Time to set the story straight

Good morning, My name is Michael Guessefeld and I am a distributor at Horizon Foods.Over the days and weeks ahead I intend to discuss my experience at Horizon. It should be noted that "truth" is central to my thinking and it's time to set the story straight.
I welcome all questions,concerns and insights.

Michael Guessefeld in Allentown, Pennsylvania said: Good morning, My name is Michael Guessefeld and I am a distributor at Horizon Foods.Over the days and weeks ahead I intend to discuss my experience at Horizon. It should be noted that "truth" is central to my thinking and it's time to set the story straight.
I welcome all questions,concerns and insights.

Hi Michael, Can you tell me about your experience with Horizon Foods? What is the real story?

Michael Guessefeld in Allentown, Pennsylvania said: Good morning, My name is Michael Guessefeld and I am a distributor at Horizon Foods.Over the days and weeks ahead I intend to discuss my experience at Horizon. It should be noted that "truth" is central to my thinking and it's time to set the story straight.
I welcome all questions,concerns and insights.

Let's here it... NOW.....

Easy does it Captain Kangaroo,some of us
are working during the day.Anyway,nice to meet your acquaintance.

Let me give some back-round as it pertains to my experience at Horizon.
I'm 51 years old and come from a strong culinary history. I graduated the Culinary Institute of America in the late seventies and then worked in some of the best restaurants in the country. After that I was the Executive Chef of a premiere restaurant in NJ.Within 2yrs we became one of the top restaurants in the state and maintained that status through my entire 13 yr tenure. Severe blood circulation issues forced me into early retirement. Then I took a sales position with the no.1 commercial food service distributor in America and although an excellent company, after more than 3yrs decided it was not a good fit for me. Enter Horizon Foods!

I think it reasonable to suggest that my back-round more than qualifies me to judge food quality. That said, let me state unequivocally that Horizon Foods "personally delivers" the highest quality food product to the American home. Even more impressive than the quality is the consistency of the product. I say more impressive because establishing excellence is difficult enough but doing it consistently is exponentially more difficult. My hat is off to the team behind the scenes that not only maintains excellence but is always striving for the next level. In conclusion to today's thoughts, let me say, that I sell Horizon Foods with immense pride.

Good morning,
The point of yesterdays introduction was
to establish the high-end nature of the Horizon product line. Our products represent the foundation of our business.
In my mind, give me a great product and I'm already half way there.

I've been growing my business for over 2 years now and have experienced double digit growth every quarter since the beginning. I've kept a statistical journal from day one so I know my numbers inside -out.For example from
May 15, 2006 [my starting date] to Dec 31,2006 I sold 1,138 bxs. For that same period in 2007 I sold 1,452 bxs.This translates into 27.59% growth.I can
blah-blah all day long but the proof is in the numbers. For the right person this is a huge business opportunity.
Time to get to work!Later!

This evening I would like to draw a distinction between operating your own business and working a "regular" job.Each scenario[like anything else in this world]involves positives and negatives.One is not better than the other,just different.The issue is- Which scenario best fits your personality, objectives, and desires. If you enjoy a challenge and are not afraid to take intelligent risks than operating and building a business would seem to be a good fit. Also integral to success in the entrepreneurial arena are attributes such as confidence, discipline ,courage, and a passion to succeed. Unfortunately many desire to build their own business but don't have the funds necessary for such an endeavor. Horizon Foods offers an opportunity for you to build your own sales and delivery business and provides you with all the tools,and training necessary to achieve success. But! and this is important! All the material tools in the world will not guarantee success. It is not the knife that produces sublime dishes but rather the chef that wields it. Much more will be said going forward.
As always,please feel free to ask questions, make comments and I will try to respond in a timely fashion.

