Marc Friedant on Leadership, Business Transformation & Leading Robbins Brothers

On this episode we have an amazing guest! We have the incredible: “Marc Friedant!” Marc, is the dynamic CEO of the iconic: “Robbins Brothers” Fine Jewelers! Marc’s journey from the world of finance, to leading one of America’s most iconic Jewelry brands is nothing short of truly inspiring! Marc, has helped guide “Robbins Brothers”, through transformation and triumph - From steering the company during the pandemic, to leading an employee-led buyout, that has redefined its culture, direction and future!  

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Times. On this episode, we have an amazing guest. We have the incredible Mark Friedan. Mark is a dynamic CEO of the iconic Robin's Brothers Find Jewelers. Mark's journey from the world of finance to leading one of America's most iconic jewelry brands is nothing short of truly inspiring. Mark has helped guide Robin's Brothers through transformation and China from steering the company during the pandemic to leading an employee led by that that has redefined its culture, direction, and future. Welcome to the inspiring mark and thanks for coming on the podcast.

SPEAKER_00 0:29

Thanks, Nick. Pleasure to meet you.

SPEAKER_01 0:30

Pleasure to meet you too, my friend. All right, let's jump straight into it. Take us back. Tell us about your family and your life growing up and everything relating to that.

SPEAKER_00 0:40

Sure. So uh I was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, about 3,000 miles away from Los Angeles, where I find myself today. Uh, oldest of three children, and had a pretty typical upbringing. Mom and dad, go to school, work after school, try to figure out what I wanted to be when I grew up, and um kind of started down one path as far as what I had hoped my future would be, and uh took a bit of a turn while I was in college, and here I am.

SPEAKER_01 1:15

Wonderful. And uh tell me about Robins Brothers and the rich history behind it.

SPEAKER_00 1:20

So Robins Brothers is a brand that started or or traces its origin back to 1921. Uh actually started up in Seattle, Washington, and then over the years and multiple generations of the Robbins family uh now finds itself here based in Southern California. Uh and we now have 14 stores, eight here in California, four in Texas, uh, one remaining up in the state of Washington near the origin, and then one also in Arizona.

SPEAKER_01 1:58

Incredible. And what do you personally love most about Robin's Brothers?

SPEAKER_00 2:03

So it's, you know, the the history and the legacy of the brand being around for 104, 105 years now. Uh our business uh most recently has primarily focused on engagement rings and wedding bands. So a very happy business, if you will. Uh, and we we get involved with typically young couples or older couples who are expressing their feelings and their love for one another, and we get to help them celebrate that those times. And so uh a bad day in a store is usually filled with happiness and excitement for people. Um, and it's just really a great space to play in.

SPEAKER_01 2:46

Yeah, impressive. And how tell us about the story of how you got into Robin's Brothers and how that transpired.

SPEAKER_00 2:52

Okay, so um, for the last 20 years or so, um, I'm a finance guy. I grew up a finance guy, I worked as in accounting, uh, became a CFO a long time ago. And but for the last 20 years or so, I worked with companies that were owned by private equity. And my role typically was to get involved in a business as the chief financial officer and help get the business ready to be sold. Because in the private equity space, it's it's pretty simple. Uh, private equity buys a business, they want to invest money, they want to improve performance, and then they turn around and want to sell it. And so back in 2018, I was hired by the the private equity owner of Robbins Brothers at the time and charged with get it ready. We're gonna sell this thing down the road. And uh that's how I got into the business.

SPEAKER_01 3:47

Incredible. And well, how how have you experienced being a CEO from when you first started to where you are now?

SPEAKER_00 3:54

So it was interesting. Um right before the pandemic, so very late 2019, early 2020, I was moved into the CEO role. And uh my first opportunity to be a CEO in the business after being CFO for so many years. And I think the pandemic actually changed my psychology. You know, I was very used to the numbers, very black and white. There wasn't a whole lot of gray that you had to play. But the pandemic was something that forced me to think more about the people in the business rather than just the numbers and the financial performance of the business. And so uh it was very transformational for me personally, as the pandemic forced us to close all of our stores. Nobody knew how long it was going to last, nobody knew what it was going to look like on the other side, if there was even going to be another of the pandemic. And so that really gave me uh reason to think differently about my career and and what I wanted out of my uh my business.

