A Sad Day for Couture, Men's Wearhouse Fires George Zimmer, "the 'I guarantee it' guy'

[ogredave]

I'm sure he'll be fine .. it's funny that his face is still on the website though. Seems pretty kneejerk .. postponing the annual shareholders meeting and not having the website ready to go.

 

[wing8tesqw]

how tragic. Like when priceline fired Shatner

 

[Ianiceman]



how tragic.  Like when priceline fired Shatner

They must have hired him back cos he's still on with Penny from Big Bang down here.

Didn't realise GZ owned such a small share.

What's next? I heard the Most Interesting Man In The World selling Mexican beer is actually a Jewish fella from Long Island or something! Say it ain't so!

 

[rnoldh]



Putting aside the quality of his clothes, I respect him for this:

"He also said that he and the ad agency Red Ball Tiger came up with his "I guarantee it" slogan in 1997, targeted towards men who were self conscious about their appearance.

In a separate interview with Business 2.0, he said that he doesn't run criminal background checks on prospective employees, but nonetheless loses less revenue to theft than other retailers.

"I believe in giving people a second chance," said Zimmer, a recovering alcoholic.

(From the article linked above)

Seems like a stand up guy, imo.

My initial OP was a bit facetious because of the hype and crap that MW sells.

But Zimmer was a force in menswear ( 2 Billion in sales ) and was a very smart businessman. The ads were pure genius.

And I didn't know that he was in a recovering alcoholic. In the early 1990s an acquaintance of mine had gone to prison for drug possession. When he got out no one would hire him except Men's Wearhouse. He went on to start his own business and do quite well. So kudos to Zimmer. But it is hard to believe that the company doesn't run background checks on prospective employees. Their liability would be enormous.

 

[othertravel]

Want to steer this back to his deeds. You have to admit, not running background checks is a pretty bold move.

 

[othertravel]



Meh, Zimmer's a good guy. He'll be fine. I think he posts here under Reevolving.

Does he really post here?

 

[rnoldh]



Want to steer this back to his deeds. You have to admit, not running background checks is a pretty bold move.

Yes, for a 2 Billion $ public company in sales it would be crazy.

What if they hired a person who had outstanding felony warrants or was a sex offender. Not a good business practice.

I'm pretty sure that when my friend was hired out of prison, they knew he had been in prison, knew why, and were giving him a second chance. Nothing wrong with that.

 

[othertravel]



Yes, for a 2 Billion $ public company in sales it would be crazy.

What if they hired a person who had outstanding felony warrants or was a sex offender. Not a good business practice.

I'm pretty sure that when my friend was hired out of prison, they knew he had been in prison, knew why, and were giving him a second chance. Nothing wrong with that.

That's true. I was thinking within the context of something like your friend's situation.

 

[bertie]



They must have hired him back cos he's still on with Penny from Big Bang down here.

Didn't realise GZ owned such a small share.

What's next? I heard the Most Interesting Man In The World selling Mexican beer is actually a Jewish fella from Long Island or something! Say it ain't so!

Wait - GZ is not MIMW - I thought they were the same person.

 

[Ianiceman]



Wait - GZ is not MIMW - I thought they were the same person.

 

[jrd617]

Zimmer to MW Board: "You're gonna regret this, I guarantee it."

 

[Joffrey]

FML, just when I'm about to drop $300 on a rental from them.

 

[Bounder]



What if they hired a person who had outstanding felony warrants or was a sex offender. Not a good business practice.

A sex offender? It is hard to imagine a place less likely to interest a sex offender than a Men's Wearhouse. Nor it is easy to imagine a population less vulnerable than 30-60 year old businessmen.

As for employee theft . . . well, I think MW is pretty safe there, too. I suppose you could flog stolen suits on ebay but all things considered fencing badly-made no-name suits can't be very easy.

But I think the idea of getting style advice from ex-cons is pretty great.

 

[bourbonbasted]



But I think the idea of getting style advice from ex-cons is pretty great.

The SA's insistence that "orange goes with everything" now makes total sense.

 

[Bounder]