Michael Guessefeld in Allentown, Pennsylvania said: This evening I would like to draw a distinction between operating your own business and working a "regular" job.Each scenario[like anything else in this world]involves positives and negatives.One is not better than the other,just different.The issue is- Which scenario best fits your personality, objectives, and desires. If you enjoy a challenge and are not afraid to take intelligent risks than operating and building a business would seem to be a good fit. Also integral to success in the entrepreneurial arena are attributes such as confidence, discipline ,courage, and a passion to succeed. Unfortunately many desire to build their own business but don't have the funds necessary for such an endeavor. Horizon Foods offers an opportunity for you to build your own sales and delivery business and provides you with all the tools,and training necessary to achieve success. But! and this is important! All the material tools in the world will not guarantee success. It is not the knife that produces sublime dishes but rather the chef that wields it. Much more will be said going forward.
As always,please feel free to ask questions, make comments and I will try to respond in a timely fashion.

Michael, Thank you for "telling it like it is"! Horizon Foods is filled with great people who have the attributes necessary to build and maintain a healthy and profitable business of clients. It's refreshing to read truthful statements from a positive person!
I find it absolutely incredulous that certain people use this forum in an attempt to spread negative or slanderous information about Horizon. In my extensive experience, these people are typically the sort who either have an axe to grind over some misfortune in their life or simply have nothing better to do than spend their days focusing on hurting others.
It boils down to one thing, if you don't have something good to say, say nothing. Focus on the positive

Jamie,
Thank you for your comments.I to am
perplexed regarding the vociferous
vitriol propagated by these individuals.
This is precisely why It's "time to set the story straight". My objective is
simple. I will present a series of
communications designed to give the reader a "real" understanding of Horizon Foods and the business opportunities offered. I march to the beat of my own drum- therefore my thoughts are not propaganda but rather a personal,heartfelt and honest assessment of our business.

Continuing on yesterdays topic of building your own business as opposed to working a "regular job". Jamie in the last communication expressed outrage
[and rightly so] regarding some of the harsh attacks launched at Horizon, most of which appear to be deliberate attempts to delegitimize our business using falsehoods,exagerations,and just plain ignorance. One of the more pronounced areas of contention involves the vilification of the 100% commission
structure at Horizon Foods.In the "sales"
world this is also known as being
"fully commissioned".True, many sales
opportunities involve a starting salary
and after a predetermined period of time
the salary is slowly but consistently
replaced by commissions. This is called the click-down process. Eventually, usually sooner than later the salesman becomes fully commissioned never again to enjoy the "training wheels" of a TEMPORARY base salary. In other venues
it's a combination of salary and commission on going. Point is, each sales genre uses a commission structure that
compliments that particular arena of sales. For example, previously I had mentioned that I was a salesman for a
commercial food-service company. They used the base salary- click down structure. In that scenario it was literally impossible to generate commissions immediately open one account could take anywhere from 2weeks
to 2 months or longer. Again,this sales arena required the click-down system.
Another important factor in the equation was the level of supervision. In the course of the day I would get between
4-7 calls from my MGR and had to field a minimum of twenty voice-mails. The point here is that the company's base salary investment could be monitored closely so as to insure return on the investment.

Now let's talk about Horizon Foods. This is a unique sales opportunity. Horizon in essence provides you with a fully stocked and maintained store on wheels and as mentioned in an earlier communication,the product is outstanding.

I apologize for the disconnect but apparently there is a limit to how much could be said in one communication.

So! Horizon provides you with a store on wheels. Not much different than a regular store except in this scenario instead of waiting for the customer to come to you, you are pro-actively seeking them.

Unlike the previous scenario the Horizon
distributor can generate commissions
imediately.More importantly, the level of freedom in this business is like no other. I don't know how my fellow distributors feel but I love the freedom. After 2 yrs with Horizon I cannot even imagine myself in a boundried environment anymore. Other than a visit to the office every morning to re-stock including a brief meeting and 1or2 brief conversations with your mgr usually at the middle and end of the day, it's just you and your store. This is not for little boys and girls that need to be supervised every minute of the day. This is for mature men and woman that are self-disciplined and are able to temper the freedom with responsibility.

