The FAM Podcast with Mark Kinsley

Is cryptocurrency the money of the future?  Not likely. However, just because it isn't set to take over the as the official dinero of financial transactions doesn't mean you shouldn't pay attention to its influence. For those unaware, cryptocurrency, also known as bitcoin, is a digital currency--used my blockchain technology-- that can be used to pay for online goods and services. And now, in some...

They're two of the most visible mattress brands in the bedding business, but their approaches are different. In this episode, the guys from GoodBed.com joined Dos Marcos to talk about how Casper and Purple are approaching the market. 

Put yourself in front of the judges on the hit ABC show, Shark Tank. Mr. Wonderful, also known as Kevin O'Leary, offers you the million dollar investment you are asking for if you can answer the following question: "What is the #1 skill needed to be successful in mattress sales?"  Do you know the answer? If you don't, listen in and learn how his perspective changed over the last year and how this...

Purpose. Training. Fun. Those are the secret ingredients that make the Miskelly's culture so successful. In this episode, we recap Quinn's visit to Miskelly's Furniture--discussing how they rolled out the red carpet for his arrival and then discussing how our name ended up in lights. We also overview the secret ingredients to their culture and how you can implement them little by little and create...

Happy Labor Day to our fellow mattress mates! Today, we rounded up several of our favorite Audio Stories recorded over on our parent company, The FAM. Do you know what an Audio Story is? Audio Stories are the first of its kind. Over at The FAM we say that you can listen you every story because reading is optional. Every written piece of content has an audio component for you to listen in. Don't li...

It has been a whirlwind between Primetime by Nationwide Marketing Group and Vegas Market; and those are just the two we chose to attend. Simultaneous to Vegas Market, several buying group shows were also held and with the combination of the pandemic slowing down foot traffic and the uptick in trends of consumers buying more and more online without ever test driving furniture and appliances in stor...

The industry is changing and in many ways for the better; for many, the changes are a welcome relief. In other ways, new challenges have arisen. The most predominant challenge is the shopping habits and patterns of the consumer and their view of purchasing major investment pieces--like mattresses--online. In this episode, we are sharing insights on consumer data and our exclusive research. We are...

What's your marketing budget for the year? Thousands? Tens or hundreds of thousands? Perhaps even millions? What if Nectar could double your foot traffic? Would you convert some of your ad spend dollars to them on the assurance of higher sales? Many would say yes, but how would it work? In this episode, we're chatting the Nectar strategy on investing in brands and relationship development and how...

What does the Englander mattress line expansion, mask mandates and summer market all have in common? For one, they are all happening in Las Vegas at the summer market, August 22nd-26th. We chat three big topics on this episode, starting with the 14 new mattresses Englander is adding to their line-up that will be available and on display in-person at the Vegas Market in showroom C-1596. We also dis...

Do you get a good night's sleep? Would you know it if you didn't?  Recently, Mattress Firm hit the road with its newest "unjunk your sleep" campaign, designed to target consumers and fit them with them with their perfect mattress. This week, we're dissecting the campaign, discussing its intent, questioning what inhibits consumers from finding a mattress that best suits their personal needs, and id...

What happens when you are young, newly married and get laid off the day before Thanksgiving? If you’re Ron Gonzales , you create a five store furniture and mattress franchise known as Christian’s Mattress Xpress. It wasn’t easy and success most certainly didn’t come overnight, but little by little—beginning with wholesale liquidated furniture and then turning to unfinished wood furniture, Ron buil...

Do you ever wish you could crawl into the minds of your customer to find out exactly what they're thinking? Of course you do! Who in retail doesn't? Today, we're bringing you a teaser into the exclusive research conducted by Dos Marcos and The FAM about the consumer shopping journey--what customers are thinking, what they want, how they want to spend their money and much, much more. Listen in and...

Can you tell the difference between a real photograph and one that has been digitally created? From augmented reality to virtual reality versus actual reality, everything is becoming so lifelike it's hard to decipher between what is real and what is art. For Preet Singh, founder of Live Furnish , he's using updated technology to bring state-of-the-art backgrounds to life for retailers and manufact...

Winners win by how they handle the transitions. Whether it is a sporting event, business or life circumstance, how you handle the transition determines everything about the outcome. On this episode, we chat with Xsensor COO Bruce Malkinson about winning during the transitions. Winning isn't just luck and chance; it requires strategy, planning and persistence and the right tools can equip you in ea...

He's the current President and CEO of Scribe Media , a multimillion dollar company, but he was successful long before his current role. To meet Jevon McCormick today, you'd never know about his dire beginnings. Jevon is the son of a pimp and an orphan who was his father's prostitute. He's been in and out of the juvenile justice system and experienced just about every horrible thing you can imagine...

He's a sought after mattress celebrity, but we managed to get a few moments with the infamous Dr. V, otherwise known as Alan Vonder Haar of Miskelly Furniture . Dr. V is the current Director of Bedding and we chat all things strategy--from identifying areas of opportunity for sales associates even during their best sale months to making trainings into a rewards program people actually want to atte...

What do milking cows, Sleep Train and accountability have in common? Hernani Alves . In this episode, we chat with the former President of Sleep Train and current CEO of Balanced IQ Leadership, Hernani Alves and discuss the difference between managers and leaders and how being held accountable by others is a form of love. 

We're chatting baseball, marketing and.... vaccinations? Yes. The big question on today's episode is whether or not you should consider using vaccinations as a part of your marketing strategy. Will it help or hurt? What do your employees think and feel? Each side has strong feelings and in a retail environment, it can be hard to navigate. Listen in as we discuss those who have implemented vaccinat...

It finally happened, and no, we're not talking about the long awaited Friends reunion show. It's the one where we returned live and in-person to a Nationwide roadshow event. We started off the 4-part series in Dallas, Texas and at this stop Mark Quinn and special guest co-host, Mike Whitaker, were joined by Nationwide President and Chief Member advocate, Tom Hickman, to talk about being back in th...

Right now the United States is seeing unprecedented employment rates. Everyone is struggling to not only find talent willing to work, but also talent that it more than a warm body filling the position. Does this resonate with you? In this episode we discuss finding the right people to hire and how to retain them to be an asset for your business for years to come.

Will your business survive in a post pandemic environment? Join us as we host special guest and temporary Dos Marcos co-host Mike Whitaker of Nationwide as we chat about the coming in-person roadshow and the Primetime event where Quinn is going to ask us: " Are you okay?" Plus, listen for the super-secret discount code only Dos Marcos listeners are eligible to use. 

A headband for your bed. That is the idea of Better Bedder . You place the band around your mattress and then tuck your sheets in it and never worry about your sheets coming off or untucked from your bed again. Join us today as we chat with bed accessory creators Judy Schott and Nita Gassen about their innovative product that captured the attention of Lori Greiner on Shark Tank and is quickly beco...

There's a dirty little secret in the mattress industry and we expose this fiberglass and chemical-filled comfort killer with the help of Tietex's President and COO, Wade Wallace, a self-proclaimed textiles geek.  We dig into details behind a mattress component that doesn't get a lot of attention...that is until a mom removes a zipper cover and her kid ends up getting stung by brittle fiberglass fl...

The retail world is changing, are you keeping up? We know coming up with innovative ways to keep your business relevant and moving forward can be difficult. That's why this week we're chatting through the infamous HATCH method to help you stay ahead.

Sure, Amazon is going to offer a service where assemblers come into your home to put together furniture you bought online. But the e-commerce juggernaut is known for creating platforms that take cost centers and turn them into profit drivers. What does that mean for furniture and mattress retailers? Listen up and learn how to compete.