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A man who destroyed his multimillion dollar company in 10 seconds (2018)

thehustle.co

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Re: A man who destroyed his multimillion dollar company in 10 seconds (2018)

#251
post #205

Michael O'Leary being incredibly rude is a key part of Ryanair's branding. If you're paying £19 for a two hour flight, you'll always have the sneaking suspicion that the airline is skimping on maintenance. O'Leary makes it absolutely clear that they save money by treating their passengers like cattle. He carefully cultivates the image of a man who utterly despises his own customers, but is far too miserly to allow an…

As an occasional Ryanair user they don't really treat you like cattle and he doesn't seem to despise his customers though if certain ones piss him off he won't necessarily cover that up. People are so snobby about it - I'd never fly a cheap service with cheap people - I'm better than that kind of vibe. Ryanair is run kind of like a bus service really - pay modest money and they ship you from A to B.

Pretty much. They don’t even disguise it - their whole marketing is “if you want to fly cheap fly Ryanair” that’s it.

Re: A man who destroyed his multimillion dollar company in 10 seconds (2018)

#252

Michael O'Leary being incredibly rude is a key part of Ryanair's branding. If you're paying £19 for a two hour flight, you'll always have the sneaking suspicion that the airline is skimping on maintenance. O'Leary makes it absolutely clear that they save money by treating their passengers like cattle. He carefully cultivates the image of a man who utterly despises his own customers, but is far too miserly to allow an…

He carefully cultivates the image of a man who utterly despises his own customers, but is far too miserly to allow an aircraft to crash. That image will keep them going right up until they have a fatal crash, at which point the press, the government, and victims’ attorneys will use every word he has ever said about being cheap to crucify him and the company. Given their volume of flights, a fatal crash is statistical…

Why would Ryanair ever have a crash? Their airplanes are usually quite new. The EU hasn’t had an accidental plane crash in ages. Have you ever flown Ryanair?

Re: A man who destroyed his multimillion dollar company in 10 seconds (2018)

#253

The modern examples cited weren't nearly as bad: - Lulumon didn't seem to be hurt by Chip Wilson. In fact, the "notoriety" made me aware they they sold men's clothes, too, and I went there and bought some great athletic wear. - Many customers appreciated Barclays' warning not to "pile up debts." That would give me a favorable opinion of a company that offers lines of credit, not a bad one.

Lululemon is genius, their quality is great, but the branding is even better! They revolutionized the exercise wear industry, were single-handedly responsible for "athleisure" and killing denim sales!

and maybe it's true that some styles of clothing are "not for everyone"

Re: A man who destroyed his multimillion dollar company in 10 seconds (2018)

#254

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lululemon is genius, their quality is great, but the branding is even better! They revolutionized the exercise wear industry, were single-handedly responsible for "athleisure" and killing denim sales!

and maybe it's true that some styles of clothing are "not for everyone"

Not maybe, definitely. Just one of those things that for some reason isn't acceptable to say despite being obviously accurate.

Re: A man who destroyed his multimillion dollar company in 10 seconds (2018)

#255

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They've never had a major crash in almost 35 years. Other budget airlines with few customer perks like southwest have survived crashes with a less stellar safety record.

Other budget airlines with few customer perks like southwest have survived crashes with a less stellar safety record. True, but Southwest does not have a CEO that openly flaunts their being cheap either. They've never had a major crash in almost 35 years. I once won 15 hands of blackjack in a row, but then I lost a hand. Even the most expensive airlines eventually have fatal incidents, and it would be statistically i…

You’re making no sense. You’re saying Ryanair has an impeccable safety record, but so does every other airline, but when Ryanair gets a crash, people will assume it’s because it’s cheap?

So your entire argument is people are dumb and they will make unwarranted associations. Brilliant

Re: A man who destroyed his multimillion dollar company in 10 seconds (2018)

#256

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He carefully cultivates the image of a man who utterly despises his own customers, but is far too miserly to allow an aircraft to crash. That image will keep them going right up until they have a fatal crash, at which point the press, the government, and victims’ attorneys will use every word he has ever said about being cheap to crucify him and the company. Given their volume of flights, a fatal crash is statistical…

I would never dream of thinking Ryanair skimps one aircraft maintenance. I’d be concerned by their cabin crew performance given the conditions they work in though.

I think their fleet is quite new as well, and they keep it that way, for fuel efficiency.

The guy is doing a cheap airline, not an unsafe one. He’s not a madman. He’s a ruthless business guy, and he knows a crash due to poor maintenance would end his business.

Re: A man who destroyed his multimillion dollar company in 10 seconds (2018)

#257
post #76

What I find most fascinating is that a multimillion dollar company was destroyed simply because the owner told the truth. Imagine if fast food CEOs were honest about the quality of their food instead of just parroting marketing bullshit.

I rarely eat at the big fast food chains--and it's usually because I have no other options. But what's the "truth" about the quality of the food?

The CEO could quite honestly say that their goals are consistency, speed, food safety, and affordability. Quality? I expect the honest response would be something along the lines of 1.) Millions of customers apparently like our product and 2.) We try to deliver the best quality product we can subject to our customers' other priorities. The CEO probably believes this to some degree or other. They're not trying to deliver a high-end steakhouse experience. McDonald's isn't even trying to deliver a Shake Shack experience--which maybe costs 2x (at least)?

Re: A man who destroyed his multimillion dollar company in 10 seconds (2018)

#258

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not delusion, it's signaling.

Signaling is the effort through which you participate in a shared delusion.

It's not (necessarily) a delusion though, because it is something rational non-deluded people would do. For example, to use a really simple toy example, if you're a man then buying an expensive ring for a women is a credible signal of commitment. Why? Because you can't fake the sacrifice of 6 months of sacrificed work in order to buy a ring for her.

If you're a man who wants a wife, this is a clear level headed choice to make. I think delusion as a term should not include optimal choices made by individual actors.

Re: A man who destroyed his multimillion dollar company in 10 seconds (2018)

#259
post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He'd made the same jokes in speeches several times before, and it had gone down well with the audience. Presumably he just didn't consider the possibility that the press would think it worth making a story out of.

I don't get it. So he made these jokes infront of shareholders just for kicks? Why would someone even say this infront of anyone, I don't understand. I am starting to think he might have been under the influence.

Some people are sadists who like to mock other people, in this case the customers. Ratners customers were mostly poorish people who wanted to dress up a bit or purchase gifts for someone they cared about. Dismissing the (relatively minor) luxury good as cheap crap mocked the intentions and emotions of the people buying it.
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