ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
No book, of course, gets written without drawing on one’s life experiences and without a tremendous amount of help from others, and that’s certainly been the case here. I’ve been a seller pretty much my entire life, loving every minute of it. And the selling process I’ve shared here is based on my own adventures on the selling floor, but also, importantly, comes from watching and listening to other amazing sellers and learning important lessons from them. As well, many of them, and those I’ve encountered at my speaking engagements, have urged me to share the philosophy and techniques of how we sell, or as I like to think of it, how we allow people to buy.
And so to the entire Mitchell selling team, who have for decades been selling the Hug Your Customers Way, treating all our customers and associates as family, making them feel great, thank you, thank you, thank you. Every day, you make me proud of the way you live and breathe the hugging culture. Our family would never have built the wonderful business we have without your hard work and dedication. Big hugs to all of you!
I especially want to express my heartfelt gratitude to my brother Bill, who truly set the standard for how selling and customer service are done. He’s still a world-class hugger . . . indeed a hall of fame hugger! He’s simply without peer. So much of my success, and the success of our family business, I owe to him.
Most of the basics of how to sell, and especially the core values that underpin how we operate, we learned from our parents, Ed and Norma Mitchell, who founded the business more than half a century ago. The hugging culture was built on the principles they espoused, and their spirit lives on in all our stores and continues to point us forward.
It’s hard to find the words for how much Linda Mitchell, my wife and the center of my universe, has meant to me. I often think that the most important sale of my life was when she bought into marrying me. She remains the love of my life and brings me oceans of happiness. I can’t thank her enough.
I am deeply grateful to our four sons, Russell, Bob, Todd, and Andrew, and our seven grandchildren. I love them dearly. Their advice and insights shine throughout the pages of this book. I thank them for their advice and their encouragement and for all the listening and learning and sharing from them. I constantly discover from them new things about how best to sell.
I also owe particular gratitude to Bill and Sue Mitchell’s three sons, Scott, Chris, and Tyler, who shared their own selling stories with me and always were there with positive encouragement for this project.
To their spouses and children, tons of hugs for their support.
A special thanks to Ray Rizzo, whose feedback and counsel have always been wise. He’s been a rock for me throughout all my writing efforts. And to Philip Ruppel, for his positive enthusiasm and unflagging professional publishing conviction that I had something worthwhile to share.
Big hugs to Amy Vrzal and Jackie Skorvanek, my invaluable executive assistants, for their tireless work and smart suggestions in all my hugging endeavors. Both have contributed in major ways at every step of this writing adventure.
Thanks and hugs to the great team at McGraw-Hill, especially Donya Dickerson, my editor, who understood and believed in our hugging philosophy.
Finally, I want to express my sincere thanks to Sonny Kleinfield, my collaborator from the very beginning of my journey as an author. He is truly a hugging friend.
There are so many other great sellers and great customers over my 70-plus years of selling who have informed my philosophy of how to sell, far too many to name. I meet them in our stores, and I meet them in my travels, and I meet them simply when running my daily errands. I meet them at the grocery store, at the dry cleaner, and, yes, at the dentist. When you sell, you learn about how people relate and how people think. You learn about what makes this world turn the way it does. To all these people who have educated me, all I can say is, hug, hug, hug to all of you!!
Since customers are the center of our universe, one of our core values is that everyone sells, and you prove that every day. You are the selling champions that made this book happen, and I’ve included your names here.