It is my position that the majority of those who fail in this business do so,
not because of lack of training or tools
or talent but rather the inability
to handle the freedom. Put another way,
the abuse of the freedoms is in my mind the number one reason for failure in this business.

But to get back on point, the incredible freedom associated with this arena of sales demands a "fully commissioned" stucture.There is no way to monitor
a base salary company investment and
such a salary would only tempt the new distributor to abuse the freedoms more.

That's it for today! God I love this business!

Hopefully everyone understands the necessity for a "fully commissioned" or
100% commissions format as it pertains to our business at Horizon Foods.

It should be noted that Horizon is evolving.Major changes have already been activated with many exciting additions coming down the pike. There has never been a better time to explore this
business opportunity than right now.

On a side note I took the opportunity to scroll down some of the other threads and found the back and forth dialogue
to be for the most part quite entertaining.Particularly provocative were the views of the "independents" as they tried to argue their business to be superior to Horizon. First off, I respect anyone that takes the initiative to start their own business. I also respect my competitors until they give me reason not to. For example Jack Meoff [independents] from white plains was just gushing forth a fusillade of nonsensical attacks. So ridiculous were the claims that even fellow detractors felt the need to neutralize him. On the other end of the spectrum was Eamonn Shanahan
[independent] from North Carolina who presented his "Ten Sales Tips" which were truly outstanding. In fact I got quite pumped up reading them.
Based on my experience I have only come across 2 independents [in my working areas] that have presented themselves as formidable competition respect them and the relationships they have built in my focus areas. But I have done very well in these areas also. It should also be noted that the majority of independents in my area are selling an inferior product "cheaply". Some of my customers have tried it and commented that they would never purchase their products again.Also many potential customers have been permanently turned off by undesirable product sold to them
by some guy in a plain pickup truck with a Suzy-homemaker chest freezer strapped to the back.

continuing- To the independents doing a great job [clearly in the minority]I say
"keep up the good work".

The problem with independents is your "rolling the dice" and the odds are not in your favor. With Horizon you know exactly what your getting and you can count on that product being consistent going forward. Our vehicles are professionally logo-ed, we have company clothing, and the catalogues are first rate. We have an outstanding web site
with E-commerce evolving into a serious
supplement to our individual business
growth. We have a family type "gemeinschaft" spirit in the office and were looking for a few good men and women to round out our sales force.

INTERESTED!

Michael Guessefeld in Allentown, Pennsylvania said: continuing- To the independents doing a great job [clearly in the minority]I say
"keep up the good work".

The problem with independents is your "rolling the dice" and the odds are not in your favor. With Horizon you know exactly what your getting and you can count on that product being consistent going forward. Our vehicles are professionally logo-ed, we have company clothing, and the catalogues are first rate. We have an outstanding web site
with E-commerce evolving into a serious
supplement to our individual business
growth. We have a family type "gemeinschaft" spirit in the office and were looking for a few good men and women to round out our sales force.

INTERESTED!

I love all the information you're putting out there Mike. I appreciate reading your thoughts and practices and am also pupmed up from the things being said.......tell me more!

PLEASE FEEL FREE TO ASK THE CAPTAIN K A QUESTION OR COMMENT. The capt loves to tell you the way it is.....

jamie miler in Collegeville, Pennsylvania said: I love all the information you're putting out there Mike. I appreciate reading your thoughts and practices and am also pupmed up from the things being said.......tell me more!

Appreciate your interest Jamie and I will
keep it coming until the "story has been set straight"

Captain Kangaroo in Raleigh, North Carolina said: PLEASE FEEL FREE TO ASK THE CAPTAIN K A QUESTION OR COMMENT. The capt loves to tell you the way it is.....

Bring it on Captain!

Good morning valued customers, fellow meat men-women [Horizon and Independents], Disgruntled X Horizon
disributors,and those that have absolutely nothing to do with this
business [selling meat] but feel the need to engage this forum for reasons
not yet established.

