Charlie had been a manager for many years, so he doubted that he'd learn anything new. And, besides, he wasn't in the retail business, so it was highly unlikely that he'd learn anything useful for a technology business. But Fred had been bugging him for a long time, so he decided to visit, if only to get Fred off his back.

The first thing he noticed when he entered the store was a playroom for children. Shoppers could leave their children under the supervision of a playroom attendant while they shopped at leisure. They wouldn't have bored kids tugging at them and whining, "Can we go home now?"

This was a nifty idea, Charlie reckoned, but clearly not for a technology business.

Around lunchtime, Charlie stopped off at the store's cafeteria. There were good, simple and tasty meals at reasonable prices in a pleasant environment. The cafeteria kept customers in the store; they didn't leave for lunch and, possibly, not return to shop. Another great idea, Charlie recognized. But again, it was not applicable to a technology business.

As he wandered around the store, Charlie noted areas under construction. This was a surprise because the place had been around for several years. Why on earth would they be disrupting things with changes now? He decided to visit the manager.

"Why the new construction?" he asked.

"Well," the manager told him, "it wasn't our idea. It started with customer suggestions. Customers gave us great ideas for new products and new ways to present and promote them."

"And the cafeteria menus?" Charlie asked.

"Oh, the menus change once in a while, depending on customer feedback."

"And the playroom?"

"That changes sometimes, too," the manager replied, "also depending on customer feedback."

"You seem to depend a lot on customer feedback," Charlie said.

"Oh yes," he was told. "In fact, you know how it is when you first get to work in the morning? You have so much to do that you don't know what to tackle first? Well, we know. First thing in the morning, we go through the feedback we get from suggestion boxes that are prominent all over the store. And we pay attention."

Well, Charlie knew all about customer feedback. He had gotten lots of feedback in focus groups. Customers offered ideas on new products, more-effective advertising and customer-friendly corporate behavior. But Charlie didn't pay much attention. His situation was different. The customers simply didn't understand his business.