Retirement is obsolete.  Richard Stanley and Joe Wasserman tried to quit. They came separately to Great Barrington to relax, retire and, perhaps, fiddle around real estate and whatever caught their fancy. They met while attending a town meeting, and as entrepreneurs will do, they talked about their dreams for improving Great Barrington's historic business district.

Now you see what became of their first meeting. Richard and Joe couldn't retire, and no one should have a goal to retire. Sure, you want to change. Sure, you need a new challenge. Oddly, the AARP brags about being the biggest association in the world and about being the largest advocacy group in Washington. However, when people who don't work claim to have the biggest voice, something's very wrong.  

All but one of us at SMALL BUSINESS 2000 are baby boomers. Then we have one 23-year-old. No one here thinks about retiring. It's not good for people not to have work. And it's not good for the country for our most experienced individuals to leave the work force. The great thing about working for yourself is that no one can make you quit. We have studied a number of way- past -retirement-age entrepreneurs. We've learned a lot from them and from Richard and Joe. But I think the greatest lesson is they are all smart enough not to retire.  

TOPIC FOR DISCUSSION: Does success in business have anything to do with age?  

POSSIBLE ANSWERS: No. Members of the over- sixty crowd who start businesses in fields related to their life experience have a very high success rate.  For example, Bob Dole worked in the federal government for decades.  Now he has a law practice and he advises those who do business with the government.  Joe has always built public spaces and Richard had dealt with hundreds of real estate deals while in the hair salon business.  Even though neither had ever owned a movie theater, they see themselves more as developers than theater owners. 

TOPIC FOR DISCUSSION: Why did Richard and Joe join forces to build the Triplex?  

POSSIBLE ANSWERS: Because retirement is not what it is cracked up to be.  They were both bored. Michael Novak in his book Business As A Calling; Work and the Examined Life says, "The after-taste of affluence is boredom."  Also, both Richard and Joe are visionaries.  They could look at the fire damaged building and visualize what could be.  They knew that parking would be available at night and that access to the back lot could be created. The town needed something to bring the nightlife back.  They saw a need and filled it. 

Key Idea #2  

Dare to be different. There was a movie theater in Great Barrington, but it only brought in the big blockbuster films.  Richard and Joe knew they personally preferred the smaller budget and foreign films. They calculated that since Great Barrington is a week-end and summer retreat from both New York City and Boston, there would be plenty of people like them who would like to go to the movies but who wouldn't want to bother with the newest sex/violence Hollywood creation. 

TOPIC FOR DISCUSSION: Did Richard and Joe begin with the goal to be different?  

POSSIBLE ANSWERS: Not really.  For the first year-and-a-half  they contracted with a  large movie theater operator and functioned as the owner of the building leasing out the space.  However, they found that the big company wasn't really in touch with the community and that the traffic wasn't what they hoped it would be. 

Also the operator was programming the Triplex too much like the other theater in town.

TOPIC FOR DISCUSSION: How did they arrive at their unique identity as a theater?  

POSSIBLE ANSWERS: They hired a booker who had experience booking films for an older more sophisticated audience that was not being served by the competitor.  Then they hired a manager to oversee the day-to-day operations. 

TOPIC FOR DISCUSSION: Did they try to learn the film booking business themselves? 

POSSIBLE ANSWERS: No.  But Richard said he is always trying to figure out why one movie works and another doesn't. They do not want to be tied to the detail of choosing the films.  This comes partly from their experience of being "hands-on" in other businesses and also because they don't have to take money out of the business to live. 

TOPIC FOR DISCUSSION: Do you think that the personality and communication skills of Alex, the manager, contribute to the way the townspeople feel about the Triplex? 

POSSIBLE ANSWERS: Yes.  In a small town one business leader can make an impact. The fact that Richard is active in the Chamber of Commerce and both he and Joe are often at the theater is good for business..  

Key Idea #3  

As soon as you're satisfied, you're no longer an entrepreneur. Richard is not happy with the theater yet.  He is proud of the the physical improvement that he and Joe have brought to the town, but his vision for the Triplex is bigger than what you see today. 

TOPIC FOR DISCUSSION:What is Richard's vision for the theater? 

POSSIBLE ANSWER: He sees the theater as a community asset.  This means it could be used for lectures, plays, music recitals, or whatever anyone can imagine happening in a room with comfortable fixed seating. 

Richard and Joe have made a physical improvement in the town of Great Barrington; now they want to make an intellectual improvement. 

Key Idea #4  

Banks do loan money to experienced business owners.  So many small business owners are rejected by banks that it's almost shocking to hear about a successful bank loan.   

TOPIC FOR DISCUSSION: Why did a bank loan money to Richard and Joe?  

POSSIBLE ANSWER: Because they have borrowed money in the past for business ventures and paid the money back.  Richard had already purchased and improved property in Great Barrington.  Both own homes in the community and both have substantial investment incomes.