Abigale Levinson
Ahmad Noori
Alan Rice
Alana New
Albijona Ramanoska
Alethea Gordon
Alexandra Ferrari
Alicia Bice
Allan Mallari
Alyona Rozenblat
Amie McNutt
Amy Jarman
Amy Vrzal
Ana Naulaguari
Ana Santoro
Ana Tomai
Anastasia Kalomenidis
Andrea Aurelio
Andrea Melara
Andrea Nilssen
Andy Lam
Angela Boteo
Angela Pieretti
Anthony Alvarado
Antonello Pagliuca
Anne Bisio
Antonio Amato
April Roe
Arnaud Geble
Astrid Orantes
Audrey Anderson
Barbara Evans
Bernardo Cozza
Bertha Mejia
Bessie Callis
Betsy Rojas
Bharat Singh
Bolortuya Boldbaatar
Brian Finch
Brian Hathaway
Brian Hawkins
Bridgitte Chatellier
Britt Bertolucci Cao
Bruce Kelly
Bruce Lagerfeldt
Cara Rowe Groenings
Carmela Roach
Carol Cate
Caryn Fleming
Cathy Eilenberger-Ubell
Cathy Kozak
Cathy Pagliuso
Celia Riesterer
Charles Potter
Chee Tam
Chelsey O’Brien
Christina Halepas
Christine Razzini
Christine Robbins
Christopher Herde
Jordan Lewis
Christopher Poullos
Christopher Putnick
Christopher Rossiter
Claire Gladstone
Claire McElroy
Clarence Wayne Hubbs
Colleen Kenny
Colleen Mills
Cooper Amato
Courtney Martin
Dana Franklin
Daniel Beliard
Daniel Cote
Dan Farrington
Daryl Smith
David Lynn
David Lyons
Dawn Fallon
Deborah Gibson
Deborah Mazza
Deb Turtoro
Debra Gampel
Denise Bonanni
Derrick Lopez
Dieuseul Auguste
Domenick Condoleo
Dominick Santos
Donne Gordon
Dorothy Wasley
Dylan Diaz
Edit Kovacs
Elaine Ford
Elena Reece
Eleni Kasparis
Beth Massoud
Ellen Finlayson
Elsa Lara
Elsa Peraza
Emily Calderwood
Emily Dorfman
Emmanuel Garcon
Eric Davis
Eric Kurzenberger
Erin Hermann
Erin Jones
Errika Pascual
Evelyn Shelton
Faran Hajisheikh
Farzaneh Zerafat
Faustino Fuentes
Filipe Couto
Flavio Arpi
Furlee Farlough-Mulazim
Gabrielle Durham
Gail Sheriff
Gennadiy Zelinskiy
Gerald Eugene
Gerard Federici
Gerard Kostic
Giovanna Stella
Gloria Serna
Gregory Daugherty
Harmony Johnstone
Heather Perry
Hector Morales
Helen Lam
Helen Younie
Helene Cote
Hoa Thai
Hoi Bui
Horace Mack
Ian Paige
Iren Vass
Iryna Brown
Isabelle Terranova
Iwona Kelly
Jackie Skorvanek
Jacqueline Massella
Jacquie Carlino
Jaen Rojas
James Angus
James Bastian
James Cafran
James Karwor Lee
James Schmedel
James Thomas
Janet Wilson
Jay Hanna
Jean Bender Jarvis
Jean Debreus
Jean Evans
Jeffrey Garelick
Jeffrey Holland
Jeffrey Kozak
Jennifer Blake
Jennifer Farrington
Jennifer Iannuccilli
Jenny Mibelli
JoAnn Salvioli
Jody Valdez
Joe Crawford
Joey Mozian
John Bouyea
John Hickey
John Howard
John Lundstrom
John Roach
John Scanlon
Jordon Biondi
Joselle Ivanna Galloway
Joseph Biondi
Joseph Cox
Joseph Derosa
Joseph Durst
Joseph Krusinski
Joyce Angel
Judith Brooks
Julia Hiser
Julian Atway
Karen Belardinelli
Karen Degman
Karen Sussman
Katherine Blake
Kathryn Story
Kathryn Sutherland Florian
Kathy Paulus
Kelly DeGrate
Kelly McGuinness
Kenady Swan