SPEAKER_01 5:01

Well, it's working out well so far.

SPEAKER_00 5:03

So far, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 5:05

Um, what's the biggest uh sal you ever done at Robins Brothers or that you've been a part of?

SPEAKER_00 5:11

Uh we we've done a handful of Mo to mid six-figure transactions. Um we're we're we're you know periodically, well being based in Los Angeles, you do have customers who come in that are high net worth. Um we've sold some some jewelry to professional athletes. Um and so we're not selling million-dollar pieces, but we're we do more than our share of hundred to three hundred thousand dollar goods at throughout a year.

SPEAKER_01 5:44

Well, and what's your personal favorite piece of jewelry that you see?

SPEAKER_00 5:48

So I'm I'm not much of a jewelry person. Um uh we we carry brands that have very intricate, finely detailed settings that an engagement diamond will go into the center of. Um, I have fun when I when I walk into a store and maybe we have a a blinged out chain or or uh in the industries a watch that's been iced out, uh, which is not something that we typically sell, but it's fun to be exposed to those goods when guests come in and and they're looking for something special.

SPEAKER_01 6:25

Yeah, thanks for sharing. And what inspires you daily?

SPEAKER_00 6:29

Uh just the fun of it. You know, I'm I'm at the point in my career where I'm really trying to build a legacy with our organization. Um, I spend a lot of time trying to figure out how we can build a culture and a brand around the history of Robbins Brothers. Um, not for me, but for the people who are part of this. Being around as long as we have been, we have many employees who've been with us 15 to 30 years, which is pretty cool. And there's been a lot of changes in the world. And I really want something where our team feels like they're part of something bigger than just this is where they go to work on a daily basis. And so that's really what my focus is, and to build something that has longstanding, lasting well beyond my time at Robbins Brothers.

SPEAKER_01 7:26

That's inspiring. And um, what has been the most challenging time or specific um part of your job that's happened so far?

SPEAKER_00 7:34

So the hard part is for, and and I struggle with it every day, is going from purely being a numbers guy to having to think about people, think about culture, think about legacy, think about guest experience. Um, one of the things that I did have the good fortune of being exposed to is there was a period of time where I actually had to run the retail stores and talk about asking me to reinvent myself and do something I had zero understanding of. But it was it was really good because I got to see a part of the business that when you're behind the scenes counting the the cash, you don't have to get involved in. And it changed my perspective and it gave me a much better appreciation for what our folks deal with on a daily basis. Um by nature, I always revert back to the numbers, the spreadsheet, the Microsoft Excel. And I always have to keep reminding myself that there's much more beyond just how do you keep score?

SPEAKER_01 8:41

Sure. And how do you manage stuff?

SPEAKER_00 8:45

Um I'm I am I I don't like to give direction, but I drive people crazy by asking lots of questions. And it's sometimes challenging for folks to really understand that I'm not asking questions to defeat them, I'm asking questions to better understand the thought process that they've gone through to come to the recommendation or the decision that they're making. And so I ask questions to learn, and I ask questions to help them solidify their direction that they've come to and make sure that it's based on sound decision making. And it works most of the time. Um, and the the good thing is no one is ever penalized for making a bad decision. They may be challenged in me trying to understand how they've come to it. But if you make a bad decision, you get an opportunity to make another decision. That's the the reality of operating a business because we sell jewelry. We're not we're not saving lives or anything like that. So a bad decision is a bad transaction or a bad direction, but nothing's going to be fatal in the decisions that we make.

SPEAKER_01 10:06

That's insightful. And what does success look like for you?

SPEAKER_00 10:11

For me, long-term success is building a great company that people want to work for for a long time, that our customers are out in the marketplace singing our praises. Um, you know, customer referral is the most important thing for us. You know, we spend a lot of time working towards positive reviews on uh that that a guest can leave when they've been in the Robbins Brothers. Um, we just opened a brand new store on Friday, and you couldn't have scripted it any better. The first guest came in and it he had purchased his first wife's engagement ring from us in one location. He purchased his second wife's engagement ring from us in another location, and just so happens to live two blocks away from this brand new store. And the excitement that he had in coming in and seeing this building and realizing that it's Robin's Brothers and it's part of the same legacy and experience that he had had before was pretty cool. And you know, I I I couldn't have scripted it any better. Um we're trying to, we're gonna use him as a spokesperson because it was that great of an experience for us.

