SHOPTALK - Key Persons
As the economic climate continues to challenge businesses on many levels, I think it is the opportune time for independent merchants, restaurant owners, and owners of service businesses to ask themselves some difficult questions about the perception of their "brand." Often, as Shop Talk analyzes customers' feedback about businesses they continue to frequent, or have stopped frequenting, it seems to always come back to reflecting on issues regarding the business' brand/promise. Therefore, many of the indicators that make a successful business will need to be carefully critiqued by all business owners/managers.
Margie Johnson, highly acclaimed speaker, trainer, author, and consultant, equips entrepreneurs with the knowledge and skills that lead them to higher profitability and performance. Margie's thirty-year career as an entrepreneur and business expert has given her the experience to develop customer-centered strategies and solutions that work. These strategies have given thousands of businesses the competitive edge needed to survive and thrive.
Since 1985, Shop Talk, located in Virginia Beach, Virginia, has served as a specialized consultation and research firm concentrated in retail, hospitality, health care, and financial industries. With twenty-four years of experience as a partner and general manager of the Galleon Esplanade and as Secretary/Treasurer of Cabana East, a corporation owning various businesses including Cabana East Motel and A Restaurant By George in Nags Head, North Carolina, Margie Johnson brings a wealth of experience to her clients. From starting a profitable business to profitably closing one down, Margie Johnson has helped companies achieve their best performance.
Margie's local and national accolades include the Fred Lazarus National Retail Federation Award, North Carolina Employer of the Year Award, Inside Business 2006 Women in Business Achievement Award, 1998 Outstanding Woman of Hampton Roads, Chairman of the Board of Retail Alliance 2009-2010, and East Carolina University Legacy Leadership Award 2010. She has received coverage in The Virginian- Pilot, The Washington Post, Women's Wear Daily Specialty Stores Newsletter, at the National Retail Federation, and on WHRO Public Television and NBC's Today Show. Margie received her B.S. from East Carolina University and has completed postgraduate work at the Management Development Institute at the University of North Carolina.
Margie currently resides in Virginia Beach with her husband Dan.