Huppin’s thrives where others fail

There are several digital cameras on the counter, and the customer is working to narrow down his choices. The clerk is translating the consumer’s needs into English rather than techno-terms. Suddenly, the customer interrupts this educational process, telling the clerk he needs to go plug his meter. The salesperson reaches into his pocket, produces a couple of quarters and hands them to the man, even offering to send another employee out to take care of the meter for the customer.

Just another typical crowded Saturday at Huppin’s in downtown Spokane, with at least 20 customers wandering the store, searching for and/or dreaming of possessing all sorts of electronic products. We ask for help regarding some speakers, and an employee lets us know that he will find “the expert” for us so we get the best information. What a refreshing way to serve customers!

My partner and I shop Huppin’s a couple of Saturdays each month, and it’s always full of people. On a recent visit, I just stood back and watched the staff at work. How is this place so successful, I asked myself? There are all sorts of strikes against them: they are downtown where you have to pay for parking and they constantly compete with many “big name, big box” stores. A store like Magnolia Hi Fi on North Division closed earlier this year, yet Huppin’s continues to thrive. Why?

In many of my discussions with local business people, the tough business climate with all of its current barriers is a favorite topic. The list includes: competition presented by the mega-retailers, road construction, the parking situation, high rental overhead, gasoline prices, the employee challenge (hiring, training and keeping good employees), and the Internet are all seen as threats.

Yet, after watching Huppin’s and its online division, OneCall ( www.onecall.com) thrive I decided that owner Murray Huppin must have some pearls of wisdom to bestow upon all business people. I tracked down Murray and asked him about his success, and this is what he had to say:

In 1993, Huppin’s had six to seven potential regional competitors who had the clout to put it out of business, and knew that if favorable relationships and pricing with vendors was to continue, Huppin’s would need to compete with the big guys.

So, to expand its customer base, Huppin’s looked into mail order, and three months later, OneCall was launched on the Internet.

Murray went onto say that at that time, Huppin’s did have a computer, but it wasn’t even plugged in! Now, 88 percent of the company’s business comes from online transactions, and has grown from 20 to more than 100 employees. Smart move!

As far as finding and keeping great employees, Murray has enticed highly skilled quality people directly from the big boys. He shared that recruiting people to Spokane is not all that difficult, pointing to the fact that moving anywhere for a decent job is a clear lifestyle decision, and many are more than thrilled to leave the four-hour daily commute behind them for a career in Spokane.

The electronics industry changes so quickly that training is a constant for his staff. Huppin’s has placed experts in each area so that customers get the best person for their particular situation. No individual commissions are paid; all incentives are company-wide. The focus is to make the right sale.

Huppin’s recently added an in-home installation team so they can control that aspect of the sale, too.

“It is important to create a career path so the quality employees stay and grow with the business,” Huppin states. “I request and get feedback on our managers from the people who work for them, so I can reward great leaders, too.” “Bringing in good people makes everyone around them better.”

As a side note, the Better Business Bureau recently challenged Huppin’s ad claim that it has “the largest selection” in a given area. They produced proof and satisfied our challenge!

And so the struggles of doing business downtown: parking and where Murray’s business is now, and where it is headed.

“There is no free lunch,” Murray says. “You pay for parking no matter where you shop, either in the lot, at the meter or through higher prices. Parking is not an issue when you take care of the customer, for if you do, they keep coming back.”

He is excited about the downtown environment but like most of us, wishes things happened faster.

Take all those challenges other business people complain about and with the right leadership, team, and above all, vision, success is reachable. Murray measures his learning and growth in the context of his employees.

“I have 100 families to feed. When I put what we do here into that kind of perspective, there’s not much room for error.”

You see, nobody ever sat Murray down and taught him how to be the successful CEO of a large and thriving regional company, yet, motivated by a deep ethic such as the one that defines his employees role in his learning and growth, from my perspective, he is doing an outstanding job.