1. The Tyranny of Choice

1. The Tyranny of Choice

The bright lights buzzed overhead, making Jane frown as she walked through her store overflowing with fancy foods and soaps. New products seemed to arrive daily, each demanding its own space on the shelves. The once-organized backroom now resembled a cluttered Ali Baba cavern, boxes piled high and threatening to topple over. Everything seemed to fight for attention, making Jane feel overwhelmed.

Her team was complaining too! Maintaining attractive shelves was becoming a real challenge, and of course, because of reduced space on the shelves, products in high demand started to be out-of-stock before the closing time.

Jane loved offering a lot of choices, thinking her customers enjoyed finding something unique. Lately though, they seemed confused by all the options, looking but not buying anything. They'd wander the aisles, eyes flitting from jar to jar, brand to brand, without ever landing on a purchase.

Jane started to wonder – was this variety really helping her customers? Maybe it was just making things harder for her. Lately, people seemed to be watching their wallets more closely and weren't spending as much. The fun of finding something new was being replaced by the worry of spending too much.

Looking at her notebook filled with confusing charts and numbers (data analysis!), Jane felt frustrated. It seemed like things were always changing by the time she figured them out. But then, an idea sparked in her head.

Maybe, instead of just following trends, she could understand them better. Maybe the numbers could actually help her, not hurt her. With a new sense of purpose, Jane closed the notebook. This time, Jane wouldn't let the overwhelming choices stop her. It was time to make her store less about having everything and more about creating a great experience for her customers.

(To be continued)

Emmanuel Fauvel

Startup Manager | Board Member | Station F - Founders program '21

6mo

Nice story Frederic Etienbled looking forward to reading the next episodes soon.

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