A special good morning to the individuals that approach this site
searching for their next step in life.
Actually, this forum is designed for you
but apparently has digressed into an
ideological battle of sorts.

Yesterday I took the time to scroll through the last 6 months of comments
and my heart goes out to those trying to make sense of it. I have found temperance and wisdom shared by both
proponents and detractors of Horizon
in this forum. Conversely, I have
seen a preponderance of unbalanced
closed mindedness on both sides as well. fortunately the discerning mind can differentiate between the two rather
easily. Try to use this as an opportunity to hone your skills of discernment. Point being, discernment is a huge part of sales in general. Discerning the nature and philosophy of our prospective customers is critical in finding common ground which in-turn is the basis for a successful business relationship. Most would agree that a
"great product" is a great first step. However commonality between all successful sales people is the ability to build and maintain business relationships. "Relationship managers" if you will.

A discernment tip. To the degree that a communication is one-sided or emotionally charged. To that degree the communication is suspect and in extreme examples is either the dissemination of propaganda [one-sided]or an individual that has perceived themselves as being "screwed" and can no longer broach the subject with objectivity [emotionally charged]. In the words of the Old Testament, "come let us reason together"

On a lighter note,"Beth Hall, I think I love you!". "Are you married or in a committed relationship?"

Very sweet, Mike! Actually, I have my husbands family arriving from Scotland tomorrow for our 10 year anniversary in 2 weeks. I'm looking forward to starting my vacation on Tuesday!!

I love the flexibility of this business. Every week I sell over 60 boxes (Making 1200-1500 a week), I am "earning" vacation time. This is my business so I don't get paid when I don't work but I prefer to play harder than I work and I work pretty hard. I typically take 6-8 weeks vacation throught the year as well as work 3-5 days a week when I am working and I never knock on doors pass 7 PM.

Have I worked 7 days a week and occasionally have long days? Absolutely!! That was May 2007 when I placed #1 in the country for the month (less than 2 years in the business). After placing 9th last year I decided I didn't want to work as hard. I'm not bragging, only telling everyone what is possible if this job is right for you. You can go as far as you desire in this company. This job is not for everyone. If its not for you, don't blame yourself or the company. We all wish you well in whatever the future holds.

Horizon is a great company to work with. I look forward to meeting you in Mexico, Mike!

Mike,

Great to see this forum. I have been a distributor for over 4 months now, and enjoy it immensely. I require flexability due to family issues, and Horizon offers it where most 9-5's won't even consider being flexable. However, since this is my own business, I make the hours up on my or my clients schedules. The great thing about Horizon is the support. Where else can I own my own business with just a fraction of the overhead needed to open a standard operation? Horizon provides it all, except for the dedication and hard work. I bring those to the table. You, Beth, and Jaime are wonderful inspirations.

Thank you Beth for your heartfelt testimonial. Congratulations on your 10yr wedding anniversary and I look forward to meeting you in Mexico as well.
Admittedly I'm not in your league [yet] and my winning the trip will probably go down to the last week but I'm on track and determined.

As Beth pointed out, this business is not for everyone. It is "sales" after all. Og Mandino in "The Greatest Salesman in the World" [on anybodies short list of classic sales books]
en-capsulizes the challenges associated
with "cold" sales.

Allow me to set the stage. The Master Salesman is speaking to his apprentice
and preparing him for the challenges that await him with the following words. " The career I have chosen is
laden with opportunity yet it is fraught with heartbreak and despair and the bodies of those who have failed, were
they piled one atop another, would cast a shadow down upon all the pyramids of the earth." "... The rewards are great
if one succeeds but the rewards are great only because so few succeed."

