Funny this conversation happen in the Big Burke Announcement thread during the summer but was not as colorful as this one! thetrailboss - look what you started! :roll:
Don't thank me...thank Q2!
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Funny this conversation happen in the Big Burke Announcement thread during the summer but was not as colorful as this one! thetrailboss - look what you started! :roll:
Can Q2 generate as many posts here at AZ in a week as Magic did in it's worst month?
I'll write more on the lodge and changes tomorrow (including the leather couch and fake fireplace). Right now I have to go post travel/weather conditions.
I skied Burke today (I will always call it Burke). Indeed, all the logos, names, merchandise is being re-branded to "Q Burke". I've seen them all. Pretty much all the old signage and gear has been cast off. No more teddy bears. I'm OK with change, but I don't see any any advantage to this new name. In the interest of preserving the old but bringing in the new, I would have voted for BurQe if they must have their name attached. An obvious alternative, shot down early I suspect.
Oh and the new nasty looking bear, we'll that's going to take some time to warm up to.
I'll write more on the lodge and changes tomorrow (including the leather couch and fake fireplace). Right now I have to go post travel/weather conditions.
Did you drive up to Mid-Burke to find that there are no more ticket sales there? That is another "change" that will probably not be liked. They had a good compromise with one cashier selling sundries, coffee, and tickets at Bear Den. But then again this is progress or is it regression?
From a business perspective, I can see his view on how there needs to be change. 5 owners in 20 years? Something isn't working here, and something needs to be changed to make a profit.
I don't think transforming Burke from a ski area to a ski resort will work though, it's just not big enough, unless a massive expansion is part of a 5 year plan
Right now he seems to be pissing so many people off that I wouldn't be surprised if some of his long time employees either quit or were fired for refusing to call it "Q Burke."
I would hate to see Burke being added to NELSAP in a few years because of an over-aggressive expansion that didn't bring in new customers and drove away the old ones.
The thing I worry the most about is the friendly, casual vibe the place always had. I'm absolutely with them that this is a business, not a non-profit institution. There have to be changes. And of course people are resistant to change.
Having been through cultural transformations, more than once at my own place of employment, we have to recognize that if we don't please the customers, and give them a reason to come, well, there goes the business. So while employees may be bothered, (that's part of the loss process: grief, anger, resignation, etc., the essential issue is, what's the long-term strategy? To build a strategy, you have to define who your customer base is. What people do you want to attract? And then, can you get them to come? What's the compelling reason for me to go to Burke?
Everything I've heard from the JPR industry reps in this thread is very near-term, tactical. I'd like to see the strategic plan; the vision.
Their marketing dept has nothing to do with this. It is all on the CEO.their marketing q-partment should be q-barrassed.