I met a salesman today named Langston Roach. He’s the founder of the company that sells mostly cleaning products under the Lanher brand name. Here’s his story:
- He started his company from his garage 26 years ago with a loan from his mother of $25k
- He has done some pretty innovative stuff with direct selling to households
- He has moulded an army of merchandisers that are passionate about their brands
- He has focused almost exclusively on the trade as top priority for A&P investments
- He has done very very little advertising
- He will honor returns, no questions asked
- He focuses on substance over form (“get what’s inside the bottle right, not the packaging”)
His is a story of differentiation, sticking to the game plan and good old fashion hard work. He realised early that he could not beat Lever and the other big boys with grp’s, so he stayed off the TV completely. (and in fact all media) And just as he could not beat Lever on media muscle, they could not beat him on intimacy in the marketplace. He has built rock solid relationships in the trade.
This is not how the story normally goes. David does not normally survive against Goliath in the real world. So how come this cottage upstart has not only survived but thrived? I will proffer a reason. He is winning the market with love.
He loves his people and they love him back. Consumers and the trade know that he will exchange anything he sells. His is the un-corporation. He has no fancy layers and fat to feed and instead focuses maniacally on ensuring that every cent of investment he makes goes to making things better for consumers or customers. And he treats his people like real people, not graded bargaining units. It’s hard for corporations to learn to love. And it is this love thing and his strategic discipline are what make it hard to beat this salesman.