Og Mandino is not talking about all sales. For example, he's not talking about someone working in a clothing
store waiting for customers to come in and then selling them things that they are already looking for. Mandino is talking about "real sales".The context of the book makes it quite clear, this is about having a product and then finding people to buy it. In the sales world this is known as "cold calling". Let's remember, the individual working in the clothing store has one of the easiest sales positions and therefore many are able to do it.Because many are able to do it the rewards are minimal. A sales business built on "cold calling" is the toughest of all sales and most cannot do it.Because most cannot do it the rewards are limitless as Beth and many others can jubilantly verify.

continued- I said from the beginning that I would "set the story straight" and I do not take that commitment lightly. By the time I finish this project you should be able to read this thread and be able to make a judicious decision with
"eyes wide open". For those that are reading this and are fearful or intimidated this probably is not for you.
But for those that are intrigued and sense a "challenge" rising up within you,
read on. As I mentioned in an earlier
segment, I have been operating my own Horizon business for a little over two years. The first year is "tough" and requires complete focus and commitment.
The freedoms should be taken as needed
not wanted, in the first year.I knew in
the first week that I could do this and now 2 months into my third year I'm so glad I persevered because I am enjoying a level of self satisfaction never before experienced. The hard part is over and as long as I do not rest on my laurels
it doesn't take all that much to keep the business growing.At the moment I'm
ranked 54th in the country for the year.
I would like to finish in the top 45,but ultimately the top 10 is on the horizon.

This is not about talent although a little of that certainly doesn't hurt.
This is about inner strength- making a decision to succeed and then following through on the commitment.

Also sales experience is helpful but many have succeeded with no sales experience whatsoever. It's about who you are and the business will most assuredly test your "mettle".

In the next segment I will share with you a typical day in the life of a Horizon distributor[me]. I just noticed a
comment from one of the newest members of
our Allentown office so let me respond to Jay.

SCUBA Jay in Allentown, Pennsylvania said: Mike,

Great to see this forum. I have been a distributor for over 4 months now, and enjoy it immensely. I require flexibility due to family issues, and Horizon offers it where most 9-5's won't even consider being flexible. However, since this is my own business, I make the hours up on my or my clients schedules. The great thing about Horizon is the support. Where else can I own my own business with just a fraction of the overhead needed to open a standard operation? Horizon provides it all, except for the dedication and hard work. I bring those to the table. You, Beth, and Jaime are wonderful inspirations.

Great to hear from you Jay. Jay is our newest Allentown distributor and has shown the "guts" necessary to succeed in
this business. Jay has just completed his first full quarter with Horizon and led the office for new clients in the second quarter. For his efforts he has won the "coveted","new clients belt"
which he can now proudly wear and parade
during our morning meetings. But more importantly he is building a customer base and because our product is "superior" he will enjoy healthy repeat business going forward. Again, the key to success in this business is to "break your ass" in the first year accumulating as many customers as you can at the same time servicing the needs of existing customers. Servicing the customers is the easy part. So as the business grows it becomes easier and easier. Here lies the rub, the busier you become the easier it gets. So the hard work in the first year pays huge dividends going forward. Hence, Beth's ability to take 6-8 weeks vacation and still make a great income.

Jay also brings out a very important point. The company provides all the physical tools we need.However, It's commitment and hard work that produces the success. Your on your way Jay.

by the way, Jay has no sales experience!

WOW... I am really enjoying the positive comments from these people. It makes me feel good that others in this world are having a positive experience in their working life. Keep sending the information about what you are going through. Its nice to know that people are proud of what they do.......

Michael Guessefeld in Allentown, Pennsylvania said: Great to hear from you Jay. Jay is our newest Allentown distributor and has shown the "guts" necessary to succeed in
this business. Jay has just completed his first full quarter with Horizon and led the office for new clients in the second quarter. For his efforts he has won the "coveted","new clients belt"
which he can now proudly wear and parade
during our morning meetings. But more importantly he is building a customer base and because our product is "superior" he will enjoy healthy repeat business going forward. Again, the key to success in this business is to "break your ass" in the first year accumulating as many customers as you can at the same time servicing the needs of existing customers. Servicing the customers is the easy part. So as the business grows it becomes easier and easier. Here lies the rub, the busier you become the easier it gets. So the hard work in the first year pays huge dividends going forward. Hence, Beth's ability to take 6-8 weeks vacation and still make a great income.

