3 Business Lessons From The Hells Angels
For some reason, I seem to hear a lot of stories about the Hells Angels. I have no idea why, but most of these stories have a lesson if you look at them in the right light.
Most people have an image of the Hells Angels in their minds. The police claim that they are a criminal organization. The Hells Angels say that they are nothing more than a motorcycle club. They ARE a business - the full name of the Hells Angels is the Hells Angels Motorcycle Corporation – and they, or at least their members, own a wide variety of businesses from bars to construction companies, and even grocery stores. As a corporation, they have trademarks on their name and their logo, and they are not scared of taking people to court to protect those trademarks.
The first story was told to me by a friend, who claimed his aunt lived next to a Hells Angels club house. The second story was told to me by a coworker, and directly involved him. You be the judge of how true and/or embellished the stories are.
The Aunt
Auntie May* lived next door to a Hells Angels club house. She was an old woman, and sort of saw the world through rose coloured glasses. She believed that her neighbours were a group of ‘young men’ who were really into motorcycles. They never gave her any trouble, in fact they were quite kind. In the winter they shoveled her sidewalk for her, and she repaid them by baking pies and cookies.
One evening, the young men living next door to her had quite a party. They made a lot of noise, and were up most of the night. Auntie May didn’t sleep a wink, and went over the next day to ask them to please keep it down in the future.
The man who answered the door apologized profusely and assured the woman it would never happen again. Later in the day, a giant bouquet of flowers arrived at her door with an apology card.
Business Lesson #1 – Deal With Complaints Immediately
When you screw up, don’t try to sweep it under the carpet or ignore it. Someone who complains is interested in continuing to do business with you, but is angry at something you did. If they didn’t care about you, they wouldn’t give you the chance to fix the problem.
The Strip Club
My coworker had gone to a strip club in a major Canadian city, a club which is reported to be owned by a member of the Hells Angels, or even by the Angels themselves. As part of getting into the club, you have to go past security, as well as have a photo taken of you and your drivers license. To start a tab with the bar, you give your credit card to the waitress, who keeps it until you leave.
My coworker and his companions were enjoying the view from the table that they had chosen when a group of people sat in the table in front of them and constantly stood up and walked around, blocking my coworkers view of the stage. My coworker went over to ask them to please stay seated. This was a mistake. The new group was very angry and started to push and threaten my coworker’s group. The word stabbing was heard. Within seconds a representative of the strip club escorted my coworker and his group away. They were not given much chance to speak, but instead were ushered out the back door of the club and into a waiting limousine. They were told they could go anywhere in the city, and that the tab was going to be picked up for them. They selected another establishment, and did not ask any other questions.
The next morning, my coworker awoke and realized that he had left his credit card at the strip club, with the waitress. Taking a chance, he called the club. The phone was answered with “Good morning Mr. Smith*, I’ve been waiting for your call. How are you doing this morning?”
Stammering, my coworker replied that he was doing quite well, but that he had left his credit card the previous night. “Yes, we have it right here for you. Come over and pick it up anytime.”
Heading over the club, my coworker is escorted into a private office and offered a drink. A big guy comes out from a back room, shakes his hand, and returns his card. A conversation ensues about what happened the night before. The short story – the people he upset were members of a vicious gang and he was seconds away from being killed.
Business Lesson #2 - Be Proactive
When a problem is about to occur, deal with it immediately. Fixing something before a problem happens is always going to be cheaper and less messy than if you wait.
My coworker then asked why they didn’t just kick the bad guys out of the club – why spend the money on a limo and picking up the tab? The answer – they would have waited for him outside, followed him back to his house, and killed him there.
Business Lesson #3 - Always Think Two Steps Ahead
Ask yourself what the results will be of your decisions, and then make plans to deal with the likely outcome. Many restaurants who had promotions with Groupon initially failed in delivering great customer service because they weren’t prepared for the rush of people that walked through their doors. Try to think at least two steps ahead. Hint, this is part of business planning. You do have a plan for your business, right?
*These names are of course, completely fictitious.
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