May 31, 2005
Week 6 - Frito Lay is a Fickle Mistress
Episode 2
Rantz talks with Harry in the Fiddle and Burn offices.
“I’ve been looking over the business records from the files,” Rantz says. “Circulation is down almost twenty five percent from this time last year.”
“That’s why you’re here,” Harry says, as he grabs a handful of Doritos. “Fix it.”
“Well, it’s not really that simple. We have to look at the causes.”
“Causes! People don’t know what they want. That’s the causes.”
“Here’s a stack of the last 20 or so issues.” Rantz dumps a pile of magazines on Harry’s desk. “Just about a year ago, you went from full color inside pages to black and white.”
“So what? It’s as pointless to try to predict taste as it is to guess which way an electron’ll jump.”
“The page count seems to have decreased quite a bit too…”
“One day you’re up, the next you’re down… The public is a fickle mistress...”
“The advertising percentage looks a lot higher now also.”
“Are you trying to make some sort of point?”
“I’m just saying that maybe all these changes are contributing to the declining sales.”
“You’re the Circulation Director, I’m the Publisher. Don’t tell me how to design the magazine, I won’t tell you how to send out renewal notices.”
“That’s the most idiotic thing anyone’s said to me all week.”
“Do you always talk to your bosses that way?”
“Only when they’re being idiotic.”
Harry reaches into his bag. “Dorito?”
“No thanks. I liked Doritos when I was a kid, but I can’t stand them now.”
“See! Everyone’s tastes keep changing. People don’t know what they want.”
“What can I say? Frito Lay is a fickle mistress.”