Jay also brings out a very important point. The company provides all the physical tools we need.However, It's commitment and hard work that produces the success. Your on your way Jay.

I love great food and I love Horizon Foods!

jamie miler in Collegeville, Pennsylvania said: I love great food and I love Horizon Foods!

Sometimes one sentence says it all. Thanks for your input Jamie

Captain Kangaroo in Raleigh, North Carolina said: WOW... I am really enjoying the positive comments from these people. It makes me feel good that others in this world are having a positive experience in their working life. Keep sending the information about what you are going through. Its nice to know that people are proud of what they do.......

Thank you "Captain",we appreciate the positive feedback.

Let me take a few moments this morning to
give you a feel for my business. The company provides me with
a "cutting edge" truck which is equipped
with a "state of the art" dual compartment-ed freezer. The truck has it's own compressor so dry ice is not needed. The company also services the vehicle with regular oil changes,and any other maintenance required with no charge to the distributor. The insurance is also paid by the company. I pay a nominal fee of 5$ a day for a total
of 25$ a week [truck rental] . I'm also responsible for the gas. I work concentrated areas which reduces the need for excessive driving and gives me the greatest return on my gas dollar. My freezer is stocked with boxes of gourmet quality food. Each box is beautifully decorated and screams "professionalism". A box could consist of 10 Norwegian Salmon, 12-8oz Filet Mignon, 20 free range Chicken cutlets etc etc. The selection of products is extensive. The food is "flash-frozen" using modern technology. For example our seafood is frozen very close to the time of catch- this in essence preserves the product in a type of "suspended animation" state until thawed. Therefore our seafood when thawed is paradoxically fresher than the typical "fresh" seafood found in the majority of markets. I have won over many hard core "fresh only" advocates with our product.

Sorry, time to get ready for business. TO BE CONTINUED

Good morning! I'm technically on vacation but I have 5-6 phone calls and e-mails from customers daily so I spend one hour a day "working". I have a colleage making deliveries for me who I pay gas money and I will have my profits and training bonus waiting for me when I go back to the office. Great business!!!

Beth, please keep the comments coming.
I would like to use what Beth shared as a springboard to highlight a "huge" supplement to our business at Horizon.
I refer to the Horizon website and the
E-commerce generated through it. I don't know who's responsible for the construction and on going development of our website but "applause" is certainly in order. Besides being a very informative site it is also an ever evolving source of business proliferation.

When you become a horizon distributor a personal web site is constructed for your business. When your customer identifies themselves via their phone number, they are instantly brought to your website
with your picture and business information. They can send you E-mails
and or place orders. My business has been dramatically affected as a result.

I try to service my customer base non-intrusively, that is,"not be a pain in the butt". Over a period of time each customer establishes a buying pattern
which guides my communication with them.
I can't tell you how many times customers have used my Horizon website to place special orders ahead of their
normal buying cycle. Yes, they could use the telephone [and do] but in 2008 and going forward people are more inclined to place an order through E-mail than the
antecedent telephone.

Also "huge" are the company E-blasts that are sent out to all customers with E-mail addresses. This could involve recipes or special offers and these to have generated extra business for me.

Bottom line, E-commerce helps me to better manage my business and supplements my bottom line. Put another way,"more money in my pocket with no extra effort" BONUS!

9:30 July 3rd. Fireworks ablaze and I get a paniced call from a customer. She needs 10 boxes delivered TOMORROW before 8:30 AM!!! This is a very special customer story.

