sincere. Salespeople should practice awareness of how a customer is responding to the engagement. Although these may seem a bit ambiguous, they are not meant to be specific behavior that is set in stone as policy. They are meant to be disciplines that when delivered consistently, satisfy the belief. And if the salesperson is not consistent with these disciplines, it will show up in their performance. I would never impute a consequence on a salesperson for asking, “Can I help you?” Seriously, is that the kind of pressure you want to put on a 10-year veteran who also happens to be a million dollar writer, and has a great way of engaging the customer with the phrase, “Can I help you?” Trust me, I’ve tried this; in the long run it doesn’t work. If it did, that opening line would be gone by now. Again, if the salesperson is not good at engaging customers it’ll show up in their performance. There are 3 zones that categorize the different management methods being described so far. The Camaraderie Zone: The Camaraderie Zone retailer attempts to get the staff to buy in using motivation and Kumbaya moments. Everyone is treated like family and the operator believes that if the staff likes or respects him, they will do what is expected. I often hear these retailers say, “Can you give me advice on how to write up my mother-in-law?” Some common phrases of The Camaraderie Zone Retailer: If I treat them well, they’ll do it. Can we all just get along? I know he can’t sell, but he’s such a loyal employee. She’s been here forever; she’s like family. A store that uses a camaraderie model at the extreme end is hoping the staff will behave properly out of respect and a sense of obligation. Unfortunately as this retailer grows, their ability to get behavioral consistency diminishes as their ability to be omnipresent wanes. The spirit of the family becomes diluted and they often become frustrated as they begin to experience a lack of behavioral consistency. Oftentimes the desperate retailer responds by swinging the pendulum the other direction into the Compliance Zone. The Compliance Zone: At the other end of the spectrum are retailers who attempt conformity via non-negotiable rules and standards and time restrictive performance accountability. This model leaves little room for deviation from the plan and requires a human resource department that is in high gear every time an employee is accused of burping in the wrong direction. Turnover is a fact of life. Some common phrases of The Compliance Zone Retailer: This is not negotiable. When I want your opinion, I’ll give it to you. If this happens again, I’ll have to write you up. It’s my way or the highway. An operation that employs a strict accountability model, operating with extremely detailed standards for performance and behavioral compliance, is banking on the idea that employees will comply if the consequences are severe enough. Operating in either one of these zones is fine provided the retail street fighter is aware that there is a kryptonite factor for both zones; a character trait in most people that will prevent these retailers from reaching higher levels of behavioral consistency. The kryptonite of both the Compliance and Camaraderie Zones is called “self-intendedness”. Self-intendedness is a condition that exists in every human. It basically means that every person is ultimately behaving in a way to satisfy their personal wants, needs and desires. Self-intendedness means, “I do what I believe is right for me.” The CAP Zone: In order to reach higher levels of behavioral consistency, a retailer must work with the associate’s self-intendedness. , The retailer must enter “The CAP Zone”. CAP stands for Customer Advocate Program. CAP has an objective of getting the associate to tap into their belief system; which is driving their thoughts and behavior, as opposed to attempting behavioral consistency in spite of it. Some core attributes of The CAP Zone Uses customer feedback to define the customer experience. Relies heavily on addressing the belief system, not attacking behavior as a method for achieving higher levels of behavioral consistency. Willingness to do the right thing is the ticket to the dance. Varying degrees of apathy towards serving customers is unacceptable. Behavioral compliance is reserved for operational policy violations. Performance trends are used to identify gaps in the customer experience and become the basis for skill development or corrective action. Managers enlist coaching skills designed to cause associates to self-discover the behaviors required to improve performance. Consistent performance “below the line” becomes the true objective method for disciplinary measures. Once higher levels of service becomes a core belief, is apparent culturally in the business model and chasing operational compliance is not tolerated, then supervisors are freed up to tap into the innate desire and pre-existing skills the associates have to serve others. When this method for managing performance is employed, self-intendedness becomes an ally of the retailer as opposed to a force working against the retailer. For more information about CAP seminars and consulting contact Arnie Capitanelli at 770-845-7059 or visit www.arniecap3.com.

