My wife is a
small business success story…and her faith is integral to that success.
In 2001 Shannon
started a little hobby of selling toy soldiers on the internet. She bought from manufacturers and sold to
customers…a simple retail outlet. From those
humble beginnings in our basement (shehad to teach our toddler son to be quiet
when the phone rang!), Shannon’s Treefrog Treasures has become known throughout
the world as a major retailer in the industry. Shannon’s two full time
staff work from her warehouse, shipping daily to places like Australia,
Singapore, New Zealand, and Canada.
While few people in the Eyota area know this hobby at all, Treefrog
Treasures is known all over the toy soldier world.
This past
weekend I took off my ‘pastor’ hat for a few days and got to be a part of this
business. Military miniature collectors
and manufacturers from all over the world gathered in Chicago for a weekend of
buying, selling, building relationships, schmoozing, and planning for the
future of the hobby. Shannon met with manufacturers…major and
minor. She interacted with
customers. She hung out with other
dealers. I got to see Shannon in action,
using these basic tenets of her Christian faith.
Luke
10:27b Love your neighbor as yourself
This simple
maxim is fundamental to business. Shannon
works hard to treat people well. She works to take God’s love and mirror it towards those around her. As she says, "I may be the only Jesus this person ever sees.” It
plays out with four groups:
·
Customers:
Shannon and her staff are prompt and courteous in dealing with people. They are not afraid to be honest if they
make a mistake…and they do what it takes to make things right. When customers
are treated well…they return!
·
Staff:
Shannon provides a positive working environment and pays her staff a fair wage. This encourages good employees to stick
around!
·
Manufacturers:
Shannon goes out of her way to work jointly with manufacturers, viewing them as
part of a ‘team.’ Due to her
relationship building, I had two major manufacturers helping me to haul boxes
of soldiers to and from our room!
·
Competitors: Shannon and I had dinner with one of her
biggest competitors one night. They are
good people! If Shannon is short on an inventory
item she can call them up to bail her out…and vice versa.
Matthew
6:24 No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the
other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot
serve both God and money.
Some
businesses are all about making money.
Wages get cut to the bone. Manufacturers
are squeezed. Customers pay a premium whenever
possible. Shannon doesn’t play that
game. She believes that when she builds
strong relationships and treats people well her business will succeed (see Luke
10:27!). Ironically, businesses that put
people first tend to make more money in the long run than those focused on
getting every dollar possible in the short run.
Staff members tend to stay longer, providing stability. Manufacturers go out of their way to be
helpful, providing whatever resources necessary to help her. Customers know that they are not getting
ripped off…and they come back again and again.
For Shannon, the benefit of making money is that it allows her to be
generous in giving, from clean water for people in Africa to working behind the scenes to help local people in need.
Exodus 20:16 You shall not give false testimony against your
neighbor.
It’s
so easy to get caught up in the ‘catty’ rumor mill that surrounds any industry,
but that burns bridges and cuts off the possibility of future
relationships. People know that Shannon
will not be caught in the midst of all that mess. She has the ability to work closely with
people that are considered pariahs of the industry. A little compassion and empathy go a long way…and
you never know when a relationship may lead to an exciting opportunity. It opens doors for her to talk about the reason that she has compassion: Jesus!
Faith and business need not be opposed to each other. Shannon has found that the two mingle quite nicely!
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