Martina bought one box from someone in 2004 and never saw them again. This past winter she saw me delivering to an organic store (I sell to the owner for their own use and they occassionally sell it on to a few customers). Turns out Martina owns a large garden center and farmer's market in the next town. She had been unhappy with her supplier last year and was looking to go upmarket to differentiate herself from the supermarkets and butchers. She tried my out with a box of ABF burgers for her family and asked me to call her in the spring after they opened. She and her husband loved everything they saw but decided to start out slow with 10 items. That was last week. 8 days later she needs 10 more!!

I do a little better on price for her since she is buying 10 at a time. I broke down the catalog unit price per item and helped her price everything and load the freezer. The great thing is most of our items have the 1-888-easyfood number and would be put through to our office (or whatever ones closest if they are not from the area). The owner realizes that some people may then start buying it direct cheaper from me but they are seasonal and target mostly seasonal folks with the big houses on the lake.

This business is not designed for resale to stores and restaurants (primarily because they usually are not willing to pay for this quality) however, you never know who you are talking with so always be on your "A" game. One guy in New England supplies the Coast guard a couple times a year!!! Think big!!! But don't try to reinvent the wheel!! We knock on doors. There's no getting around it.

Happy Fourth of JULY!!

What a great country!!

PS My in-laws are loving the food and wish they could get it in Scotland!!

Beth, that was a great customer story.
Something tells me these types of scenarios are not that unusual for you.
It's obvious from your communications that "making it happen" is part of your
natural disposition. I'm not much for
hero-heroine worship but I might make an exception in your case. To use contemporary jargon- YOU ROCK!

Good Morning, It's Independance Day!
In the words of the late Tim Russert,
"What a country".

A slight retraction- I like to think of myself as a "voice of reason" and my
verbiage at the conclusion of my last
response to Beth, although meant on a professional level, was a bit excessive.
I got a little overly pumped.
Sorry Beth, will not happen again.

Anyway, I'm off to help one of my customers with their 4th of July
party. Have a great day everyone!

Michael Guessefeld in Allentown, Pennsylvania said: A slight retraction- I like to think of myself as a "voice of reason" and my
verbiage at the conclusion of my last
response to Beth, although meant on a professional level, was a bit excessive.
I got a little overly pumped.
Sorry Beth, will not happen again.

Anyway, I'm off to help one of my customers with their 4th of July
party. Have a great day everyone!

Keep it coming Michael, I'm loving it!!! Happy July 4th.....I love this country!!!

Michael Guessefeld in Allentown, Pennsylvania said: Let me take a few moments this morning to
give you a feel for my business. The company provides me with
a "cutting edge" truck which is equipped
with a "state of the art" dual compartment-ed freezer. The truck has it's own compressor so dry ice is not needed. The company also services the vehicle with regular oil changes,and any other maintenance required with no charge to the distributor. The insurance is also paid by the company. I pay a nominal fee of 5$ a day for a total
of 25$ a week [truck rental] . I'm also responsible for the gas. I work concentrated areas which reduces the need for excessive driving and gives me the greatest return on my gas dollar. My freezer is stocked with boxes of gourmet quality food. Each box is beautifully decorated and screams "professionalism". A box could consist of 10 Norwegian Salmon, 12-8oz Filet Mignon, 20 free range Chicken cutlets etc etc. The selection of products is extensive. The food is "flash-frozen" using modern technology. For example our seafood is frozen very close to the time of catch- this in essence preserves the product in a type of "suspended animation" state until thawed. Therefore our seafood when thawed is paradoxically fresher than the typical "fresh" seafood found in the majority of markets. I have won over many hard core "fresh only" advocates with our product.

Sorry, time to get ready for business. TO BE CONTINUED

Good evening, let me continue now with
"giving you a feel for this business"
I had just finished explaining why our fish is superior to the "fresh" fish market in general. Keep in mind that
"fresh fish" is the most perishable
food product on the planet. Only highly
experienced professional fish mongers will do justice to such a volatile
product. A regular supermarket very rarely has such personnel on premise so
as a rule supermarket fresh fish is
sub-par.

continued- Bottom line, excellent fresh fish beats excellent frozen fish hands down. Conversely, excellent fresh fish
is a rare find in deed. Even if you find
a great fish market,depending on the fish you purchase it will only be superior for 24-36 hrs. I could write
20 pages on the subject but at the end of the day "Our Fish Kicks".

