Until We Meet Again

Can you show me a dream? Can you show me one that’s better than mine? Can you stand it in the cold light of day? Neither can I. — Ronnie Lane, “Glad and Sorry”

When I was growing up, my friends had pictures of Roger Daltrey and KC and the Sunshine Band on their bedroom walls; I had a map of Britain and a poster of the York Minster. I’ve dreamed of living in the U.K. since I was 10 years old. After 35 years, I’ll finally be doing so.

Which means that this is my last Editor’s Note for Multichannel Merchant. I’d like to bow out by thanking everyone who has been so important to the past 11-1/2 years of my career.

So a tip of the hat to my bosses: my predecessor, Laura Beaudry, who taught me so much; group publisher Leslie Bacon, the best boss I ever had (she thinks I’m snowing her when I say that, but why would I bother b.s.-ing her now?); Ray Schultz, who is not only a font of industry knowledge but quite the raconteur as well.

And of course to the edit and art staff: Melissa Dowling, who for years has provided a shoulder to lean on and, on more than one occasion, a shoulder to cry on; Mark Del Franco, the best schmoozer in the business and someone who, when he’s not the cause of stress, is unparalleled at reducing it; the unflappable, no-deadline-is-too-tight Kate DiMarco; Heather Retzlaff, who has a Radar O’Reilly-like ability to anticipate my requests; Tim Parry, whose skill in persuading busy marketing experts to write articles for free has made the Chief Marketer Report e-newsletter possible; Jim Tierney, who is not only a reporter from the old school but also the only other person I know who watches the FX show Dirt. I’ll miss them like crazy. Multichannel Merchant is in good hands with them on board.

Finally, I’d like to thank all of you, who put up with my naive questions when I was a newbie (and a not-so-newbie) and who have been so giving of information about the industry and your needs and wants. I’ll be covering print and online catalogs and other aspects of multichannel commerce on the other side of the Atlantic, so hopefully I’ll see and speak with many of you again.

If you’re ever in North Devon, look me up. And feel free to stay in touch via e-mail: [email protected].

Best wishes,