As a 45-year-old person in the dive business, I think I will scream if I hear another person say, "well, that's how we used to do it," "that's how we've always done it" or, the best yet, "back in the…
Susan LongNovember 6, 2012
I am not a fan of higher taxes. I believe that the more of our money we get to keep, the more we spend, so more people work, which keeps the economy working … which then produces more personal and…
Mark YoungDecember 7, 2009
When I started out in the scuba rep business after graduating from college more than 25 years ago, I had the benefit of working with some talented old-timers. Asking for their advice on how to be successful in this business…
Jim MapesFebruary 17, 2009
As a small-town newspaper publisher, I read Patricia Luebke's article in the last edition of Dive Center Business. For those who didn't read it, the article was about how to get publicity for your store in your local media. After…
Mark VastoFebruary 1, 2009
Fifteen years ago I decided to leave the corporate world with the fat paychecks, an unlimited expense account, 401(k) plan, etc., and do something I really enjoyed. I took my business suits and ties to Goodwill, gave back my company…
Jamie TuckwellJanuary 21, 2009
We are a full-service dive shop serving Western New York State. That's the area near Buffalo -- we're 21 minutes south of Buffalo in Derby, New York. Point Breeze Dive Shop has been in business since 1970. Tony Anderson is…
Carole BloomquistJanuary 15, 2009
Bill Matthies, president of Minnesota School of Diving Inc., sent us this letter on how local diving benefits his business. His Midwest dive center is near a number of flooded mines, which provide local diving opportunities for his students and…
Bill MatthiesJanuary 13, 2009
I am going to open this article by making a rather brash statement: No one has ever walked into or called a dive store wanting to learn to scuba dive. When I say this in dive centers, I usually get…
Mike HillJanuary 12, 2009
Who hasn't heard the expression, "Hindsight is 20/20 vision"? It's as old as the hills. Sometimes expressions get so familiar that we lose sight of what they really say. What this one means, of course, is that whatever you look…
Edward ReidelJanuary 10, 2009
