Main RMI Number
408-554-4960
SCU - St. Joseph's Hall
Room # 108
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Retail Management Institute Newsletter -Spring / Summer 04
RMI Alumni Profile - Jay Robinson - Class of 1983
by Andrew Machado ‘04
Jay Robinson (RMI Alum '83), senior vice president/ director of sales and marketing at Charleston Hosiery, Inc.
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What made you choose this profession?
I started out to be a CPA, but found it lacked creativity (unless of course prison was an acceptable option).
Was there a certain aspect of this field that particularly sparked your interest, or was there a mentor or family member who led you into the retail industry, or was it something entirely different?
A marketing major/RMI emphasis became clear because it combined analytical skills with leadership and creativity.
Initially, I was influenced by Mary-Ann Odegaard Kriewall and later Dale Achabal once I joined RMI. This led to retailing as a choice.
How did you get started in retail, and where has it taken you along your career path?
I started with Mervyn’s in 1983 and moved quickly through two assistant buying positions in Hayward and South Central to become a buyer in December 1985. The South Central division was closed on March 31, 1986 as Dayton Hudson Corporation (now Target Corp.), revised its plans for Mervyn’s growth. I joined Charleston Hosiery in May 1986 as a VP of Sales for Women’s and Children’s.
How would you define your role in this company?
Today, I am an equity partner in the company and direct all sales, marketing and product development areas, both domestic and foreign.
Much of my time in today’s manufacturing environment is spent building and developing strategic alliances that will maximize our profitability through branded and private label mix of product. The second part is then working on our capabilities as they relate to our mix of domestic and offshore production capacities.
What is your educational background and how has it played into your position in this company?
Santa Clara, with its smaller class size (at least in my day), and RMI with its focus on retailing, combined to create early opportunities to actively network and problem solve. Many of the other retail management trainees at that time came in several steps behind the curve set by RMI.
What does a normal day entail for you? What would you say are the highlights of your day?
I generally travel three days a week three weeks a month, with periodic longer trips to the Orient. Work highlights center around: 1) new product/business generation with Nike and SmartWool. Recently, I worked on new technologies tailored for Tiger Woods and it has proven to be a hit with PGA players in general, and 2) new business alliances for our branded lines. We have been very successful in getting the #1 or #2 name in any niche we go after. This is a key to successful growth. The biggest highlight in my day however, is coming home to two young but extremely powerful forces of nature named Blake and Zach. They are what it is all about.
What made you choose to work for this company versus the many other retailers out there?
For both Mervyn’s back in the 80’s and subsequently Charleston Hosiery, it was their reputations as being strong, growing companies where talent would move you quickly.
Which qualities or characteristics, do you think, are important in order to hold your position?
I used to say that the buying side versus the manufacturing side of retailing is the difference between order making and order taking. So much has changed that I have found that the creativity and vision needed today is much higher on this end.
We not only have to recognize business opportunities and potential, but we have to sell the ideas as well as sell our company as the right partner to make it happen. Buyers on the whole are a lot less knowledgeable technically than they were 10 years ago. If I had to guess, the average age is down 8-10 years. This means we have to bring a very complete product/packaging/benefit package to the table.
What are the qualities of retail you enjoy the most?
The change, you move or you die.
What would you say to someone who was interested in a similar profession or field?
Become a dentist - you work four days a week and rarely spend a night away from your family.
What would say has been the highlight of working in retail, and why?
That would be when Dr. Achabal so admired a brown Egon Von Furstenburg suit that I wore, that he went out and bought one of his own! For one brief shining moment, I had made a difference in consumer preference.
Joking aside, it has been very good to my family and me. I think that helping lead a business in positive directions and seeing those directions support families, children’s educations, retirements, etc. has lasting rewards. To build a business based on very high ethical and moral standards and to see it flourish is very satisfying.
How did your education here at Santa Clara and particularly your experience with RMI play into your life in the retail world?
It made all the difference in terms of the confidence I felt in my qualifications early on, and in my ability to look at issues from different angles. I still can remember several of the case studies we used that taught valuable lessons in real world marketing.
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