Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 13
BEFORE Jennifer Baird had even completed her studies at university she had already
started on the journey towards realizing her
dream of becoming president of her family's
business. Just eight years and a lot of hard
work later that dream has become a reality.
At the ripe age of 30, Jennifer is now the
president of Stitch It Clothing Alterations
—the only national alterations company in
North America with stores from coast-tocoast in Canada as well as a finger in the
U.S. market. However, despite her youth,
she explains that getting to this point is the
result of a well thought out ten-year plan
that her father Alain built. She also admits
that if it had been up to her, the path to succession may have looked a little different.
When Jennifer eventually graduated
from the halls of academia, she felt as
though she was ready to take on the world.
She had gained valuable experience working two different part-time retail jobs
throughout her post-secondary years. She
also believed that she already possessed
an intimate knowledge of the industry and
the business she was to one day run. With a
business degree under her belt, to boot, she
felt well and truly prepared to step into an
office role at the company.
"Because I had already worked quite a
bit in Stitch It stores during university,
I thought that I had earned my stripes. I
thought I could move right into head office,” she explains. “Thank goodness my
dad knew better. As soon as I graduated he
put me right back into the stores. He knew
that I needed a deeper understanding of the
basics of the business.”
The first stitch
Jennifer vividly remembers the beginning of her journey, “like it was yesterday,”
she quips, when she sat down with her father to create the ten-year succession plan
that would result in an opportunity for her
to run the family’s national company. It was
a plan that she recognized immediately as
one that would clearly involve a lot of hard
work focused on gaining the respect of
Stitch It’s 650 associates.
The plan started while Jennifer was in
her second year of university at a time when
the Baird family was given the opportunity
to buy Stitch It back from the retail powerhouse that helped Alain grow the business
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13
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Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013
Publisher's Desk
Retail Currents
50 Year of Retail Advocacy
Preparing for Succession, Stitch by Stitch
Getting It Together to Get It Online
Social Media 101
Searching For Certainty
Working Toward A More Harmonized Approach
The Brick: Leaders in Retail and Sustainability
Advertiser's Index
Retail Quick Tips
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - cover1
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - cover2
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 3
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - Publisher's Desk
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 5
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - Retail Currents
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 7
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 8
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 9
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 50 Year of Retail Advocacy
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 11
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - Preparing for Succession, Stitch by Stitch
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 13
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 14
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 15
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 16
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 17
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 18
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - Getting It Together to Get It Online
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 20
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 21
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 22
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 23
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - Social Media 101
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 25
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - Searching For Certainty
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 27
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 28
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 29
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 30
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 31
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 32
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - Working Toward A More Harmonized Approach
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 34
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 35
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - The Brick: Leaders in Retail and Sustainability
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 37
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 38
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 39
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 40
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - Advertiser's Index
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - Retail Quick Tips
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - 43
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - cover3
Canadian Retailer - Winter 2013 - cover4
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