SPEAKER_01 11:26

That's incredible. And would you say that's the best, I guess, um, customer experience or compliment that um Robins Brothers has had so far?

SPEAKER_00 11:33

Absolutely. You know, we we we pride ourselves on tradition, legacy, and trustworthiness. You know, we we sell something that it's challenging to put a value on. And so what's really important for us is we want to stand behind the product that we sell. We want to ensure that it's the quality standard that we stand by. Um, when we select diamonds as a company, we reject nine out of ten diamonds, that they're not good enough to be sold in one of our stores. And we've been very true to that. And so that's our way of demonstrating to our consumer that what they're buying is of high quality. We operate with high integrity, and we want to be your jeweler of choice throughout your jewelry buying lifetime.

SPEAKER_01 12:29

That's amazing. Um, nine out of ten. That's that's remarkable.

SPEAKER_00 12:32

Yeah, yeah. So it's, you know, I'm sure we're paying for that somewhere, right? Uh suppliers don't like getting nine out of ten back when we don't accept them. But it's it's been a quality standard that we've stuck to for years.

SPEAKER_01 12:47

Sure. And what's the hardest decision you've had to make as a CEA?

SPEAKER_00 12:51

Uh it's it's always about terminating somebody. You know, it's it's it's difficult when someone isn't uh being successful in their role. And you know, I question myself if I put them in the role, did I did I misjudge, did I misunder train, did I set an expectation that wasn't uh appropriate? Um so that that's a that's a difficult one, especially someone who you know is giving their best effort, and the best effort may just not get the job done completely.

SPEAKER_01 13:25

Sure. And how do you um how do you stay innovative in a I guess a mature business, which is Robin's Brothers, especially in, I guess, a competitive marketplace too?

SPEAKER_00 13:36

So we partner with uh in in our bridal space, we partner with some of the the top designers in in the world. And so innovation is really coming from them. You know, when we when you talk about an engagement ring, you're really talking about a pretty small piece of real estate. And there's not a tremendous amount of innovation, so to speak. There's creativity and there's style, so style uh uh shapes of stones go in and out of style, um, accent stones go in of in and out of style, but it's not really as much innovation as you might think. Other part of our business, whether it be bracelets, necklaces, earrings, there is much more fashion to those as uh than there is in the bridal space. And so combination of partnering with the right designer brands and also having our own in-house design folks who work with manufacturers to come up with our house brand line, if you will, uh keeps us up on trends. And we're watching trends, whether it be clothing, fashion, shoes, um watches, whatever it may be, you end up picking up little pieces of other fashion type uh decisions that are being made.

SPEAKER_01 15:00

Yeah, great. Thanks for sharing. And what have been some pinch me moments of your career so far where you stand back and go, well, this has happened or that's happened?

SPEAKER_00 15:09

Uh from a from a positive or a negative?

SPEAKER_01 15:11

Uh it can be both, but yeah, I'd say positive. We'll go positive.

SPEAKER_00 15:15

Well, positive was, you know, I I think I made the right decision jumping into the CEO role back in uh 2020. Um, you know, sometimes I go, what the hell was I thinking? Um it's been a great experience. It's kind of forced me out of my comfort zone of hiding behind the scenes. Um, so that that's been really great. Um, I think you know, it's been challenging. There's been a lot of headwinds in in in certain parts of the industry over time. Um there are competitive dynamics that change from time to time. You know, we're we're in an interesting uh category. We you compete with large retailers that have thousands of stores, and you compete with the the family jeweler down the street who is fifth generation. And so we kind of have to navigate and and and protect our ourselves against each of those and be very nimble in that.

SPEAKER_01 16:18

Tremendous. And what excites you most about the future of Robin Robin's brothers?