Also important- Most of our products
are pre-portioned and packaged in freezer safe cryovac. depending on the product I think reasonable to say that
our food can be stored in a properly functioning freezer for 6-12 months without a measured depreciation of
quality.

It's not just about "superior" quality
food.Also infused into our products is
convenience,selection,consistency, shelf-life, and personal service.

Good afternoon,
Up to this point in the thread I've focused on the foundations of the business- The truck,website,products
and the personal attributes necessary
to succeed in this or any other "cold calling" sales endeavor. Important- I will continue to emphasize the "attributes" because with out them
all the great tools Horizon provides will
be useless to you.

Now we will explore the business itself.

note: If you are joining us mid-stream,
please scroll back to the beginning and
take the 15-20 minutes to gain context and perspective as we move forward.

In a nut shell, my Horizon business
is really a simple concept. I pull into peoples driveways unannounced, knock on the door,introduce myself and invite the
potential customer to my "gourmet food store on wheels". At the vehicle I give a very brief "warm-up" and then show the food. I price-up what there interested in and then close the sale. Then I spend a few minutes "relationship building" and go to the next door.

Yes, the concept is simple, but "success" requires complete focus,commitment,exitement-positivity and the "will" to work through rejection. Did I mention confidence? Huge! It has been said,"The food sells itself" I respectfully disagree. A more realistic phrase would be, "The food represents itself very well" but you most assuredly have to close the sale.

Time for a break!

continued- Remember, you are not applying for a job with Horizon. You are
building a business so judge this opportunity accordingly. Point being, any
business venture requires risk. The good news with a Horizon business- You will know within 2 weeks whether or not you can do this provided that your 100%
engaged.So the only thing your risking is a couple of weeks of time. Some very good people have come through and realized they could not do this. So if you try this and don't succeed there is no "shame" in that, your in good company. On the other end of the spectrum people have and are "kicking ass" right out of the gate. I am not of the "wunderkind" variety so my success
has been moderate but consistent. For example 2nd Quarter 2006 [my first quarter]662$ per week, 2nd Quarter 2007 809$ per week, just finished 2nd Quarter 2008 1,001$ per week. It should be noted that money is not the motivating factor for me. I want the time to finish my book,"Cavemen in Fancy Clothes" and continue my college education. The kicker is that as the business grows I make more money and at the same time it gets easier and easier with more time to achieve my dream. It's a mathematical certainty [based on statistical analysis] that in the not so distant future my business will be easier to manage than the easiest "job" I can think of, with "rewards" not even available on any level in the standard workplace. All because I fought through the very challenging first year.

Earlier I presented the first half of the business. Knock on doors,show the food,close the sale and build relationships. The second part of the business is servicing the customers that you acquired cold calling.Once a customer has purchased three times they become a regular customer. To the degree that you retain your regular customers, to that degree you will be successful in our business. Also important is the constant infusion of new business or as Eamonn
Shanahan calls it,"filling the funnel".
This is how the business grows. I have three important rules for retaining my regular customers. 1-do not over-service that is,"Do not be a pain in the butt", being a nuisance is the quickest way to lose a customer. 2- Always put your customers needs ahead of your own. 3- ALWAYS treat your customers fairly
[the way you would expect to be treated]. If you do these three things your "regular customer" retention will be high and many of these customers will be with you for years to come.

Good morning,
At this point if you scroll through this thread you should have a realistic sense
of our business at Horizon Foods. In the last three segments we covered a "macro"
encapsulation of the "execution" of our business,that is,cold calling and servicing customers. In the segments ahead we will develop the "micro" components of both as well as the procedure as it relates to you starting your own Horizon business.