Field Notes

Field Notes

Field Notes is a series of essays from James Hutchings about the lessons of running a window covering business. Below is the AERIS story so far, plus practical playbooks for dealers.

The AERIS Story

The story of how I built and rebuilt my company over twenty-five years.

AERIS Story

1. How Most of Us Got Here

I never grew up wanting to be in the window covering industry. Almost nobody did. Here’s how most of us actually got here, and what nobody teaches you when you cross the threshold.

Read the Article →

AERIS Story

2. How I Ran a Blind Business Blind

I spent years building a window covering company without understanding the math underneath it. Two unlocks finally changed everything, and one of them came from a conference where I was the only blind guy in the room.

Read the Article →

AERIS Story

3. The Industry Math Problem

Our industry lets the supplier set our retail prices, then discounts from there, then absorbs shipping and install on top of it. The math was never going to work, and most of us were never shown why.

Read the Article →

Dealer Playbooks

Practical lessons on marketing, sales, leadership, and operations from inside the work.

Marketing

An Inch Wide, A Mile Deep

I spread my marketing across the whole valley for years and lost most of those bets. A friend who built his entire business inside one neighborhood showed me what I'd been missing.

Read the Article →