SPEAKER_00 16:23

So my my my expectation and hope is to to grow the business. Uh, we'd love to have more stores uh than we have today. Like I said, we have 14. We're not looking to get 50 or 100 or anything like that, but if we go 14, 16, 18 and keep it close, replicate the model that we've now developed here in our Pasadena location, and really become the jeweler of choice in the communities that we serve. Not looking to be uh a national brand, but really a tried and trusted retailer for the consumer to buy all of their jewelry needs over a lifetime, whether it be the engagement ring, the wedding ban, the anniversary ban, the push present, um, the I got promoted, I want to buy you something nice, whatever it may be, Mother's Day, Father's Day, uh, that's really where we want to play.

SPEAKER_01 17:21

Wonderful. And how do you um stay grounded as a leader?

SPEAKER_00 17:26

Um, I'm a generally a pretty down-to-earth, humble guy. Um, this is this is a little bit out of my comfort zone in itself. Uh, and and so I just try to be who I am. Um I I don't I try not to take myself too seriously. I love to speak with people, I love to learn, I love to challenge, I love to mentor, and uh I just love to be around folks who are passionate about what we're doing here, Robbins Brothers.

SPEAKER_01 17:58

Great. And how do you manage um personal life and work life?

SPEAKER_00 18:04

Um fairly easily. Fortunately, um my kids are grown, and so um that's less of a challenge than it might have been 15 years ago. Um, you know, in today's world of technology, you could be connected all the time, wherever you are, whatever you're doing. I sometimes have to be mindful of put them, put down the damn phone and not worry about emails. Um, I'm not gonna say it's easy. Uh I'm a workaholic. I'm pretty committed to very committed to the business, but I'm able to balance it pretty well. Um I give the personal life the necessary time, and I probably over-index towards the business life.

SPEAKER_01 18:48

Um, and what's the what's the best piece of advice you've ever received? And what's the best piece of advice you would give someone? Um, especially I guess someone that's relevant to what you're doing on what then might what might happen in the future as a CEO, potential CEO.

SPEAKER_00 19:02

So the probably the best personal advice I ever got was don't come to conclusions based on what you learned in a textbook. You know, the textbooks throughout your educational time gives you pretty black and white. And, you know, it might the textbook answer may be right in 30%, 40%, 50%, but you can't just rely upon that all the time without taking into consideration all the variables. And the textbook never takes into consideration all of the variables, and so that's something that I've learned early on in my career the hard way, because you know, you come out of school, you're a young whipper snapper, and you know everything. And pretty quickly you realize you don't know a whole hell of a lot. Um and what the advice I would give is don't take things for face value, ask lots of questions, and you know, just to have the dialogue, challenge people, challenge them to understand their thought process and the logic behind what they're coming to you with, empower them to make a decision. So you don't want to squash any of their creative thoughts or ideas by saying, no, you can't do that, but try to come to something where the the answer turns out to be well thought through and coming from a place of good thought and taking into consideration all the variables that go into making that decision.

SPEAKER_01 20:44

That's great, really great advice, terrific. Um, and if you Aiden again, you could change anything, it could be personally or professionally. What would you change?

SPEAKER_00 20:53

Um, so I started out thinking I was going to be a doctor, but never made it through pre-med too well. So I'm not sure if I would have pursued that instead. Uh if I didn't, I probably would have gotten out of my financial comfort zone much earlier in my career. Because although it took me till way into my career to do it, I think I probably would have experienced more, had more fun in hindsight, uh, and not be so stuck with oh, this is how I've always operated. This is my job, this is what my career path is intended to be. I would have forced myself out of my own comfort zone, which is probably why I give people that advice today. You know, don't don't take there's no single path through your life or through your career. Experience lots of different things and build yourself through evolution and rounding rather than single minded, single focus, one direction.

SPEAKER_01 22:00

Awesome. And if you weren't at Robins Brothers, what would you be doing?

SPEAKER_00 22:06

I would probably be a hired CFO for the next private equity company that's looking to get sold. Because that's that's what I've been doing for a while. Um you know, it was it it was just kind of the path that I was taking. Um I I was passionate about it, but as I've learned, not nearly as passionate about building something that has a a much longer standing legacy behind it, which is what we're trying to do here at Robins Brothers.

SPEAKER_01 22:35

Incredible. Mark, thanks for coming on the podcast. I do appreciate it. It's incredible everything you've done, you're doing, and Robin's brothers. I wish him nothing but the best. And yeah, thank you so much for coming on.

SPEAKER_00 22:45

Pleasure. Thanks very much.