Commemorative Stamp

Add a first class reminder to all of your mailing pieces. The post office has released a new first class stamp that would enhance any formalwear direct mail piece. Postal Service Salutes 'G.I. Bob' With First-Class Stamp Bob Hope Stamp Issued on What Would Have Been Entertainer's 106th Birthday Follow link below for full story on the life of Bob Hope and the process of being chosen for the stamp. http://www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/2009/pr09_053.htm  Add a first class reminder to all of your mailing pieces. The post office has released a new first class stamp that would enhance any formalwear direct mail piece. Postal Service Salutes 'G.I. Bob' With First-Class Stamp Bob Hope Stamp Issued on What Would Have Been Entertainer's 106th Birthday Follow link below for full story on the life of Bob Hope and the process of being chosen for the stamp. http://www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/2009/pr09_053.htm

Industry News

Men’s Wearhouse appears to have lost its bid to purchase Filene’s Basement, famous for their “running of the brides.” As reported in last issue Men’s Wearhouse was in bidding war with so many unusual twists it created one of the longest running and most complex buyouts in retail bankruptcies. The joint venture combination of Syms Corp. and Vornado Realty Trust appeared to have emerged victorious in this 2nd round, after coming up short the first time. In this round, Syms the off price chain based in Secaucus, NJ and ‘Vorando beat out the team of The Men’s Wearhouse Inc. and Crown Acquisitions with an offer of $62.4 million for 23 stores. Men’s Wearhouse and Crown were opponents in the first round that Men’s Wearhouse had supposedly won! Both Crown and Syms filed complaints that the original auction won by Men’s Wearhouse failed to follow court approved procedures and was overturned. As the second round got under way, Men’s Wearhouse and Crown had joined forces despite the earlier criticisms. Men’s Wearhouse was seen to be holding an advantage over their opponents due to their stronger financial position and backing by the financial community. Men’s Wearhouse bid of $64.9 million was beat out by Syms/Vornado’s 62.4 million bid because it included more units. Maybe this story isn’t over??? Men’s Wearhouse appears to have lost its bid to purchase Filene’s Basement, famous for their “running of the brides.” As reported in last issue Men’s Wearhouse was in bidding war with so many unusual twists it created one of the longest running and most complex buyouts in retail bankruptcies. The joint venture combination of Syms Corp. and Vornado Realty Trust appeared to have emerged victorious in this 2nd round, after coming up short the first time. In this round, Syms the off price chain based in Secaucus, NJ and ‘Vorando beat out the team of The Men’s Wearhouse Inc. and Crown Acquisitions with an offer of $62.4 million for 23 stores. Men’s Wearhouse and Crown were opponents in the first round that Men’s Wearhouse had supposedly won! Both Crown and Syms filed complaints that the original auction won by Men’s Wearhouse failed to follow court approved procedures and was overturned. As the second round got under way, Men’s Wearhouse and Crown had joined forces despite the earlier criticisms. Men’s Wearhouse was seen to be holding an advantage over their opponents due to their stronger financial position and backing by the financial community. Men’s Wearhouse bid of $64.9 million was beat out by Syms/Vornado’s 62.4 million bid because it included more units. Maybe this story isn’t over???

Wants & Offerings

Retailers: Send your lists of items to sell or looking to buy to editor@formaltimes.com Retailers: Send your lists of items to sell or looking to buy to editor@formaltimes.com

Thoughts of the Week

“Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.” ~ Dr. Seuss~ “You must have control of the authorship of your own destiny. The pen that writes your life story must be held in your own hand.” ~ Irene C. Kassorla ~ “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.” ~ Dr. Seuss~ “You must have control of the authorship of your own destiny. The pen that writes your life story must be held in your own hand.” ~ Irene C. Kassorla ~