Can you gauge the economy by the success of a popcorn stand?

I live in Las Vegas. Hit hard by the recession – and that turnaround the press talks about – well it’s really slow to appear.

So yesterday, as I was driving by a strip mall – which I have driven by hundreds of times – I decided to stop at the little intriguing shop I had seen on the sign. You know the kind of sign – listing the dozen or so shops that are…hopefully still open.

Well, there’s this shop, Popcorn Girl, listed. I thought – how can anyone make a living selling popcorn? Then a banner went up on the building over the shop – Now Open Sundays. What?

I checked it out. Amazing! It was super busy and filled with fresh popcorn in flavors I’ve never imagined. Like Loaded Baked Potato, Dill Pickle and Puppy Chow. Okay... Plus old fashioned candy – like Big Hunk, Bit ‘o Honey, and candy necklaces – the things I loved as a kid.

Awesome friendly service, product tasting, all kinds of special sports-related and seasonal packaging. Just your basic wonderland of carbs. And did I say the aroma alone could sell the product? Oh, yeah, they also make killer fudge. Fresh, melt-in-your-mouth stuff.

Call me old fashioned – I bought caramel corn – that was still warm. You have no idea…

Where am I going with this?

Take a product that everyone can relate to, plan, put in the work, provide great customer service, and manage well.

And they opened a second location. You can succeed in a recession.

Check it out, order some popcorn.

Here’s an article about Popcorn Girl.

I'll be back to work tomorrow!