One factor in their demise was the terrible way they treated vendors. I was in on negotiations with them on providing products or services three separate times over ten years, and every time it appeared that SM was not satisfied with the deal unless the vendor was losing money. It got so that no respectable company in Nashville would do business with them.
"...every time it appeared that SM was not satisfied with the deal unless the vendor was losing money. It got so that no respectable company in Nashville would do business with them."I know the type. My guess would be that you could have added "...no respectable company in Nashville or anywhere else, for that matter, would do business with them."
Companies that expect vendors / partners to lose money in order to do business with them are invariably going to come up on the losing end eventually. It's a competitive world out there, and smart companies craft deals that are true win-win arrangements. You screw your "partners", you run out of "partners" REAL quick.