Agathon Group - "The Good Stuff"

• A boutique specializes in what you need; or, a boutique delivers selection that is generally unavailable elsewhere. In my search for a new car stereo recently, I could have gone to Wal-Mart and picked from the five or six decent receivers. Instead, I ordered a receiver from Crutchfield that had exactly the features I needed… and that I couldn’t find from a department store.
• A boutique specializes in what you want; or, a boutique delivers quality that is generally unavailable elsewhere. I can buy any old sandals at K-Mart (and put up with the blisters!). Or I can buy the incredibly comfortable, durable Reef Stuyak sandals from Zappos.
• Perhaps most importantly, a studio focuses more on developing relationships with its clients, rather than developing products for its clients. One thing that fans consistently highlight about Crutchfield and Zappos is their legendary service, which means people keep coming back, which means those studios get to foster a relationship with their fans. Does Target corporate headquarters know your name?

There are always potential drawbacks with terms and “boutique” is no exception. If your definition and my definition don’t jive, I’m giving you the wrong impression (inadvertently!) about my company. So to explore some common misconceptions about what constitutes a “boutique”:

• A boutique is not necessarily populated with pretentious snobs. Just because the employees at Jeffrey’s are über-elite and think they are cooler (or smarter or more fashionable) than you, that doesn’t mean that’s the way it is everywhere. While those boutiques exist even (especially?) in the tech industry, you shouldn’t settle for one. Remember that one of the hallmarks of a good boutique is relationship; a company that keeps you at arm’s length with a sense of superiority and condescension is ultimately not interested in having a relationship outside of you paying your bills.
• A studio is not necessarily a small company. Compare two online music retailers: Musician’s Friend and Sweetwater. Both are large companies with a wide variety of items available for purchase, including condenser microphones. However, Sweetwater carries a number of highly-specialized brands (mainly on the higher end, including one individual mic priced over $13,000!) that not even Musician’s Friend carries in its arsenal of 458 condenser microphones. Another example of Sweetwater being a boutique-style business: after I placed a web order with them a few weeks back, I received a followup phone call from my newly-assigned account representative, who introduced himself, made sure I had received my order, and offered any assistance on future orders. Despite serving hundreds of thousands of clients, Sweetwater took the time to call me personally; this shows their dedication to excellent customer service and suggests they operate more like a studio than not.

The positive connotations of “boutique” or “studio” seem to outweigh the potential for negative connotations. The focus on quality, selection, and (especially) relationship is something we at Agathon Group strive to communicate to everyone with whom we come into contact, and I think “boutique” and “studio” are valuable words in communicating those values succinctly.