Kenneth Kaiserman
Kerry Harter
Kevin Coughlin
Kim Lien Nguyen
Kin Chan
Kristen Perez
Kristin Tichy
Kristin Winans
Kristina Engstrom
Kristina Van Zandt
Larysa Inozemtseva
Laura Hornibrook
Laurel Williams
Lauren Perez
Lauren Scavotto
Laurie Siniscalchi
Leigh Chang
Leigh Clemente
Linda Levy
Linda Rait
Lindsay Costantini
Lisa Berman
Lisa Coppotelli
Ljiljiana Piskic-Boskovic
Lorraine Wissler
Luanne Delfino
Luis Bedoya
Luis Mendez
Luke Woellhof
Lynwood Holmberg
Mai Lee
Malgorzata Kwasiborski
Manuel Marquez
Margaret Rideout
Margarita Gutierrez
Margarita Hernandez
Margot Ambler
Mari Ferretti
Maria Abrantes
Maria Dias
Maria Martins
Maria Sabino
Marilyn Wallack
Mario Bisio
Mark McCalister
Martha Loyola
Mary Daoutis
Mary Hart
Mary Obico
Maryam Boodiani
Maryori Escalante
Matilde Cruz
Matthew Lucia
Maxwell Reiferson
McKennzie Traylor
Megan Jensen
Mehmet Turudu
Melissa Contreras
Melissa Surulinathan
Micah Fritz
Michael Aycock
Michael Cauley
Michael Louie
Michele Goulet-Russell
Michele Penque
Michele Romano
Minh-Tuan Tran
Mohammad Yousof
Nadine Martin
Nancy Laurier
Naomi Watabe-Taylor
Narciso Canilao
Nasra Capar
Nasrin Ashjaee
Nasrin Zangolgiah
Natalya Reinhart
Neda Shook
Neil Gordon
Nhung Tran Ly
Nicholas Brown
Nicholas Ladeas
Nina Kirilova
Nina Nilloofar King
Noah Jodoin
Noella Duh
Norberto Barroso
Olga Talo
Paige Vass
Patsy Carlson
Patricia Cinquemani
Patricia Cline
Patricia Kaylor
Patrick Duffy
Paul Krasnowsky
Peta-Gaye Powell
Phuong Heitz
Phyllis Bershaw
Phyllis Gong
Rachel Kammerer
Ralph Alfano
Ramon Gamero
Randall Candler
Raul Godinez
Ray Frazier
Raynette Yoshida
Rejina Pirtle
Rhiannon Tangi
Richard Ruta
Rick Paras
Rita Roman
Rita Szabo
Robert Beck
Robert Peterson
Robert Rich
Robert Simmons
Rocco Messina
Roman Horbachevskyy
Roy Scott
Ruth Kermian
Safari Cirhakarhula
Sally Martinez
Samantha Ferreira
Samuel Anderson
Sandra Nacewicz
Sarah Butterfield
Sarah Corvino
Scott Krusinski
Scott Nugent
Scott Stutznegger
Sean Whitman
Sharbani Chaudhuri
Sharlotta Velger
Sharon Test
Sheree Chambers
Shima Marhamat
Shirley Bond
Simin Vahedian-Motalebi
Simona Silvestri
Sofala Ntweng-Knapton
Sonia Spencer
Sonya Abby-Soekarno
Taffy Parisi
Stephen Goss
Steven Fort
Steven Kerman
Summer Jameson
Susan Cammarota
Susan Vong
Susan Yee
Svetlana Ilina
Sylvia Lundberg
Taj Miles
Tat Chuen Chiu
Taylor Cote
Teresa Baginska
Teresa Rainieri
Than Tran
Thao Hoang-Nguyen
Theresa Goncalves
Thomas Bacewich
Thomas Maleri
Thomas Nguyen
Tighe Copeland
Todd Bonner
Trevor Greely
Tullio Giannitti
Turkan Rahim
Tyler Jewett
Veronica Wenning
Victoria Howard
Viravone Lamarre
Vishnu Singh
Wilbert Daley
Wilner Vaca
Wilson Montaleza
Winnie Rogers-Jones
Xi Peng
Yee Yang
Yulin Su
Yuri Sarkisian
Yvonne Hughes
Zachariah Whiton
Zachary Karanasos
Zack Hanson
Zenaida Harper
Zuleica Ramos