People don't want to be burned again. It may not have happened to today's shopper, but nearly every shopper knows of someone who has had this experience. Reputation is a conservative word for being cautious. And it has again risen to one of the most important criteria in creating an inviting atmosphere for the woman to visit your store. Several years ago, dealers stopped using a portion of their advertising space to say they were founded in 1915 or 1947.
Nobody gives a darn about how long one has been in business.
All they care about is how much are they going to save. Nineteen Fifteen, Nineteen Smifteen. It appears today that the serious shopper indeed cares, because business longevity is a badge of courage, honesty, integrity, dedication to service, loyalty to the public, substance in the community, stability, caring for other people and building a tradition. Remarkably, the word civics has reappeared. That is a word that was thought to be retired from Webster's Dictionary.